School libraries throughout Lake County and Illinois are in the process of receiving money from the state to purchase books and, in many cases, it will be used to buy titles popular with students.
Coming from a grant through Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, John Price, the superintendent of North Chicago School District 187, said the librarians will select books of great interest to the student body, like graphic novels.
“We still believe putting books in kids’ hands will keep their interest in reading and learning,” Price said. “When we keep up with students’ interests, they will want to read more and read now.”
School libraries in 38 Lake County school districts are in the process of receiving more than $90,000 to purchase books and other reading materials through the Secretary of State’s Office annual school library grant program to enhance choices for student reading.
“Illinois students deserve to have access to quality library resources,” Giannoulias, also the state librarian, said in a press release. “Libraries serve as places of knowledge, learning and discovery and this funding will help equip them to educate and inspire our future generations.”
Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 received the largest grant in the county — $11,000 — with other districts receiving between the $850 minimum and thousands of dollars. Waukegan’s total was the 10th largest statewide.
Lori Massimo, the fine arts coordinator for District 60 who oversees the program for Waukegan’s schools, said, “I divide it by the number of students in each school.
“The librarians order the books to support their libraries,” she said. “We know the kids spend time playing video games. We want them to read books which interest them.”
Popular topics among the students vary by grade level. Overall, Massimo said the favorite topics include pop artists, animals, dinosaurs, life cycles, human body systems, weather, sports, athletes, graphic novels, foreign countries and career exploration.
North Chicago District 187 will receive $1,360 for its libraries. Price said the program helps keep the libraries updated. The librarians there are the ones who stay abreast of student reading interests and make recommendations. The popularity of graphic novels and mental health books is not a surprise.
“Our community has experienced a lot of trauma, and the kids are aware of it,” Price said. “We talk a lot about social emotional learning, and the books help the kids follow up on that. It’s a follow-up to those lessons.”
Pete Helfers, the director of curriculum and instruction in Gurnee School District 56, said in an email that student recommendations are one of the factors in deciding how its $1,557 grant will be used.
“Students recommend that we make purchases based on their interests,” he said. “We tend to use this grant to purchase physical books for loaning out to our students and teachers. This helps them by increasing exposure to quality literature.”
State Sen. Adriane Johnson, D-Buffalo Grove, helped approve the appropriation for the grant. She said reading is very important for school children. This grant program helps youngsters develop their skills through reading books of interest.
“Education is the great equalizer,” Johnson said.
Along with Waukegan, North Chicago and Gurnee District 56, Gurnee District 50 received $3,840, Warren High School District 121 $2,980, Beach Park District 3 $1,693, Winthrop Harbor District 1 $850, Zion School District 6 $1,760 and Zion-Benton Township High School District 126 $2,164, according to the Secretary of State’s Office website.
Barrington School District 120 received, $6,873; Round Lake School District 116 collected $5,325; and Lake Zurich District 95 was awarded $4,584.
