(Rowan County, NC) First Horizon Foundation leaders visited Kiddie Land Child Development Center in Salisbury on March 11 to celebrate their gift of $5,500 to NC nonprofit ApSeed by seeing the results of their generosity in action.
First Horizon Foundation’s grant to ApSeed provided nearly 35 take-home touchpads to preschoolers at Kiddie Land. Each device is pre-loaded with educational games that teach letters, numbers, shapes, and colors to help ensure the kids are kindergarten-ready.
The foundation’s Senior Executive Assistant and Foundation Coordinator Dana Lamb joined ApSeed founder Greg Alcorn and its Executive Director Julie Morrow – plus special guest David Jordan, former Vice Chairman of CCB Financial Corporation and former mayor pro tem of Salisbury. Mr. Jordan attended on behalf of his son Bryan Jordan, the chairman, president, and chief executive officer of First Horizon Corporation, the parent company of First Tennessee Bank and FTN Financial.
The group enjoyed watching as the children rotated through learning stations around the classroom, including time using the ApSeed pre-K touchpad. The devices are provided to children at no cost – a value of $163.50 each – to use in the classroom and to take home to build on those skills outside of school time. Also, the touchpads do not connect to the internet and they don’t have a camera, making them as safe as possible for young learners.
“ApSeed educational touchpads make kindergarten-readiness fun,” says ApSeed Executive Director, Dr. Julie Morrow. “They are designed specifically to help preschool-aged children become better prepared to start kindergarten by teaching them the foundations of literacy.”
In 2022, thanks to a $2.5M grant from the NC Dept. of Public Instruction (DPI), ApSeed was able to provide 12,000 pre-K touchpads to children in 17 counties throughout North Carolina. But that was a one-time grant so ApSeed is actively looking for more public and private funders to meet the growing need.
ApSeed partners with childcare providers, school districts, and local or state agencies, to distribute take-home touchpads to any preschool-aged child, but especially to those in federally-sponsored Pre-K, Title 1, and Head Start programs or who are served by the WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) supplemental nutrition program.
“Every child deserves to succeed,” says ApSeed founder, Greg Alcorn. “ApSeed pre-K touchpads boost kindergarten readiness, which can dramatically improve the academic trajectory and the economic mobility of our youngest learners.”
About ApSeed
ApSeed’s produces and distributes its pre-K touchpads prepare children to be kindergarten-ready by teaching them the foundations of literacy (letters, numbers, shapes, and colors). Since 2016, the organization has delivered more than 25,000 touchpads – free of charge – to children in North and South Carolina, New York City, and even as far away as Zimbabwe.
About the First Horizon Foundation
First Horizon Foundation is the private charitable foundation of First Horizon National Corporation. Founded in 1993, the Foundation has donated more than $125 million to meet community needs. Grants from the Foundation support the following impact areas: Arts & Culture, Education & Leadership, Environment, Financial Literacy, and Health & Human Services. More information is available at firsthorizonfoundation.com.
About First Horizon
First Horizon Corp. (NYSE: FHN), with $85.1 billion in assets as of June 30, 2022, is a leading regional financial services company, dedicated to helping our clients, communities and associates unlock their full potential with capital and counsel. Headquartered in Memphis, TN, the banking subsidiary First Horizon Bank operates in 12 states across the southern U.S. The Company and its subsidiaries offer commercial, private banking, consumer, small business, wealth and trust management, retail brokerage, capital markets, fixed income, and mortgage services. First Horizon has been recognized as one of the nation’s best employers by Fortune and Forbes magazines and a Top 10 Most Reputable U.S. Bank. More information is available at www.FirstHorizon.com.