Dear Facebook Friends: I hope this letter finds you all doing extremely well. I’m writing to seek your assistance with an issue of grave concern. Many of you may know the new career path I’m currently pursuing, but for those of you who don’t, let me update you on my life: after law school, I took a position with Teach for America, a national non-profit whose goal is providing education equality to all children, agreeing to teach for at least two years in a high poverty area. I’m now living and teaching in the tiny community of Lexington, Mississippi, a lovely community on the edge of the Mississippi Delta. It is a loving and caring community, but one cannot hide from the inescapable truth that it is one of the poorest counties not just in Mississippi but in all the United States. My days here thus far have been exceedingly challenging, but I can safely say that the struggles I’ve faced pale in comparison to those the students face daily. That being said, these students here need your help. A shocking statistic tells us that in high poverty areas, such as Lexington, there is an average of one book for every three hundred children. This statistic highlights the gravity of the situation down here: kids NEED books. Study after study, expert after expert all tell the same thing: the biggest factor to students gaining ground in their reading ability is that they read and read often. That’s where you can help these children help themselves. My hope is that you will visit my class’s Amazon Wish List page, pick a book (or two or ten!), select my shipping address here in Lexington, and donate books to stock our classroom library. The students show a great appetite for independent reading, but without enough books for all students, I can’t in good conscience send books home with some students while not being able to do it for ALL students. The list is filled with popular titles, and even if the site tells you that someone has already sent those books, please don’t let that stop you—multiple copies of these books are most appreciated! Lastly, your job wouldn’t end there (not that you haven’t done enough)—my request is that you send this letter/email on to YOUR friends, family, coworkers, neighbors, and anyone else with an email account. The link to the Wish List is found below. Please repost this on your page or copy the URL and email it to anyone and everyone you know. Shopping is very easy for Amazon users. If you’re new and would like to donate, follow the steps on the site to set up an account so that you can donate. Lastly, let me say thank you for whatever you can do to help our class. If you know of another book missing from the list, feel free to send it instead. We can never have too many books or too wide a variety of books. These kids deserve a fighting chance, and many are willing to put in the work to lift themselves up by the bootstraps, and they shouldn’t be prevented from doing so solely by a lack of resources. Thank you again, from me, from my students, from J.J. McClain Middle School, and from Teach for America—we couldn’t do this without you. Sincerely, Cary Littlejohn
Posted on: Wed, 04 Sep 2013 02:31:20 +0000