Reading Solutions – March 2020

Happy Birthday CRA

March is birthday month at Children’s Reading Alliance (CRA). Counting from the very first meeting in 2011 we are nine years old or four years if you count from incorporation as our own 501 C(3) in 2016.

The Reading Solution column has been around since 2013 when I wrote this in our very first column:

“…If ever there was a community that gets a good idea and runs with it, that community is ours. Now our own unique brand of enthusiasm is directed to our children and their success in school. The need is obvious. Statistics tell a grim story. Thousands of third graders face retention because they are non-readers. State planners use third grade reading scores to predict future prison populations. But people aren’t statistics, and in our community, people are working to promote literacy …”

Now in 2020, more than ever, our community working to change the future is what we are celebrating today. March is full of activities that promote reading.

This weekend the theme for Read Across America activities is Celebrating Diversity Through Books.  Join NEA-LC & City of Las Cruces for a fun family event at Frank O’Brien Papen Center on March 14th 12:00- 2:30.  Stop by our table. We’ll be there with books!

The women of Las Cruces Junior League are promoting a simple yet fundamental truth about kids and books, “If you allow children choice and access, they will be more engaged.” Determined to help children choose books of their own, Jr. League’s Little Black Dress initiative is raising funds for a book celebration at a local elementary school. To make a donation please go to their website https://www.jllc.org/

Rio Grande Rotary Club is collecting gently loved children’s books. If you have books to contribute, please contact Di Maddox phone: (970) 443-7848.

Unitarian Universalist Church members recognize that literacy is fundamental to social justice and has chosen CRA for their monthly Change for Change program.

At Children’s Reading Alliance headquarters, we are celebrating a few milestones too. The U.S. Department of Patents and Trademarks has issued a trademark to First Teacher/Primer Maestrotm.

Dr. Elaine Hampton has finished a multi-year Impact Study to measure the long-lasting behavioral changes that occur in families after a parent has completed the First Teacher/Primer Maestro program. Study results are available on the CRA website. www.childrensreadingalliance.org

CRA welcomes Audrey Hartley as our Executive Director. Hartley brings extensive managerial and non-profit experience. She received Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from New Mexico State University, and a certification in Early Childhood Education from Dona Ana Community College. Hartley is the author of the children’s book Colors for Michaela.

Jennifer Alvarado joins CRA as Programs’ Manager after ten years of experience in early childhood education. Alvarado earned a Bachelor’s degree at New Mexico State, and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Speech and Language Pathology.

Wish us a Happy Birthday! The Alliance relies on your generosity to fund our many programs. For more information or to donate to the Children’s Reading Alliance, call Audrey Hartley or Jennifer Alvarado at 575-522-3713.

RAISING READERS TOGETHER

Rorie Measure

President/ Board Chair