Snapdragon Book Foundation Application 2015

Please describe the student population served by your school:MLK Elementary is a Title I school in the Dougherty County School System in Albany, Georgia. The majority of students are African American and 99% percent of the student population lives in poverty. The MLK school zone pulls from a high crime area within Albany; Albany itself has more than double the state and national crime rate. MLKs School Improvement Plan presents measurements and indicators and depicts the struggles of MLK students. The plan clearly shows a need for an increase of academic achievement. MLKs College and Career Readiness Performance Index (CCRPI) data defines reading as an alert subject with only 57.3% of students meeting minimum state CRCT standards in reading; in Math, only 58.3% of students are achieving minimum state CRCT standards. The SIP also presents data regarding Lexile levels in Reading as an indicator of Post Elementary Readiness; currently, only 6.6% of third graders are achieving a reading level greater than 650. School data shows that out of 525 students at MLK, 445 of them are receiving Early Intervention Program (EIP) services; a percentage of 85. In 2013, the district made a drastic effort to support student achievement by moving teachers from a higher performing school to MLK. The school and the students have undergone many transitions as a result. The current administration, teachers and community partners such as the YMCA are committed to seeing academic improvements in these students and reading has been an increased focus of everyone involved.

The ProjectTitle: Mirrors & WindowsDescription of Project:The media center at Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary is seeking funds for the purchase of 100 multicultural books to be added to the shelves for circulation. These titles will ensure that all students at MLK are able to find books that mirror their own experiences and provide opportunities to look through a window at other cultures and races. The project will support the schools increased focus on reading and will help to motivate students to read more books, more often.

The CostPlease provide the amount requested as well as a description of how the funds will be spent. You may attached a detailed title list if applicable, but it's not required at this point.Total Amount Requested: $1,500Description of how funds will be spent: Funds will be entirely spent on the purchase of multicultural titles for the media center. The hope is that 100 new multicultural titles will be added to the shelves at MLK. The media specialist will use suggested and reviewed booklists from sources like Reading is Fundamental, a national literacy nonprofit, to guide the purchase of the books. An average of $15 per book has been estimated to include the purchase of books and processing fees.

The StoryWe want to know your school and students through this part of the application. Please tell us here why you believe in this project and its impact on your students and school.The basic goal of Mirrors and Windows will be to get more books into the hands of students at MLK Elementary to help motivate the students to read. The students at this school are struggling readers only one child in the entire school reads above a fifth grade level and many are more than one grade level below their current grade. At its core, more books allow for more variety that will peak student interest. Any book on the New Books shelves automatically spurs enthusiasm and interest and with 100 new titles, there will be many smiling faces in the media center at MLK.New titles alone would be a tremendous addition to MLK but Mirrors & Windows will have a greater purpose. All 100 titles will be recommended and reviewed multicultural titles for early grades. These titles will work to act as both mirrors and windows for the students at MLK, allowing them first to see themselves reflected in a book and then allow for connections with other cultures and races. This idea of windows and mirrors has been most famously promoted by childrens literature scholar Rudine Sims Bishop. The concept of a book acting as a mirror implies that readers see something of themselves in the text their identity, culture, or experiences. When readers are able to find themselves in a text, they are validated and this connects readers even more strongly to the larger world of books. The reality for many readers, however, is that they do not see reflections of themselves in childrens literature (Journal of Children Literature, 2014). This is true for the students at MLK and for many students across the nation. According to statistics from Lee & Low, 37% of the US population consists of people of color but in the last twenty years only 10% of published childrens books contain multicultural content. For the students at MLK, books that will act as mirrors are desperately needed. Research suggests that the lack of children of color in bookscan affect childrens self-confidence, engagement, and reading levels. The students need to be able to relate to the characters in the books they are reading. Currently, most of the books that give them a mirrored view of other African Americans are biographies. Titles about Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, and George Washington Carver are very popular but may still be hard to relate to. At MLK, there are only a handful of books that have African American children as characters. When a student does happen upon one of the multicultural titles, they get excited and start to show off their find with fellow students. It is the books they can see themselves in that they come in and talk about with the staff and then suggest to their friends. Books can also be windows to the world for readers and sometimes books may be the only place where readers may meet people who are not like themselves. Albany, Georgia population consists of 72% African American, 24% White, 2% Hispanic, 1% Asian, and 1% is coded as Other. Students at MLK live on the east side of Albany, a predominately African American community in a high poverty, high crime area. Students live in a town, a neighborhood, and attend churches that dont provide windows to other worldviews, perspectives, and races. The books that Snapdragon will allow to be purchased will transform the way MLK students perceive other races and cultures and prepare them for cross-racial friendships Research suggests that multicultural books can have a real impact on the way children view and treat each other. A recent study evens shows how books that depict cross-racial friendships helps to build acceptance in young children (School Library Journal). The researchers stated that when searching for appropriate cross-group titles for their study they were able to find twelve books. With this in mind, the school hopes that Mirrors & Windows at MLK will act as a catalyst across the district to promote multicultural books in every library and bookstore throughout the community. Mirrors & Windows will motivate the students at MLK and to help foster a sense of self in the children. The hope is that not only will readers find themselves, but will also be able to start discovering new friends of different backgrounds and races in the pages of a book and with hope, even in real life. In the words of Rudine Sims Bishop: When there are books available that can act as both mirrors and windows for all our children, they will see that we can celebrate both our differences and our similarities, because together they are what make us all human.