Pizza Hut Book It! Program Celebrates 30th Anniversary by Awarding a Kindergartener $30,000 College Fund

Pizza Hut’s BOOK IT!, the longest-running children's literacy program in the U.S., is celebrating its 30th anniversary of inspiring a love of reading among young people by giving one lucky child $30,000 towards their college education. The randomly selected winner of the BOOK IT! Giveaway was Courtney Abbott, Kindergartener from Madison, Wisconsin. Courtney reached her goal of reading 20 books a month for 6 months – reading a total of 120 books!

To celebrate the occasion, Pizza Hut of Southern Wisconsin hosted a pizza party for students at the Glenn Stephens Elementary school where they presented Courtney and her family with a check for the $30,000 College Fund.

To continue its Anniversary celebration, Pizza Hut named Restaurant General Manager (RGM) Kristy Monahan Smith of Carrollton, Missouri the Connect with Effect: BOOK IT! Champion. This award recognizes and celebrates the Pizza Hut RGM who consistently goes above and beyond in their commitment to the BOOK IT! Program. This individual is a role model in his or her restaurant and community for actively recognizing students for meeting reading goals, partnering with schools to support reading and other school-related initiatives. This RGM is someone who we believe sets the standard for celebrating reading with flavorful moments at Pizza Hut! Congratulations to Kristy on the recognition for being a true BOOK IT! Champion!

To learn more about the Pizza Hut BOOK IT! program, visit http://www.bookitprogram.com.