October 28, 2016

Volume 1, Issue 1

The Book Report

Spread the Word Nevada 702-564-7809
www.spreadthewordnevada.org

The Book Report Staff

Elizabeth Gardner, PR
professional

Spread the Mission

The Book Reports mission
is to advance literacy,
share stories and change
lives. Its purpose is to
share news about the
Spread the Word Nevada
organization and inform
readers about low-income
schoolchildrens need for
books in Las Vegas valley.
Send Comments and/or
Suggestions to:
Spread the Word Nevada
1065 American Pacific Dr.
Suite #160
Henderson, NV 89074
www.spreadthewordnevad
a.org
Copyright 2016. Spread the
Word Nevada. All rights
reserved.

The Word is Spreading

Spread the Word Nevada
adopted Gordon M.
McCaw Elementary
School in January and
Bertha Ronzone
Elementary School and
Wendell P. Williams
Elementary School in
May.
Spread the Word Nevada
currently serves 42 lowincome elementary
schools and plans to
adopt 18 more schools in
the next three years. The
team rises to the
challenge thanks to the
support of the community.

The childrens literary

nonprofit has donated 3.6
million books to more than
435,000 students since
Laurie Hartig and Lisa
Habighorst founded it in
2001.
Elementary schools
eligible for adoption must
fall under the classification
of a Title I or at-risk
school. Spread the Word
Nevada selects schools
with an average of 86
percent of students
participating in the
free/reduced lunch
program.

Call for Books

Book List

Programs

Caucasian
African American
Asian American
Mutli-Race

Native American

Storybook Gala 2

Hispanic

Pacific Islander

Individual
Highlights:

Staff Member
Profile

Breakdown of
Students Served
by Race

Spread the Word Nevada sponsors low-income schools in North Las

Vegas, Las Vegas and Henderson

The Book Report

Page 2 of 4

Storybook Gala Raises over $75,000

MGM Hosts Spread the Word Nevadas Alice in
Wonderland-themed Gala to Promote Reading in LowIncome Schools
Spread the Word Nevada
garnered $50,000 from
the live auction and
$25,000 from the silent
auction at the Fifteenth
Annual Storybook Gala
held at the MGM
Conference Center on
Oct. 1.
And what is the use of a
book, thought Alice, without
pictures or conversation?
-Lewis Carrol, Alices
Adventures in Wonderland

Cirque du Soleil
sponsored the event and
entertained guests with an
Alice in Wonderlandthemed performance. The
theatrical entertainment
company also donated 40
sets of two free tickets to
any Cirque Du Soleil
show. Each table included

glass cork bottles with

notes attached that read,
Drink Me, and one guest
at each table found the
tickets hidden inside.
This was the biggest gala
thus far in terms of
attendance, with 432
people, said Debbie
Sandusky, volunteer
coordinator for Spread the
Word Nevada. Each year
it is outdone.
Student volunteers from
Foothill High Schools Yes
Inc. career program
dressed up as iconic
Alice in Wonderland
characters. Card soldiers

directed traffic, and the

White Rabbit welcomed
guests.
The Mad Hatter served as
auctioneer.
MGM catered the event
and provided lemon tart
and chocolate mousse
desserts garnished with
the words, Eat Me.
Spread the Word Nevada
organizes a gala every
year. Visit
spreadthewordnevada.org/
events to keep up-to-date
with Spread the Words
event calendar.

Meet the Staff

Debbie Sandusky, former
stay-at-home mother,
began serving as a parttime volunteer for Spread
the Word Nevada. In
2012, she accepted the
position as volunteer
coordinator. She gained a
full-time position in 2014.

Debbie Sandusky, Volunteer

Coordinator
Photo courtesy of the Spread the
Word Nevada website

A native of Queens, New

York, Sandusky worked
as a medical assistant for
an OBGYN practice in
Manhattan before moving
to Nevada in April of 1989.
After she married and
started a family, Sandusky
took time off from work to

raise her three daughters,

Stephanie, Kimmie and
Nikki.
Sanduskys interest in
giving back to the
community prompted her
to begin volunteering with
Spread the Word Nevada
as a book cleaner. As a
full-time volunteer
coordinator, she now
spends much of her time
working with local high
school students and other
volunteers. Their roles
include sorting, cleaning,
transporting and
distributing books to

schools with high

percentages of students
from low-income families
to promote literacy and
provide children with their
own at-home libraries.
When she is not serving
the community, Sandusky
may be found at home
with her three cats.
Sandusky and her
husband, recent emptynesters, rescued Oscar,
Gracie and Lulu and
brought them home as
welcome additions.

The Book Report

Page 3 of 4

Call for 4th and 5th Grade Chapter Books

Spread the Word urgently
requests fourth and fifth gradelevel chapter books.

students in third grade or

younger, but fourth and fifth
grade students remain important.

The organization distributes

44,000 books to local students
each month, so all donations are
welcome, but there is a constant
need for chapter books
specifically.

