By Lee G. Healy
lee.healy@shj.com
Spartanburg Herald-Journal
Published: Tuesday, August 11, 2009

The Need to Read Book Club is going national, but it will remain anchored in Spartanburg through a partnership with a local school district.

Spartanburg School District 1 will be the charter district for the organization, which was founded by local student Emily Conrad in 2004. Conrad presented her plans for the soon-to-be national club to the District 1 school board Monday night.

The rising freshman at Wofford College touted District 1's past experience with pioneering national programs -- the National Beta Club in particular -- as her reason for seeking out the partnership. She said she plans to follow the Beta Club model as the Need to Read Book Club expands across the country.

"We've got ourselves to a place where we can be duplicated, and it's a Web-based program," Conrad said. "We've received interest from schools all over the country."

In the upcoming school year, Need to Read will operate five chapters, all in District 1 schools -- Mabry Middle, Holly Springs-Motlow Elementary, Landrum Middle, Inman Intermediate and Campobello-Gramling School. Sixth-grade students enrolled in the club will attend monthly meetings for book discussions, activities and games, guest speakers and more.

A second, and equally important part of the club, is a community service element. Club members are asked to find sponsors for their reading, then to use collected funds to purchase and distribute books to at-risk children in the community. Conrad told board members that District 1 students have so far raised $5,384 and purchased 1,075 books.

Club chapters throughout the county collectively have raised more than $13,000.

"So many things this program does with the service component and the reading comprehension and the niche -- that upper elementary/middle school child -- we felt it was such an opportunity for us to meet so many needs that are out there," said Cathy McMillan, District 1 coordinator of middle school programs. Conrad called it a "wonderful partnership for us both," as feedback from the five District 1 clubs will help her shape how the program is distributed nationwide.

Sharing ideas

Conrad already has developed a members-only section of the Need to Read Web site, www.needtoread bookclub.org, which allows teachers to access a variety of literacy tools, like guest speaker suggestions, activities correlating to specific genres, media tools and discussion topics. A start-up kit also is provided. In theory, any person in any part of the country will be able to use the online resources to start their own, unique Need to Read Book Club.

"We know that every community has their own different resources," Conrad said, "and this is just an idea to be able to have a fun book club meeting."

Conrad said she will be attending several teacher conferences across the nation this year to begin soliciting the Need to Read Book Club. An event to officially kick off the partnership is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. Saturday at the Second Presbyterian Church Soup Kitchen when student club members will distribute books to children in need.