The middle of June signifies the end of a school year and the beginning of a long summer for many students in Berrien and Cass counties.

This means more sporting events, more hanging with friends, more visits to the movie theater and more trips to the beach.

But this also means the beginning of what researchers refer to as the summer slide, the phenomenon where young people lose academic skills over the summer.

United Way of Southwest Michigan is taking to social media to do something about it.

On June 21, the non-profit that covers all of Berrien and Cass counties, wants the community to participate in a summer reading day of action dubbed as “The Need to Read.”

Organizers are encouraging parents and children to get together and read a book, take a photo of the experience, and post the photo to Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram using the hashtag #THENEEDTOREAD.

“Many parents may not be aware that the time away from the classroom over the summer can set a child back,” said Anna Murphy, president of United Way of Southwest Michigan. “We chose June 21st because it’s the longest day of the summer. There’s plenty of time that day to pick up a book and read.”

There is certainly a need to read in the two counties, as more than 50 percent of third graders are not meeting reading proficiency.

Reading proficiency by third grade is one of the most important predictors of high school graduation. In Berrien and Cass, 28 peercent of students are not graduating high school on time.

“We want this to be an enjoyable day of reading, but we hope it creates a summer of reading for many kids,” said Murphy. “We encourage families to pick up a book and read to their kids as often as they can this summer, and to look into reading programs at their local libraries. It will make a big difference when heading back to school this fall.”

For more information on The Need to Read, visit www.uwsm.org/theneedtoread.

 

Dolly Parton Imagination Library

The Dolly Parton Imagination Library, headquartered in Tennessee, will be keeping their eye on The Need to Read campaign in Southwest Michigan. Any Dolly Parton Imagination Library subscriber is encouraged to share a photo of a child reading one of Dolly’s books. The Imagination Library will be sharing their favorite photo of the day through one of their social media platforms. Be sure to use hashtag #THENEEDTOREAD, and feel free to be as creative as possible.

United Way funding helps provide the Dolly Parton Imagination Library at no cost to any child residing in Berrien or Cass counties, regardless of financial need. The actual cost to provide this program to the community is approximately $25 per child, per year. If you wish to make a tax-deductible donation to sponsor a child, please visit www.uwsm.org/dpil for more information.

 

1st Source Bank

1st Source Bank will be joining the fun by hosting reading areas in five of their branches on June 21. When a child comes in to read in one of these reading areas, they will earn a prize. The banking centers will also be collecting donations that day, all of which will go towards their United Way campaign.

Participating 1st Source locations:

• Hilltop, 1600 Hilltop Road, Saint Joseph

• St. Joseph (downtown) 715 Ship St., St. Joseph

• Lakeshore, 4009 Red Arrow Hwy. St. Joseph

• Niles Martin’s Super Market, 720 S. 11th St., Niles

• Dowagiac, 223 S. Front St., Dowagiac