Students in Renee Ferretti-Smith’s fourth-grade class at Rainbow Elementary School peruse the array of choices from Partners in Outreach, a nonprofit that donated the books to improve literacy.
Partners in Outreach distributes 1,400 free titles to grade-schoolers
A wonderful array of book choices greeted more than 1,400 grade-school students last month in the Coatesville Area School District, courtesy of Partners in Outreach (PIO).
To help improve literacy, the nonprofit distributed new books to students at Caln and Rainbow Elementary Schools, through donations received and books collected by employees of the Exton Barnes and Noble. In three years, PIO has provided over 10,000 books to 15 schools, community centers, and literacy programs, a school news release said.
This year, teachers and administrators from Caln and Rainbow put in requests that supported grade-oriented literacy requirements. Titles requested by the teachers ranged from traditional favorites such as Charlottes Web to titles in the new, popular Skippyjon Jones series. Students were able to select a title and then take it home to keep.
Students in Melissa Landrum’s second-grade class at Caln Elementary School proudly show off their new books.
“It was a fantastic way to start the New Year for our students,” said Caln Elementary principal, Mary Jean Wilson-Stenz. “The teachers and students were so excited and much appreciative of the kindness and generosity of Partners in Outreach.”
Established in 2010, Partners in Outreach is a non-profit 501c(3) with a mission to provide compassion to those in need. With most of their efforts focused in Chester County, PIO has provided thousands of Easter outfits to families through Operation Easter Outfit, summer backpacks and camp supplies to hundreds of subsidized children through Summer Camp Partners, and food to the Chester County Food Bank. For more information on Partners in Outreach, visit www.partnersinoutreach.org.
