HARTFORD, Conn., December 7, 2007 – More than 100 members of the Greater Hartford community gathered November 29 at Trinity College for “Building a Community of Readers,” an event celebrating literacy and local volunteers making a difference in Hartford through literacy outreach. Elementary school children and their parents, college students, faculty, and staff, literacy advocates and volunteers, and other interested members of the Hartford community attended. The event was made even more timely, as many in the audience noted, because of the recent release by the National Endowment for the Arts of a new study showing “startling declines in how much and how well Americans read” (http://www.nea.gov/news/news07/TRNR.html).
Sponsored by ConnectiKids, the Greater Hartford Literacy Council, and Trinity College, with support from the Aetna Foundation, the evening began with a reception, followed by a reading of original literary works by M.D. Fox Elementary School students, a panel discussion about literacy, and an awards presentation.
More than 40 4th and 5th grade students visit Trinity from M.D. Fox Elementary School every Thursday afternoon for tutoring/mentoring sessions formed in partnership between ConnectiKids and the Trinity English department’s Literature Club. During the weeks leading up to the celebration, the M.D. Fox students worked with their tutors – over 40 Trinity students and staff – to write poems and stories that could be shared at “Building a Community of Readers.” Eight of the M.D. Fox students read their original literary works aloud to the audience while their school principal, Michael Lorenzo, stood by proudly.
A panel discussion, “An Exploration of Literacy: Where We Are and What Still Needs to Be Done,” was moderated by Robert F. Peltier, senior lecturer in the Allan K. Smith Center for Writing and Rhetoric at Trinity, and featured:
• Judy Carson, consultant, Connecticut State Department of Education
• Carl Guerriere, executive director of the Greater Hartford Literacy Council
• Destiany Hunter, ConnectiKids alumna and 11th grader at A.I. Prince Technical High School
• Michael Lorenzo, principal, M.D. Fox Elementary School
This was followed by the recognition of individuals for their literacy outreach efforts and accomplishments, including:
• Miriam Epstein of Manchester, creator of “Books to Dreams,” a literacy program for children in homeless shelters and at soup kitchens
• Destiany Hunter of Hartford, longtime participant in the ConnectiKids after-school program (now a ConnectiKids alumna), currently a junior at A.I. Prince Technical High School, and an excellent student who wants to become a lawyer and is involved in numerous after-school activities
• Pamela Nomura of Chester, chair of creative writing at the Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts and coordinator of Trinity’s Poets in the Schools Program
In addition, several long-time ConnectiKids volunteers who have served at their workplaces as tutors/mentors with multiple students during the past decade were recognized. The honorees included:
Aetna: Jane Condron, Gary Moore, and Christopher Montross; CT Department of Public Health: Theodore Dunn, Angela Jimenez, and Olive Tronchin; CT Department of Developmental Services: Len Erazmus; The Hartford: Robin Harris, Brenda Schoen, and Nancy Stolfi; CT Department of Mental Health & Addiction Services: Adele Howard; CT Office of Policy and Management: Carolyn West.
The evening concluded with an announcement by M.D. Fox Elementary School and the Greater Hartford Literacy Council of the expansion of activities between the two organizations that includes book donations and parental involvement activities; all aimed at improving student achievement. In addition, all sponsors pledged to continue to build a community of readers.
Sheila M. Fisher, who chairs the English department at Trinity and who, along with Margaret Grasso of the English department, coordinates the College’s ConnectiKids tutoring site, said, “Every Thursday when I see dozens of college students and staff sitting side-by-side with 4th and 5th graders, reading together and getting to know each other, I realize what an impact we can have in building a community of readers. All of us involved in planning this celebration agreed it is equally important to applaud the positive momentum we are seeing in terms of literacy outreach, and explore other ways to collaborate in support of literacy and learning. It is our hope that this first celebration of literacy at Trinity will become an annual event.”
The idea for the celebration of literacy and literacy volunteers at Trinity was suggested by Old Lyme poet and painter Mary O’Connor, former director of communications at Trinity. A champion of literacy, O’Connor is donating all proceeds from the sale of her recently published book, Dreams of a Wingless Child, to the Freedom Writers, the group whose story was told in the movie of the same name, starring Hilary Swank. In so doing, as with the November 29th event, O'Connor hopes to reinforce the power of writing for youngsters to achieve their dreams and to decrease high school dropout rates.