SWOCC release – Remember that feeling when you were a kid and went to the library to check out a stack of books you couldn’t wait to bring home to read? Or when you received a book as a gift and it quickly became your favorite – one that you read over and over? Modeled after the Springfield Gift of Literacy Program, the Rotary Clubs and school districts of North Bend, Coos Bay, Reedsport, Bandon, Coquille, Myrtle Point and Powers, along with South Coast ESD, and Southwestern Oregon Community College are partnering to give children on the South Coast that same excitement and love of reading. This well-established, time-tested, award-winning program encourages a love of reading among young children. Through a multi-club Rotary District Grant matched by local clubs, every first-grader in each of the club’s coastal communities are participating in this enriching six-month literacy program. The Gift of Literacy Program will culminate in a festive celebration on Wednesday, May 2, 2018, at Southwestern Oregon Community College, when more than 600 first-graders from the South Coast will be transported by bus to the college to attend an assembly and receive a cinch bag filled with fun swag … and a brand-new book! The six selected books, chosen by Coos County librarians and educators, are a wonderful and diverse mix. Each first-grade classroom received a set of the books in November. Teachers or guest readers read the books in the classroom. Then each first-grade student chose his or her favorite title among the six hardbound books, which is what they will receive at the May 2 Gift of Literacy celebration. The importance and enjoyment of reading will be reinforced with the acquisition of a library card. First-graders also will be introduced to a college campus, where they can get a glimpse of college life. “All Rotarians are committed to promoting literacy, both in the United States and abroad,” said Southwestern President and local Rotarian Dr. Patty M. Scott, who helped organize the event. “We are proud to celebrate and promote literacy for our local first-grade students!” For more information please visit: http://southcoastorgiftofliteracy.org/.
