CELEBRATING READING at Scholarship Prep in Santa Ana, CA

Reading Room at Scholarship Prep, Santa Ana, CA

Two weeks ago I visited Scholarship Prep school in Santa Ana, California, and gave two presentations, one to third graders and one to seventh graders. We met in the beautiful new reading room furnished by the Carson Scholars Fund. Every year, in November, the Fund celebrates with its partner schools a National Day of Reading in conjunction with American Education Week.
The Carson Scholars Fund is an educational non-profit organization that provides financial grants for schools to create leisure reading spaces for students in the belief that developing a love for reading at a young age is a key to success. At Scholarship Prep the reading room has comfy chairs, pillows, book cases and a beautiful mural echoing the sea life theme of the decorations.
I appreciated the students' enthusiasm for my presentation and their good questions. I hope that my visit will inspire their future reading and writing! Each classroom at Scholarship Prep has the name of a major university. The third graders were excited when I showed a picture of my childhood in Wisconsin, since their university is Wisconsin. I told the seventh graders that my cousin graduated from Northwestern University, their classroom name. Perhaps in a few years, some of the Scholarship Prep students will go to one of these universities.

Scholarship Prep School: "Reach Higher. Dream Bigger."

I thank Marcos Rodriguez, the California Expansion Coordinator of the Carson Scholars Fund for arranging my visit and Principal Dennise Allotey for welcoming me to the school. Reading has always been important to me, so I was pleased to be able to share my love of books and reading with the students at Scholarship Prep.