Public charity · Goodlettsville
Dollar General Literacy Foundation
Its tax filing doesn't say how to apply. Check its website or call before sending anything.
Key facts
- Grants in Tennessee
- 81 totaling $2.5 million · 1 in Rhea County
- Typical grant
- $8,000 to $18,000 (the middle half of its Tennessee grants)
- A realistic first ask
- About $10,000, its middle Tennessee grant. First-time winners usually get less than repeat ones.
- Where it gives
- Davidson County, Shelby County, Knox County, Rutherford County, Williamson County, Scott County, Sullivan County, Sumner County and 9 more · plus 483 grants outside Tennessee
- Buildings & equipment
- 1 of its Tennessee grants went to buildings, renovations or equipment, e.g. “Building bilingual l”
- Funds new groups?
- 44% of the Tennessee groups it funded in 2025 were new (not funded in 2024): 35 of 79.
- Total giving that year
- $18.7 million
Giving by year
| Tax year | Total grants paid | To Tennessee | Tennessee grants |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $18.7M | $2.5M | 81 |
| 2024 | $18.1M | $3.4M | 70 |
How to apply
Public charities don't report how to apply on their IRS return. Check its website for open grant rounds, or search GrantMe for its programs.
Board and officers
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Checked in your browser only. The names are kept on this device for other foundation pages and are never sent to GrantMe.
- Todd VasosChairman
- Rhonda TaylorSecretary
- Rod WestDirector
- Kathy ReardonDirector
- Anita ElliottTreasurer
- Barbara SpringerDirector
- Steve BrophyDirector
- Jeff RiceVice preside
- Cal Turner JrChairman eme
As listed in its 2025 IRS filing. Many foundations decide through their board, so a personal connection often matters more than a perfect application.
What it funds most often
- English as a second
- Atoz family
- Literacy support for
- Bim family literacy
- Literacy changes liv
- Family literacy day
- Youth literacy partn
- Club read-murfreesbo
Tennessee organizations it funded
Rhea County grants are listed first, then the largest. Past winners are good people to ask what the foundation looks for. Select a group to see who else funds it.
| Past winner | Where | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rhea County Adult Literacy Council | Dayton, Rhea County | Adult basic educatio | $8,000 |
| Nashville Public Library Foundation | Nashville, Davidson County | Limitless libraries | $500K |
| YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee | Nashville, Davidson County | YWCA Nashville's fam | $230K |
| Pencil Foundation | Nashville, Davidson County | Dg pencil box: provi | $200K |
| Nashville Adult Literacy Council I | Nashville, Davidson County | Donor appreciation e | $185K |
| YMCA of Middle Tennessee | Nashville, Davidson County | YMCA youth literacy | $175K |
| Governor's Early Literacy Foundatio | Nashville, Davidson County | Librotad | $80K |
| Tennessee College Access and Succes | Nashville, Davidson County | Goal collective (gro | $75K |
| Communities in Schools of Tennessee | Nashville, Davidson County | Integrated students | $50K |
| Greenbrier Elementary School | Greenbrier, Robertson County | Kellanova reading re | $50K |
| Raising Readers Nashville | Nashville, Davidson County | Raising readers nash | $50K |
| Martha O'bryan Center | Nashville, Davidson County | Mobc adult education | $48K |
| Nashville International Center for | Nashville, Davidson County | Nice - adult and fam | $48K |
| Nashville Public Television | Nashville, Davidson County | Learning to read int | $40K |
| Teach for America | Nashville, Davidson County | Tackling literacy in | $30K |
| Backfield in Motion | Nashville, Davidson County | Bim family literacy | $28K |
| Fiftyforward | Nashville, Davidson County | Foster grandparent p | $25K |
| Project Transformation Tennessee I | Nashville, Davidson County | Project transformati | $25K |
| Tennessee Performing Arts Center | Nashville, Davidson County | Tpac education - art | $25K |
| Glencliff High School | Nashville, Davidson County | Glencliff pace acade | $20K |
| Homework Hotline | Nashville, Davidson County | Homework hotline mat | $20K |
| Gallatin Shalom Zone Inc. | Gallatin, Sumner County | English as a second | $18K |
| Nashville Pbs | Nashville, Davidson County | Npt family literacy | $18K |
| Read to Succeed | Murfreesboro, Rutherford County | Family literacy | $18K |
| Book Em | Nashville, Davidson County | Youth literacy partn | $15K |
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