Our Speaker, Steacy Collyer John Boyd Thanks
Our Speaker | | Club member Steve Allen introduced Steacy Collyer from Calgary Reads. His introduction included some opening remarks describing how the Major Donations Committee has shifted its focus. He described how its mandate is moving away from simple cheque writing to encouraging more active member participation in supporting recipient organizations. As this partnership is a new one, he described the committee's selection of Calgary Reads as a sustainable organization that aligns with Rotary's ideals that will offer our members increased opportunities to volunteer. He also presented Steacy Collyer with two WestJet ticket vouchers in acknowledgement of our new partnership with Calgary Reads. Steacy Collyer began her remarks by presenting the Calgary Reads vision of a community where all children read with joy and confidence. Sadly, the current literacy landscape is far from this, as 49 per cent of people over age 16 have low literacy skills, and basic literacy rates in Canada are declining. She told us that a full 29 per cent of children beginning kindergarten arrive without the foundational skills needed to become successful readers. Additionally, at 78 per cent, Alberta has the lowest high school completion rate in Canada. Most strikingly, she told us that children lagging achievement standards by the end of grade 3 are unlikely to ever catch up, and that grade 3 literacy is strongly correlated with adult outcomes. Canada is one of ten countries with falling literacy rates. |
Our club is helping to open doors, enabling Calgary Reads to extend its reach, so that it is now outgrowing its name. From its roots in the city, the rebranded Alberta Reads Network has extended its services to Rocky View County, southern Alberta, and Edmonton. Further name changes may be in order as the Alberta Reads Network extends its offerings into British Columbia. Our initial $25,000 investment in Calgary Reads has already been leveraged with an additional $25,000 from ATB Cares, and we could set a fundraising total of $250,000 towards the Calgary Reads capital campaign. The signature initiative of Calgary Reads is the Children's Reading Place, a former home in Inglewood where children can go to read in a place that feels like home. Our speaker described Calgary Reads as being about an Alberta reading revolution, and our club is helping to ignite a reading movement. There is much work to do as a recent survey illustrates. When children were asked if they love to read, 100 per cent of kindergarten students said "yes". However, that response drops precipitously in the higher grades. At grade 4, only 54 per cent of the respondents expressed a love of reading. By grade 8, the affirmative response rate dropped to 30 per cent, while only 12 per cent of grade 12 students still had that love of reading. She told us that "reading is an act of resistance in a landscape of distraction". Additionally, we should all slow down, read more books, tell stories, reduce screen time, remember joy, and join the Calgary Reads reading revolution. At the conclusion of a brief question and answer session, John Boyd thanked our speaker. |
