Citizens of the Tiftarea reached an important goal this past November. In a collaborated four-year effort that involved reading more than 900,000 books, the community attained One Million Accelerated Reader (AR) points to become the “Reading Capital of the World.”

     “This is a community effort--bringing people together for a common purpose to create a positive environment,” said Paul Johnson, Mayor of Tifton. “I hope this is just the beginning.”

     It all began with Terri Nalls’ vision of “everyone reading.”

     When she became a media specialist at Charles Spencer in 1994, Nalls noticed that young people were checking out library books and “looking at the pictures,” but their reading efforts did not translate into strong reading comprehension. She recalled a newsletter article on the “Accelerated Reader” program--a software package created by Advantage Learning Systems of Wisconsin.

     The AR program essentially motivates students to read for comprehension through computer testing on books read. It awards points based on a book’s length and difficulty (Dr. Seuss – ½ point; Tolstoy – 130 points). As a further incentive, students may redeem points for prizes.

     Nalls applied for and received a $3,500 grant from the Tift County Foundation for Educational Excellence (TCFEE) for the 1996-97 school year. The AR program officially went “online” at Charles Spencer in October 1996, and Nalls set a goal of 1,000 tests during the pilot year. The children at Charles Spencer surprised her by not only reading the books, but passing that many tests in the first month alone, and over 26,000 that year. The students doubled that number the next year—passing over 50,000 tests.

     “Terri really breaks the mold of the 'shhh' librarian,” said Mike Brumby, TCFEE director. “She thrives in the middle of kids and creates an excitement about reading. The Foundation has sponsored over 250 grants during the past 10 years, and often we never hear the results. Terri would send us memos, and invite us to come see what her kids were doing. The place was humming with activity.”

     In spring of 1997, realizing the program’s potential for all students, the Tift County Foundation for Educational Excellence formulated an overall reading program, with the goal to become the “Reading Capital of the World.” The plan set four goals: a 25 percent increase in reading scores for grades 1-8; a 50 percent increase in book circulation at the public library; one million AR points; and pervasive community pride.

     “We wanted to set significant and impressive criteria,” Brumby explained.

     The Foundation then followed with financial investments totaling $164,000 (donated locally) from 1997-2000 to area schools and the downtown library’s summer program. Teachers received AR training, and elementary schools were networked to take advantage of the AR testing program. Pilot literary programs were conducted for adults, pre-school youngsters, and non-English speakers.

     “You have to thank the TCFEE board for really supporting the program,” Nalls said.

     In 1999, the Foundation added its “Points for Books” initiative, whereby parents, teachers, friends, and community leaders could join students in earning money for their school library of choice by passing AR tests. Fifty cents was paid for every point earned, which resulted in over $30,000 in new books.

     While AR is a great “tool” for encouraging reading, the Tift County School System provided the backbone instruction for Tifton’s reading renaissance, Brumby said.

     “AR is fun, and it has caught the fancy of the community, but the real credit belongs to the outstanding teachers who have taught the children this most critical of skills,” he said. “During this four-year effort, programs like Literacy Collaborative and Reading Recovery have been at the heart of Tifton’s reading success.”

     Literacy Collaborative--a new method of providing early-literacy instruction in the primary grades—was introduced in 1997. This program allows students to read from leveled textbooks, or ‘little books,’ ensuring that they receive instruction on their reading level.

     “Children are ecstatic about the number of books they are able to successfully read,” said Betty Newkirk, primary grades curriculum director. “Teachers are seeing ‘lifelong’ readers emerge right before their eyes.”

     Reading Recovery involves intense one-on-one training between a student and a teacher for a certain period of time. The goal is to “test out” of this program, so other students can receive this specialized training.

     Local principals and teachers have emphasized reading instruction, and test scores have reflected this emphasis,” said Marianna Keesee, director of elementary curriculum for the Tift County School System.

     “Rising test scores give Tift County a reason to further celebrate its ‘Reading Capital of the World,’ claim,” Keesee said.

     While all the goals were admirable, the community really grabbed the one million AR points as its own, responding to the theme, “Hey, what book are you reading?” All citizens were encouraged to read and take an AR test at many sites throughout the Tiftarea—including the Tift County Public Library, the Coastal Plain Experiment Station Library, Abraham Baldwin College, the Tifton-Tift County Chamber of Commerce, and all schools in Tift County, from kindergarten to high school.

     “This truly became a community effort,” Nalls said. “It required participation from all schools, public and private, and all citizens, young and old.”

     Businesses—including Georgia Power, Heatcraft, The Tifton Gazette, First Community Bank, and Tift Regional Medical Center--soon jumped on the bandwagon, responding to Quailwood Animal Hospital’s Challenge of offering bonuses to employees to read, take AR tests, and acquire points. Community groups began challenging each other (Rotary vs. Kiwanis, for example). A banner on the library gave weekly updates on the progress. All this reading created a flood of media interest, including articles in Time Magazine and Georgia Trend and segments on both NBC and CBS evening news programs.

     After hitting the big million, citizens of the Tiftarea celebrated on November 15, 2000, at the Eighth Street School Stadium, where the “Reading Capital of the World” mascot--Ricki Reader—was introduced. Vann Thornton, a teacher at Tiftarea Academy, composed a song for the event that was debuted during the ceremony. A crowd of over 7,500 enjoyed performances of children’s stories by the TCHS and Tiftarea Academy Drama Clubs and musical selections from the TCHS Blue Devil Brigade/Show Choir and Tiftarea’s Jazz Band/Show Choir.

     A 30-foot Dr. Seuss balloon dominated the field as the entire stadium crowd read a page from “The Cat in the Hat.” Led by the Mayor, the “largest group read-aloud” lasted one minute. Crowd members, who were instructed to bring their own books, also read together silently for one minute. Both feats are being presented to the Guinness Book of World Records for consideration.

     AR Creator Judi Paul, who applauded Tifton on its accomplishment, spoke at the event.

     “I am very happy. We have had schools from over 30 states calling my company asking how they can do what Tifton has done,” Paul said.

     According to Tyron Spearman, master of ceremonies during the celebration, Tifton’s focus on reading will have many positive results.

     “This will attract attention from CEOs and company presidents deciding where to locate facilities and interested in an educated work force,” he said.

     All but one of the original goals have already been met or exceeded, said Brumby. Reading scores have jumped an average of 14.2 percent—with eighth graders seeing a 31 percent increase.

     “We are anxiously awaiting our final testing data (spring of 2001),” he said.

     The public library has seen an over 130 percent increase in book circulation. One million AR points have been attained, with a push to make two million, and the community has responded with support and recognition.

     “These goals will keep giving back to the community for years,” Brumby said.

     Some effects may not be visible for some time, Nalls added.

     “I have seen kids’ lives changed because of this program,” she said. “You can see their discipline and self-esteem improve with reading.”

     Teachers really tell the story best, Brumby said. One long-time teacher was thrilled when she turned her back and her students began “reading like crazy.” A special education teacher was shocked at seeing her students arrive 30 minutes early and having to run them out at the end of the day. One media specialist said she noticed the changes in her church, where no one wanted to read the Sunday School lesson before and did so falteringly, but now “all hands were up and they couldn’t wait to read.”

     Nalls said, accolades aside, something great has been accomplished in bringing reading back into the home.

     “Reading is a good habit,” she said.

     For those communities already gearing up to challenge Tifton’s claim, Brumby responds: “Sir, we have not yet begun to read.”

     For more information, visit www.readingcapital.com.