Allentown, PA (May 8, 2017) Forty Eight Lehigh Parkway Elementary School students will be celebrated as young authors at a “Meet the Author” event on May 11 at Barnes and Noble, Lehigh Valley Mall. The event, where our young authors will show off their books and speak about their writing journey, begins at 6:00 p.m.
The students have spent many hours under the guidance of their teachers Donald Stahl & Robin Hohe to pen their very own book. The end result is 48 individual books created by 48 students – 13 third graders, 20 fourth graders and 15 fifth graders. The students and their books, which were printed by Dan’s Camera, will be honored at this event. Stahl created the “I am on a Bookshelf” program for students with funding from an ASD Foundation Teacher Innovation Grant, school fundraisers and Thrivent Financial.
The students in the program are extremely passionate about this wonderful opportunity. Fourth grader Mariah Mathis sums it up best stating, “Writing is my passion. I have been writing since I was little and have dreamed of being an author when I grow up. I also love writing because I can put my thoughts and emotions into fascinating words that people around America and the world can read, enjoy, and love!”
“This has been an incredible experience for these students. They had the opportunity to go through the process of developing a book from concept to finished product; learning from each step along the way,” explains Will Seng, Principal of Lehigh Parkway.
Dan’s Camera of Allentown is an amazing partner and logged many hours coordinating the technology needed as well as printing the books and dustcovers. They also provided each student with a complimentary copy as a memento of their efforts. Barnes and Noble is hosting the author night as part of their corporate mission. Each year, Barnes and Noble hosts more than 28,000 author events across the country for authors to gain exposure and build their profiles in local communities. Also contributing to the success of this initiative were Lisa Schaffer, Lines Benson and Kathya Arias with their dedicated work behind the scenes and Diane Albert who connected Thrivent Financial to Lehigh Parkway. Local author, Kathy Miller, will speak at the “Meet the Author” event to enlighten students on becoming authors.
The event is FREE and open to the public. Copies of each author’s book will be on sale that evening.
About Allentown School District
ASD serves more than 16,000 students in a network of 22 early childhood, elementary, middle and high schools located throughout the City of Allentown, PA. The Allentown School District is the third largest urban school district out of 500 districts in the Commonwealth. A shared vision of the community, parents, guardians, staff and faculty focuses on “Empowering Students for Life,” providing ASD students with the skills and academics they need to realize their aspirations whether they be college, career or technical focus. ASD goals are aligned and compatible with the Pathways to Success Framework while providing a balanced education to all students. Allentown School District employs approximately 2,200 teachers, staff and administrators. The District, founded in 1866 and celebrating its Sesquicentennial throughout 2015-2016, serves students from 43 countries speaking 26 languages with nearly 90 percent of households qualifying as low income. ASD is committed to providing safe learning environments in which all students have equal access to education programs and resources.
Information provided by:
Lynne Hanna
Communications Assistant
Office of Communications
Allentown School District
