DURHAM, N.C. - The newly established First Book-Duke University board will distribute free books to children in literacy programs in the Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership.

Duke University's Office of Durham and Regional Affairs formed an official First Book Campus Advisory Board through the national nonprofit organization First Book. The advisory board, comprised of Duke staff and students, is set to begin accepting applications from eligible Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership programs within a few weeks.

"The formation of our First Book-Duke University Campus Advisory Board provides our office with yet another resource for supporting and strengthening our neighborhood partners," said Phail Wynn, Jr., vice president for Durham and regional affairs at Duke. "It is our goal that all children in Durham will have access to books, regardless of their economic status."

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First Book is a national nonprofit organization whose mission is to give children from low income families the opportunity to read and own their first new books. Since its inception nearly 20 years ago, First Book has distributed more than 60 million free and low-cost books to disadvantaged children and the programs that serve them.

For more information about First Book, visit www.firstbook.org.