Spread the Word Nevada

accepts all forms of literature,
from picture books to adult
novels, though adult comic
books, non-scholastic manga
books and encyclopedias are
discouraged. Spread the Word
sells all material unsuitable for
children to buy age-appropriate
books.

Third grade is the pivotal point in

reading education. According to a
2013 study conducted by
sociology professor Dr. Donald
Hernandez and published by the
Annie E. Casey Foundation, a
student who struggles to read at
reading level by third grade is
four times less likely to graduate
high school than their peers.
Due to this research, Spread the
Word Nevada prioritizes helping

We can always use books, and

we can always use volunteers,
said volunteer coordinator Debbie
Sandusky. None of this could be
possible without the help of the
community.
The donated books first go
through a cleaning process

administered by volunteers. They

transform the scuffed, dog-eared
and abused copies into gleaming,
like-new texts.
Spread the Word Nevada strives
to promote childrens self-worth
by valuing the quality of the
books given away.
Volunteers bring the books to the
schools and provide totes for the
children to fill. Those tote bags
become the at-home libraries for
the children to keep.

Inside Spread the Word

Nevadas facility

Donation drop-off points are

located at Spread the Word
Nevada Warehouse in
Henderson, 1065 American
Pacific Dr. Suite 160, and
Providence Master Planned
Community in Las Vegas, 7181
N. Hualapai Way. To schedule a
pick-up from your location, please
Spread the Word Nevadas
call 702-564-7809.
van

Timeless Chapter Books for Fourth and Fifth Graders

Grade Level: 4
Lexile Measure: 870L
DRA: 40

Grade Level: 5
Lexile Measure: 710L
DRA: 60

Grade Level: 5.2

Lexile Measure: 950L
DRA: 50

Grade Level: 5
Lexile Measure: 770L
DRA: 60

Grade Level: 4.2

Lexile Measure: 390L
DRA: 40

Grade Level: 4.4

Lexile Measure: 890L
DRA: 40

Grade Level:4.7
Lexile Measure: 740L
DRA: 60

Grade Level:5.9
Lexile Measure: 860L
DRA:50

All photos and level assessment is courtesy of Scholastic Inc.

There is more treasure

in books than in all the
pirates loot on Treasure
Island.
-Walt Disney

Page 4 of 4

itle The Book Report

Page 4 of 4

Book Drive Programs

Program Assistant Kelly

Reis packs books for
donation

The more that you

read, the more things
you will know. The more
you learn, the more
places youll go.
-Dr. Seuss

Spread the Word Nevada currently runs four programs. Three of these
programs service students throughout the school year, and a new summer
program, Books on Break, preoccupies the organization through the months of
June, July and August. Kids to Kids, Breakfast/Snack Time with Books and
Books & Buddies started up again in October.
Breakfast with Books and Snack Time with
Kids to Kids
Books
Kids to Kids, Spread the Words flagship
program, is designed to offer children
Breakfast with Books began as the forerunner
books of their very own.
of the Breakfast/Snack Time with Books
Far too many children in the Las Vegas
literacy program. The Spread the Word team
area are deprived of accessibility to
visits schools half an hour before the morning
books, and many are raised in homes
bell to set up the cafeteria for breakfast.
without any books at all.
Since the adopted schools fall under the Title I
Co-founders Laurie Hartig and Lisa
classification, the schools provide breakfast to
Hablghorst started a humble book drive
a majority of the students to ensure they eat.
out of the trunks of their cars in the
parking lot of St. Thomas More Catholic
Spread the Words mission is to feed
Community.
childrens minds as well as their stomachs.
The short event compromises a light snack,
The program has since grown to adopt 42
story time and a raffle.
elementary schools across the valley.
During the initial visit after Spread the
Word adopts a new school, volunteers
bring a selection of books, provide canvas
tote bags and allow every student in the
school to hand-select five books. Once a
month, the team comes back to give each
student an additional book.
Books on Break
Books on Break is the newest program of
Spread the Word and aims to combat the
lapse in reading proficiency that occurs
during the summer months.
Three Square Food Bank, a local nonprofit
to combat hunger for the poor, partners
with Spread the Word Nevada to provide
food for underprivileged students.
The literacy nonprofit awards children for
summer reading with prizes and
incentives.
The team gives out summer reading logs
with the free books to encourage students
to engage themselves in the stories.

SPREAD THE WORD NEVADA

1065 American Pacific Dr.
Suite #160
Henderson, NV 89074

The Snack Time with Books program is an

offshoot of Breakfast with Books. Since the
event is typically held after school, students
must come in with an adult, whether it be a
parent or a neighbor. Every individual in
attendance receives a book, from an adult to a
baby in a stroller.
Students participate in reading activities and
comprehension assessments based on the
reading, which are available in English and
Spanish.
Books & Buddies
The Books & Buddies mentorship program
offers individualized attention to students to
foster improved reading comprehension and
proficiency.
Each child enrolled in this program partners
with a volunteer mentor. Since mentors are
working one-on-one with students, they must
undergo a screening process.

CHRISTOPHER CLARDY
5656 ALPACHE WAY
HENDERSON, NV 89008