Press Release

For Immediate Release

Media Contact: Michele Baylin, Communications Manager 410.685.4186 | mbaylin@mdhc.org @mdhumanities | MHC on Facebook | MHC YouTube Channel

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Date: February 23, 2012

MARYLAND RECOGNIZES STATE LETTERS ABOUT LITERATURE WINNERS

2012 Awards Ceremony at the Enoch Pratt Free Library April 14

(Baltimore) - Have you ever, after reading a book, wanted to tell the author how his or her words changed your life? Students from around Maryland will be honored April 14th at 11am during the CityLit Festival at the Enoch Pratt Free Library for their entries in the state Letters About Literature contest. Author Kwame Alexander will provide the keynote address to the young authors in attendance. The Sarbanes family will also present the Christine D. Sarbanes Teacher of the Year Award, honoring a Maryland teacher who promotes reading by employing creative teaching methods. Letters About Literature (LAL) is a state and national writing contest that encourages young readers in grades 4 to 12 to respond to an author through a letter expressing how that author and book changed their worldview and themselves. A signature program of the Center for the Book at the Library of Congress, Letters About Literature is implemented at the state level by the Maryland Center for the Book at the Maryland Humanities Council. About 70,000 students competed nationwide last year, with 2,290 of them hailing from Maryland.

This contest gives [students] a chance to practice [letter writing] while also expressing themselves about a work of literature or a particular author that has made an impact on them personally. As a teacher, I benefit from reading the letters because I always learn new things about each student, remarked Tina Chan from Green Acres School in Rockville.

The Letters About Literature contest promotes reading and writing, inspires creativity, encourages lifelong readers and develops critical reading and writing skills that students need to be successful later in life. Judges select top essayists on three levels: level I for readers in grades 4 through 6; level II for grade 7 and 8 readers; and level III for readers in grades 9 through 12.

National winners will be announced in late May 2012 and compete to win a Target gift card and a Reading Promotion Grant of $10,000 for their school or community library. The 12 national runners-up will win a Target gift card, plus a Reading Promotion Grant of $1,000 for their school or community library. Target Stores is a national contest sponsor. For questions or more information, contact MHC Program Officer Andrea Lewis at alewis@mdhc.org or call (410) 685-6161.

KEYNOTE SPEAKER: AUTHOR KWAME ALEXANDER A keynote speaker is featured at the annual awards ceremony. Kwame Alexander is a poet, publisher, and an award-winning producer of literary programs. Dubbed a "phenom" in the poetry world by The Charleston (SC) City Paper, Alexander has written for television, the stage, and authored 14 books including the best-selling Do The Write Thing: 7 Steps to Publishing Success, And Then You Know: New & Selected Poems, and a young adult title, Crush: Love Poems. He speaks and conducts writing/publishing workshops at schools and conferences throughout the country. Alexander resides in the Washington, DC area, where he currently serves as Founding Director of Book-in-a-Day, a literacy program that teaches and inspires youth in the writing and publishing process. Recently, Alexander served on the advisory board for Nikki Giovannis The 100 Best African American Poems (Sourcebooks, 2010). His childrens book, Acoustic Rooster and his Barnyard Band, illustrated by New York Times Bestselling Illustrator Tim Bowers, was nominated for a 2012 NAACP Image Award; and his debut young adult novel will be published by Harper Collins. Find out more about Kwame Alexander at www.bookinaday.org.

THE 2012 CHRISTINE D. SARBANES TEACHER OF THE YEAR AWARD The Christine D. Sarbanes Teacher of the Year Award is given in memory of Christine D. Sarbanes, former MHC board member, teacher, and lifelong promoter of the humanities. This annual award recognizes an outstanding Maryland educator who participates in the Letters About Literature contest and has worked creatively to inspire students to read great literature. The award will be presented at the Letters About Literature awards ceremony on April 14th at 11am at the Enoch Pratt Free Library. The 2011 award

recipient, Cynthia Barry, is a librarian and the Communications Director at St. Martins-in-the-Field Day School in Severna Park.

MHC is a statewide, educational, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The purpose of MHC is to stimulate and promote informed dialogue and civic engagement on issues critical to Marylanders. For more information about MHC, please visit www.mdhc.org.

Event Listing:

Letters About Literature Award Ceremony

April 14 | 11am 12:15pm Enoch Pratt Free Library 400 West Cathedral Street, Baltimore Student state finalists and winners and the Christine D. Sarbanes Teacher of the Year Award recipient are honored during the CityLit Festival for the national Letters About Literature competition. Find out more at www.mdhc.org.
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