Toms River Schools 1 Of 2 Districts To Win NEA Reading Program Grant

TOMS RIVER, NJ — The Toms River Regional School District has been awarded a $14,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts Big Read program for a community-wide reading program that that will tie into the fifth anniversary of Superstorm Sandy.

It is one of two school districts nationwide to receive a grant in the first year the National Endowment for the Arts included school districts in the program, which awarded 75 grants to not-for-profit organizations the 2017-18 time period.

The program is "designed to broaden our understanding of our world, our communities, and ourselves through the joy of sharing a good book,” according to the NEA.

Applicants were asked to choose from a diverse pool of 28 NEA-approved contemporary books, and design around it a relevant and impactful literacy program that includes book discussions, special events, and thematic projects, according to a news release from the district.

The district selected "Station Eleven," a bestselling, post-apocalyptic novel by author Emily St. John Mandel. In the book, a flu pandemic creates chaos and loss for its central characters, who attempt to keep humanity alive through the arts. Through this lens, the district’s NEA Big Read will facilitate discussions and reflections on Superstorm Sandy and its effect on Toms River. The monthlong program will take place throughout October 2017, five years to the month after the storm, officials said.

“The elements of 'Station Eleven' that link to Superstorm Sandy will provide a unique opportunity for reflection and catharsis for Toms River,” said Tonya Rivera, the district's high school English supervisor, who worked with grant writer Mike Kenny to select the book. “That this program will take place exactly five years after the storm is seamless, an ideal time to consider its impact on all of us. Besides that, the book is an enjoyable, engaging, and suspenseful novel that I think our students and community will be eager to discuss.”

“NEA Big Read will be an extraordinary, emotional, and fun way for our students, families, and community to connect through a single book,” Superintendent David Healy said. “We are thrilled to have earned the opportunity to host a literacy campaign on this scale. Our vision is to bring all of Toms River together for programs and events that we’ll be talking about for years to come.”

"Station Eleven" will be included on the summer reading list for the district's high school students; it will be dispersed in schools and throughout the community in creative ways; and programs will be designed to meet individual needs, like those of English Language Learners (ELLs).

“It’s exciting when an opportunity comes along like this to address an educational goal for our students while at the same time building community,” Board of Education President Ben Giovine said. “The board eagerly and excitedly supports the district’s hosting of NEA Big Read.”

The program is not limited to the school district but is meant to engage the whole community, officials said. The district is working with the Ocean County Library, and Jeannie Collacott, OCL’s teen services systems coordinator; the Toms River branch of the library will stock hundreds of copies of the novel and will host NEA Big Read’s kick-off event Oct. 2.

Other community partners include the Greater Toms River Chamber of Commerce, the Jay and Linda Grunin Foundation, Ocean County Long Term Recovery Group, Toms River Fire Company No. 1, and Ocean County College, officials said.

“It’s exciting when an opportunity comes along like this to address an educational goal for our students while at the same time building community,” Board of Education President Ben Giovine said. “The board eagerly and excitedly supports the district’s hosting of NEA Big Read.”

"Station Eleven" touches on a number of topics: the science of pandemic disease, the performing arts, literature, psychology, celebrity culture, and graphic arts and fits with the district's efforts to have students experience different subjects as an integrated whole, officials said.

Participants will not only be encouraged to read and discuss the novel, but will also use it as a source of inspiration to create projects, perform, write poems or essays, or produce comic art. The makerspaces at each high school, Ocean County Library, and the district’s Jersey Shore Makerfest in October will provide venues to do so.

More details on the program’s timeline, which will include an Oct. 19 event at High School North’s theater featuring an address by Rep. Tom MacArthur, a panel discussion at Ocean County College featuring the book’s author, and integration with the Toms River Halloween Parade, will be released at a later date, officials said.

Photo by Mario Antonio Pena Zapateria, via Flickr under Creative Commons license