Two quick ways to help improve literacy -- and upward mobility
A month after our wedding, my husband, Tony, and I moved out of our third-floor apartment. After lugging a huge trunk filled with books down three flights of stairs, Tony wiped the sweat from his face and said, “You really need to get rid of some of these books.”
I looked at him with a mixture of confusion, anger and sadness and blurted out, “Are you crazy? Books are my one true love!”
Thankfully, we are still married.
There were many parts of my childhood that were just a swirling hot mess, but books were a constant companion. They were my escape route and a calming presence. The stacks of books that fill my home still serve as my grown-up security blanket.
Books saved my life. At the very least, they changed the trajectory of my life.
Being a proficient reader helped me do well school, which eventually lead to a scholarship to college. I was upwardly mobile due in large part to my love of books. Upward mobility is an issue that beleaguers Charlotte.
According to the Charlotte-area literacy non-profit Promising Pages, only 40 percent of Charlotte-Mecklenburg School third graders can read at grade level. Children who can’t read proficiently by third grade are four times more likely to drop out of high school.
Having easily accessible books helps children become better readers, but there are more than 60,000 children being raised in homes with few, if any, books of their own.
Kristina Cruise, founder and executive director of Promising Pages, said, “These children live in families who are fighting for basic essentials such as food and shelter.”
Promising Pages was created from a desire to show underserved children that they could accomplish their dreams and goals with a love of reading. Promising Pages collects, cleans and distributes more than 100,000 up-cycled books annually.
“At Promising Pages we aim to support not only children, but the school system as a whole so our students can get the best possible education available,” Cruise said. “Promising Pages is about supporting children; books are just our main medium.”
Over the past five years, Promising Pages has collected more than 500,000 donated books that have been put back into the community.
Children who are born in poverty in our area are likely to stay in poverty. Giving them access to books and helping them cultivate a love for reading is a simple way to help break this vicious cycle. I am living proof of this.
It is simple to donate your gently used books to Promising Pages (and, yes, even I have given up some of my beloved books…OK, maybe they were my daughter’s, but in my defense, Promising Pages’ greatest need is books geared toward kindergarten through third grade).
If you are donating fewer than 100 books, you can drop them off in front of Carolina Business Interiors (4020 Yancey Road) and/or in front of The Last Word Bookstore (5744 N. Tryon St.). See drop-off specifications here.
If you don’t have a lot of children’s books hanging around, it is easy to make monetary donations that could support a child, a classroom or a school. Donate here.
For more ways to help increase literacy and therefore upward mobility, check out Promising Pages’ website.
You can also get involved by nominating one of the many unsung literacy heroes for a Bookie Award. This year, with The Bookie Awards, Promising Pages will honor Charlotte-area literary advocates.
“Let’s face it, most literacy work goes uncredited,” Cruise said. “The Bookie Awards celebrate the amazing work that the people are doing.”
The Bookie Awards will be held on Friday, Nov. 3, 2017. Nominations for awards such as “Best Reading Tutor,” “Best Librarian” and “Best Budding Bookworm” are open until 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 1.
Photos: Promising Pages
This story was originally published September 28, 2017 at 9:00 PM with the headline "Two quick ways to help improve literacy -- and upward mobility."