 "Photo: Rebecca Moore")
Mortar Board, the national senior college honor society at Texas Wesleyan, is hosting a book drive. Mortar Board’s national project is reading literacy.
“If you look at the statistics, a child that hasn’t learned how to read by the time they are in second grade will not graduate high school,” said Alice Wade, president of Mortar Board.
“Seven out of 10 will end up in jail.”
The book drive will benefit a school that caters to Pre-K through 12th grade students.
Mortar Board chose to work with a private school, Vision Academy.
“The school has 47 students they are currently helping,” Wade said. “A lot of them are low income and they live in this neighborhood.”
Pre-K through fourth grade children need books like Easy Readers, while upper grades need biographies, fiction and non-fiction.
“We have children 3 years old learning how to read, then we have students all the way up to 12th grade,” said Tiffanie Alexander, Visions Academy teacher.
Multiple copies of the same book are preferred so the entire class and teacher can read the book together, although single copies are accepted.
“I think this is a wonderful opportunity for the community to become aware that we are here and serving the community,” Alexander said. “It’s good for people to understand that there is a school in the community that provides all types of things outside of just teaching.”
Mortar Board placed collection boxes in strategic locations throughout the campus, including the library and student union building.
Mortar Board will collect books through March 29 and will present the books to the school at the Mortar Board induction ceremony and luncheon March 30.
Unused books will be recycled or sold to Half Price Books, depending on their condition, and the money will be used to purchase books that are needed, Wade said.
Wade hopes to make the drive a yearly event, ideally in the fall.
“This will be a good way to rally the kids together and get them out of their stupor from summer,” Alexander said.
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