Sandy Chin Leads New Summer Reading Program at PS11 in New York

As a highly successful portfolio manager, Sandy Chin knows how to organize and get things done. After seeing a need at PS11, a public elementary school located on the West Side in New York City, she leaped into action. The kids needed books to read over the summer but for some families it would be a financial burden to buy them. PS11, also known as the William T. Harris School, proudly serves a diverse group of students- two low income housing projects feed into this school. Sandy Chin saw the solution that was needed.

Many children experience a summer slide in their reading skills over the summer because other activities trump the normal reading load students are challenged with during the year. In some cases, children may not read at all during the summer because they don't have access to books or because they are not encouraged to read. A three-month summer break is a long time and many children can begin to forget what they learned during the school year. It is not uncommon for children who don't read over the summer to actually backslide an entire reading grade level over those three months of reading inactivity. For Sandy Chin's son, who attends PS11 in New York City, this is not a problem because he has access to an ample supply of books and is eager to go to the local libraries in their neighborhood.

To keep children reading over the summer, many public libraries have initiated summer reading programs. However, many kids and their parents don't have the chance to go to the library. There's nothing quite like having a book of your very own, to hold, to touch, and to re-read as much as you like. Many children carry books around, holding them to their heart like beloved stuffed animals or dolls. A book often becomes a treasure to a child, and if they have books at the appropriate reading level, most children will indeed read them. Sandy Chin knows this very well, having fallen in love with books herself as a young child, with a particular penchant for English literature and science fiction and fantasy.

Sandy Chin and other volunteers decided to hold a summer book drive at PS11. Their goal was to collect used books that could then be given away for free to the kindergarten students at PS11. This way, all the kindergarten children would have books of their very own to take home for the summer break. They dubbed the effort, "Books, Boxes & Bodies," and they put out a call for book donations to be brought to the school the morning of June 19 and 20. Then they crossed their fingers and hoped they'd get enough books donated that every kindergartner at the school could take home several books.

Sandy Chin and the other volunteers actually got way more books than they bargained for. The response was overwhelming! Not only did they get enough books for all the kindergartners to take home, several books each for the summer, they got enough for the students in all the other grades to do the same. In fact, Sandy Chin actually got tendonitis from lifting so many heavy boxes filled with books. They counted more than three thousand books donated over the course of that week.

The school's first ever summer book drive was a learning experience that will serve them well during the next PS11 book drive. The volunteers had asked the kindergarten teachers for the reading levels of their students. However, the people who donated the books didn't know how to judge the appropriate reading level and they sometimes brought books that required a higher reading level than almost any kindergartner could handle. So, Sandy Chin, PS11 teachers, and other parents set about identifying each book's reading level and then sorting them according to grade and reading level before distributing them to the kids.

Sandy Chin and "PS11 book drive team" also know from other summertime reading programs that kids are much more apt to actually read the books they take home if they themselves are allowed to pick out their own books. However, kids may also pick books that are too difficult for their reading level if the selection included books above their reading level. Therefore, the sorting process was critical to the ultimate success of the summer reading program but there was a learning curve involved. Next year it should be easier now that they have the kinks worked out and hopefully other schools will follow Sandy Chin and PS11's example.

The children were absolutely thrilled with their free books. They also liked being able to pick out the books they wanted based on their individual interests. One happy child was seen clutching a dozen books and saying he had a "whole slew of books" to read for the summer. This brought a smile to Sandy Chin's face as well as the other adults who helped put this incredible program together. It also shows how much good a few people can do if they just roll up their sleeves and pitch in.

Sandy Chin says that PS11 is a "very special" school. She points to how involved the PTA is and how they are able to raise enough money to purchase school supplies for kids at no cost to the families. Sandy went on to say, "This takes one worry away for families who may not be able to provide the requisite school supplies. The new summer book program will take away another worry for the parents and it will help prevent the dreaded summer in students!" Not only that, it's a feel-good activity for all involved!

Books have a very special meaning to Sandy Chin in her personal life as well. She is a mother of two, three if you count Abby, her twelve-year-old pampered pouch. She shares the passion she has for books with her son, Taggart and daughter Nolan and named them after fictional characters in two of her favorite books. So for Sandy, her children are living breathing tributes to the power of reading. Sandy hopes that her children will grow up loving to read as much as she did when she was little and still does. She knows firsthand the lasting value that books can give a child.

After more than twenty years in the financial sector, Sandy Chin now runs her own hedge fund company, Tidal Bore Capital, along with her business partner and respected mentor, Bill Leach, now retired. Sandy achieved her success due to her keen mind, her dedication to working hard, and her motivation to go above and beyond on every project. If you meet Sandy Chin, it's easy to see she has an industrious spirit and a huge heart. It's lucky for the students at PS11 that she put her professional skills and passion for reading to work for them.

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