'Open Books' opens doors for Nesbit kids
John Larsen
Issue date: 2/24/10 Section: News
A favorite book can stay with someone forever. How many of us have a special place in our hearts for a book we read when we were barely even out of diapers yet? Dr. Seuss, Ronald Dahl, Alice in Wonderland and Where the Wild Things are - these are names beloved by many throughout our lives.
We wouldn't have any of that, however, without the gifts of reading and books as children, and these are gifts that some, like NDNU's own burgeoning Open Book Project, or Libro Abierto, wants to bring to those who may never receive them otherwise.
The Open Book Project is a collaborative of faculty, staff, and students that hopes to bring literacy into the homes of children who may not usually have the chance.
"We feel a need to advance family literacy," said Dr. Gretchen Wehrle, who heads the collaborative. According to both Wehrle and English instructor Sandra Bernhard, one of the partners in the project, the project's main goal is to give a book to a child so that he or she can take it home and "it becomes their book."
One of the other goals of the project is to address the needs of the local community and the community partners of NDNU.
"We don't do enough to thank [our partners]," said Wehrle.
As such, the focus of this year's Open Book Project goals is Nesbit Elementary on Ralston Avenue.
The school was chosen because of its community connections to NDNU and its need. According to Wehrle, 30 percent of the students at Nesbit Elementary qualify for "free lunch," a program which provides under-privileged students the opportunity to have a free, nutritious lunch.
One of the other aspects of the school that has played a big part in the project is the large number of multi-cultural students who attend Nesbit, specifically a large population of Spanish-speaking students. This demographic has inspired the Open Book Project's other official name, Libro Abierto. Also because of this unique student population, Libro Abierto, in collaboration with Nesbit Elementary, has decided to offer children's books in both English and Spanish.
The students, specifically, 50 students from the second and third grade classes at Nesbit, will come to NDNU at some time in mid-April - a date isn't certain yet, though both Wehrle and Bernhard assure that "the event will happen" no matter what - to pick out their books.
The event, what the Open Book Project is calling a "Book Celebration," will allow the students to both pick out their own books, which, according to Wehrle, promotes the child to "take leadership," and allows the students to experience the academic atmosphere of a college campus, hopefully prompting them to dream big and shoot for a higher education.
The books that will be provided at the Book Celebration will be a mixed bag of titles which will, according to Bernhard, "appeal to students of different abilities," from picture books to chapter books. The project wants primarily to promote "classics," such as Maurice Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are, and hopes to offer books from different genres as well, such as poetry and non-fiction. Books in Spanish, according to Wehrle and Bernhard, will be primarily translations of these same texts, where they are available.
The books will not be chosen by the project members, however. Instead, the books will be chosen in collaboration with the teachers and principals of Nesbit Elementary.
"We want to listen to them, not tell them what to do," said Bernhard.
Junior Bonner leader Jesus Garcia is also a part of the Open Book Project team and provides a unique perspective as a bilingual student, speaking both English and Spanish. He says that this wasn't the reason he was chosen, but, according to Wehrle, he has played a big part in helping shape the direction of the project.
Another goal of the project is to provide students and faculty with an opportunity to work together on a meaningful project.
As such, the NDNU community is encouraged to donate their time and charitable funds to the project. To facilitate this, the Open Book Project representatives will be collecting donations outside of the cafeteria throughout March, specifically March 16-18 and 23-25 from noon to 2 p.m. and from 5 to 6 p.m. each day. Look for them outside of the cafeteria.
Cash and check donations are also being accepted at Wehrle's office in Ralston Hall, room 306, where anyone can drop off or mail a donation. One can also inquire about the project at any time in the library, where Library Director Klaus Mussman and Research Librarian Ruth Briesemeister are also partners in the Open Book Project.
For more information, you can also e-mail Dr. Wehrle at or Jesus Garcia at .
We wouldn't have any of that, however, without the gifts of reading and books as children, and these are gifts that some, like NDNU's own burgeoning Open Book Project, or Libro Abierto, wants to bring to those who may never receive them otherwise.
The Open Book Project is a collaborative of faculty, staff, and students that hopes to bring literacy into the homes of children who may not usually have the chance.
"We feel a need to advance family literacy," said Dr. Gretchen Wehrle, who heads the collaborative. According to both Wehrle and English instructor Sandra Bernhard, one of the partners in the project, the project's main goal is to give a book to a child so that he or she can take it home and "it becomes their book."
One of the other goals of the project is to address the needs of the local community and the community partners of NDNU.
"We don't do enough to thank [our partners]," said Wehrle.
As such, the focus of this year's Open Book Project goals is Nesbit Elementary on Ralston Avenue.
The school was chosen because of its community connections to NDNU and its need. According to Wehrle, 30 percent of the students at Nesbit Elementary qualify for "free lunch," a program which provides under-privileged students the opportunity to have a free, nutritious lunch.
One of the other aspects of the school that has played a big part in the project is the large number of multi-cultural students who attend Nesbit, specifically a large population of Spanish-speaking students. This demographic has inspired the Open Book Project's other official name, Libro Abierto. Also because of this unique student population, Libro Abierto, in collaboration with Nesbit Elementary, has decided to offer children's books in both English and Spanish.
The students, specifically, 50 students from the second and third grade classes at Nesbit, will come to NDNU at some time in mid-April - a date isn't certain yet, though both Wehrle and Bernhard assure that "the event will happen" no matter what - to pick out their books.
The event, what the Open Book Project is calling a "Book Celebration," will allow the students to both pick out their own books, which, according to Wehrle, promotes the child to "take leadership," and allows the students to experience the academic atmosphere of a college campus, hopefully prompting them to dream big and shoot for a higher education.
The books that will be provided at the Book Celebration will be a mixed bag of titles which will, according to Bernhard, "appeal to students of different abilities," from picture books to chapter books. The project wants primarily to promote "classics," such as Maurice Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are, and hopes to offer books from different genres as well, such as poetry and non-fiction. Books in Spanish, according to Wehrle and Bernhard, will be primarily translations of these same texts, where they are available.
The books will not be chosen by the project members, however. Instead, the books will be chosen in collaboration with the teachers and principals of Nesbit Elementary.
"We want to listen to them, not tell them what to do," said Bernhard.
Junior Bonner leader Jesus Garcia is also a part of the Open Book Project team and provides a unique perspective as a bilingual student, speaking both English and Spanish. He says that this wasn't the reason he was chosen, but, according to Wehrle, he has played a big part in helping shape the direction of the project.
Another goal of the project is to provide students and faculty with an opportunity to work together on a meaningful project.
As such, the NDNU community is encouraged to donate their time and charitable funds to the project. To facilitate this, the Open Book Project representatives will be collecting donations outside of the cafeteria throughout March, specifically March 16-18 and 23-25 from noon to 2 p.m. and from 5 to 6 p.m. each day. Look for them outside of the cafeteria.
Cash and check donations are also being accepted at Wehrle's office in Ralston Hall, room 306, where anyone can drop off or mail a donation. One can also inquire about the project at any time in the library, where Library Director Klaus Mussman and Research Librarian Ruth Briesemeister are also partners in the Open Book Project.
For more information, you can also e-mail Dr. Wehrle at
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