The nomadic lifestyle
of military families can take a toll on children’s education.
To boost the school performance of 1,499 elementary school
students at Fort Belvoir Military Post in Fort Belvoir, Virginia,
three libraries in Fairfax County launched Project ExCELLS
(Excellence Coalition for Education, Literacy and Library
Services). Working together, the library staff has instituted
myriad library and literacy programs for both the students
and their parents. The project was funded by IMLS under a
2007 National Leadership Grant for Libraries and will serve
as a national model for organizations that serve transient
groups.
“We take a ‘more cowbell’
approach and throw as much as we can at the students, in terms
of library and literacy services, because we only have them
for a short period. It’s intense and takes a lot of
effort, but it works. We use anything, anybody, any resource
we can,” said Lory Monaco-Stevenson, a librarian at
Fort Belvoir Elementary School (FBES) who directs Project
ExCELLS with FBES librarian Ursula Reilly.
In addition to the school, Project ExCELLS members
include Richard Freeman, a librarian at Van Noy Army Library
on the Post, and Linda Masnik, branch director of the Kingstowne
Public Library, located just outside the post. The librarians
were determined to offer military families a complete array
of library services and programs, which became increasingly
difficult after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks
and subsequent security measures.
One of the coalition’s first priorities
was to raise the scores on standardized reading tests taken
by third graders. In 2000, Fort Belvoir third-grade students
achieved a pass rate of 70 percent compared to a 78 percent
pass rate of non-military Fairfax County students. With help
from Project ExCELLS, FBES’s third-grade pass rates
in 2008 soared to 83 percent compared to 88 percent achieved
by Fairfax County school students.
Last summer, children were not only reading better, they were
enjoying it more, said Monaco-Stevenson. Coalition participants
rang a cowbell to call children living on the post to the
book van. Children thronged to the designated spots where
they selected free books, listened to stories, and snacked
on popsicles and lollipops. The summer program and book van
was operated by 12 library interns from the University of
Virginia who earned school credit for researching, purchasing,
processing, cataloguing, and delivering the most popular children’s
books.
“It was a peak experience to know that
the kids were reading over the summer,” said Monaco-Stevenson.
“The school principal rode along in the van and met
new families. The reading teacher also rode with us. When
we came to a stop, she’d open up her lawn chair and
start reading to the kids.” The summer reading program
was a roaring success as were other Project ExCELLS “cowbells,”
including:
- A preschool literacy component that teaches parents reading
strategies to use with their children. Free books were given
away to all families in attendance.
- Programs about the history of dance, Native Americans,
robots, the ride of Rosa Parks, The Legend of Sleepy
Hollow and visits from award-winning authors at the
school and the Van Noy library.
- Family field trips to Jamestown, Williamsburg, museums
in Washington, D.C., including both of the Smithsonian’s
air and space museums and the National Museum of the American
Indian, the national Christmas tree lighting, Busch Gardens,
and a “teaching” ride on the Washington Metro
system.
- After-school homework help, reading help, and literacy
help for at-risk and “almost at-risk” children.
Certified teachers worked with very small groups to assess,
address, and challenge students in need.
- Book clubs to encourage a love of reading and give students
and families a chance to sit around and just chat about
a good story. Certified reading teachers led book discussions
in a no-stress/no-test atmosphere, with open discussions,
refreshments, and free books to participants.
“Project ExCELLS makes learning fun and
interesting for students and their families!” said Jane
Wilson, FBES principal. “I strongly feel that part of
our success in meeting the standards set by No Child Left
Behind can be attributed to the support of EXCELLS through
our summer book van, cultural assemblies, homework and book
clubs, as well as our literacy activities with parents.”
“We want to keep the project going after
the grant funding ends,” declared Monaco-Stevenson,
noting that many issues contribute to FBES’s ongoing
need for literacy services. Mobility is one of the biggest
factors: 35 percent of FBES students move to a new school
between September and June compared to 15 percent mobility
in students from non-military Fairfax County schools. Poverty
plays a role too. Approximately 39 percent of FBES students
receive free or reduced price lunches. In addition, FBES has
a large student population with medical issues. Students with
conditions ranging from asthma to sickle cell anemia attend
Fort Belvoir Elementary. Families with sick children can request
a move to Fort Belvoir post in order to take advantage of
its easy access to military hospitals in Bethesda, Maryland,
and Washington, DC.
In late 2009, Project ExCELLS staff will issue
a playbook of how libraries and schools can partner to serve
transient groups. This playbook will be especially useful
to schools and libraries that work with migrant farm workers,
minority populations who are moving to find affordable housing,
and people affected by natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina.
“We combined the public, base, and school
libraries to enhance the literacy skills of students and offer
them a triple service in a sense,” Monaco-Stevenson
said. “We have exposed them to the best services in
the libraries in the short time that they’re here.” |