LEWISVILLE, Texas — Elena Ford is helping students in Texas kickoff the new school year. Ford is championing a year-long series of events in Texas to help increase literacy among young students in underserved neighborhoods and boost learning in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math).

Elena Ford, Ford Motor Company’s chief customer experience officer, is championing a new wave of Ford Fund activities to increase literacy among young people from low-income families.

The visit is part of an ongoing collaboration between Ford Fund and the nonprofit First Book to address a local need for reading programs in North Texas. Ford, the chief customer experience officer at Ford Motor Company, helped launch the initiative in Dallas last March. The effort involves the donation of thousands of books, a host of reading parties, literacy activities and mentoring help from Ford employees and dealers.

Ford returned to Texas to participate in events at elementary schools in Lewisville and McKinney. The Lewisville event was hosted in partnership with Ford dealer owner Sam Pack and the Sam Pack Auto Group. The event in McKinney, hosted in partnership with Ford dealership owner Bob Tomes and Bob Tomes Ford.

Ford Fund invests more than $16 million each year to support education initiatives that help build stronger communities and make people’s lives better.