Caitlin Scudder and Students Heads to Costa Rica in Support of Beyond el Campo Project

Caitlin Scudder, founder of Reader to Reader's Beyond el Campo project and former reading mentor, is heading back to Costa Rica with students from the Spanish class she teaches at The Academy at Charlemont.

Caitlin will bring 12 students and 3 chaperones on a trip to visit the public library she established in the coffee-farming village of Santa Cruz.  The group will contribute books and funds to help sustain the library.

Originally established as a 1-room library with 500 books, the library has grown to 3 rooms housing almost 3,000 books thanks to twice-annual visits by Amherst College and Reid College students as well as other volunteers. The service trips are supervised by Reader to Reader.

Thanks to the energy and passion of these volunteers, the library has also added computers, Wi-Fi, summer-long literacy programs, and reading groups, and is an important community social space.

One of Reader to Reader's priorities this year is to expand the number of young adult level books, and Caitlin is bringing down books we have given her that include Spanish-language editions of The Hunger Games series, and other popular young adult novels.

We are so pleased that Caitlin is still helping this much-needed community library thrive, and wish her and her students un buen viaje!

Beyond el Campo, a project of Reader to Reader's Springboard Program, seeks to combat the issue of educational inequality in Costa Rica by providing essential tools and educational resources to inspire success. Its goals are to provide a public space that serves as a community center for learning and creative engagement; to equip that space with resources that connect students with their own passions and interests; and to offer educational programs and workshops open to the entire community.