Mississippi Public Broadcasting's Between the Lions Preschool Literacy Initiative received a My Source Community Impact Award from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting today.

According to a release, CPB created the awards "to give well-deserved recognition to public television stations for their commitment to providing educational services to learners of all ages and abilities, all races and backgrounds, from preschoolers to senior citizens, as well as for the services the stations provide to teachers, parents and caregivers.

MPB's Between the Lions initiative was formed to help children develop strong foundations in basic reading skills by providing a hands-on curriculum, learning materials, professional development and education specialists who model activities using episodes from the national Emmy Award-winning Raising Readers series.

From September 2005 to January 2009, the MPB Between the Lions initiative made an impact on more than 90 childcare center classrooms, while reaching over 1500 children in Hinds, Madison and Rankin counties.

Visit Mississippi Public Broadcasting for more information.