Reader to Reader's Dennis Quinn Named 2016 Mass Literacy Champion

Dennis Quinn of the Amherst-based literacy organization Reader to Reader has been named a Mass Literacy Champion by Mass Literacy.

Mass Literacy, a non-profit organization supporting literacy education in Massachusetts, recently announced the six winners of the 2016 Mass Literacy Champions Awards. 

The program publicly recognizes and rewards Massachusetts' educators who have shown exceptional commitment and results through their work in literacy education.

Award winners will receive a $1000 grant for program development and a professionally produced video to promote the work of their organization valued at $1000.

Mass Literacy selected six Mass Literacy Champions, including Springfield resident Dennis Quinn. Dennis is the Director of Mentoring Programs and supervises the Read, Think, Share program for Reader to Reader, which is based in Amherst on the campus of Amherst College.

Read, Think, Share is a web-based initiative that partners students from low-income backgrounds with college student mentors, to improve reading and writing skills and foster a love of reading.

Dennis has grown the program from serving 22 students to over 1,300 in West Springfield, Holyoke, Chicopee and surrounding towns.

For his Mass Literacy Grant project, Quinn will bring the Read, Think, Share program to a brand new school, serving 30 more students. The grant covers all books, supplies and training for the program.

The Mass Literacy Champions Awards program enables literacy providers to share their most promising practices with their peers and serve as ambassadors for literacy. 

Each 2016 Mass Literacy Champion will complete an innovative literacy project that will be shared with the statewide literacy community.  Seventy-six Mass Literacy Champions have been recognized since 2003, and together they represent the diverse literacy community that makes Massachusetts a national leader in education.

Congratulations, Kat!

Congratulations to Kat Libby for being named a finalist in the Massachusetts Nonprofit Network’s 2013 Young Professional Award! Kat is one of four finalists among a large pool of candidates from nonprofits across the state.

Kat brings ingenuity, innovation and persistence to our organization, and we are very pleased that she is receiving such recognition for her work at Reader to Reader.

Excellence Award winners will be announced at MNN’s Nonprofit Awareness Day celebration on June 10th. A full list of the finalists is available here. Hooray for Kat!

Reader to Reader Receives Award for Work in Chicopee

Reader to Reader founder David Mazor accepted the CCPTO Civic Award on behalf of Reader to Reader. The honor was presented at an award dinner hosted by the Chicopee Parent Teacher Organization.

“We thank Reader to Reader for all they have done to help Chicopee’s schools, including the $1,000,000 worth of books they have donated,” said Samuel Karlin, principal at Belcher Elementary. “They have also donated new laptop computers and they provide an outstanding mentoring program for our students.”

Reader to Reader has been working with schools in Chicopee, Massachusetts for almost a decade, providing an essential resource lifeline. In the spring of 2012 they donated 40,000 new children’s books to area schools.

David Mazor Honored as Literacy Champion

Boston -- The Massachusetts Literacy Foundation, in partnership with Verizon’s Check Into Literacy Program, has named David Mazor, the founder of Amherst-based literacy organization Reader to Reader, as one of the 10 recipients of the 2011 Massachusetts Literacy Champion Awards program.

The awards were created in 2003 to identify, publicly recognize and support Massachusetts literacy providers who have shown exceptional commitment and results through their work in literacy education.

“I am honored to accept this award and believe it is an honor that is shared by everyone in our organization,” Mazor said. “”I am so pleased that our work as literacy advocates that create innovative and effective programs has been recognized by the The Massachusetts Literacy Foundation. We look forward to working harder than ever to raise literacy rates in Massachusetts and across the globe.”

Unlike many singular awards programs, the Literacy Champions Awards recognize multiple individuals, practices and programs. Each year, up to ten Literacy Champions are chosen from a competitive nomination pool to represent the diverse fields of literacy education in Massachusetts. They are classroom teachers, administrators and volunteers who work in urban and rural areas throughout Massachusetts. Literacy Champions collaborate throughout the year, serve as ambassadors for The Massachusetts Literacy Foundation and share their work in literacy with peers across the commonwealth.

“The new Literacy Champions will join a network of more than 50 literacy professionals who are among the best practitioners in their field,” said Carol Anne Conroy, president of the Massachusetts Literacy Foundation. “This program enables us not only to recognize the important work of these wonderful people who are dedicated to helping others, but gives us a vehicle to work together to share best practices.”

Award Winners Receive:
- A $2500 grant for program development.
- A $1000 grant for professional development.
- Statewide recognition as a Massachusetts Literacy Champion.
- An opportunity to collaborate as a group and share ideas.

Through its Check Into Literacy program, Verizon gives wireline phone customers the opportunity to donate $1 a month to literacy programs when they pay their Verizon bill. In Massachusetts, proceeds raised through the program are donated to the Massachusetts Literacy Foundation to promote the Literacy Champions’ efforts in local communities. Literacy Champions each receive $3500 in grants to support their work. This year, more than $74,000 was donated to the Massachusetts Literacy Foundation.

“We are proud to partner with the Massachusetts Literacy Foundation to recognize the efforts of literacy professionals across the state,” said Donna Cupelo, region president of Verizon New England. “People in this field work tirelessly to ensure people have the literacy skills they need to meet their education, career and life goals. Thanks to their efforts, we are building stronger communities here in Massachusetts.”

In addition, Massachusetts Literacy Foundation also will use funds for MassLiteracyNetwork.org, a new website that will showcase the Literacy Champions winning practices, including strategies for effective literacy programs. In addition, the work of Literacy Champions will be featured in the Boston Herald’s literacy inserts, Massachusetts Reads and Succeeds.

Honoring Norton Juster

We are very pleased to honor distinguished author Norton Juster for his support of Reader To Reader and his lifetime devotion to literacy. Juster is the first recipient of the Norton Juster Award for Devotion to Literacy. The award will be presented annually.

Juster received a plaque from Reader To Reader founder David Mazor at Sunday’s 19th Annual Children's Illustration Exhibition in Northampton, MA.

The author of the children’s classics The Phantom Toll Booth and The Dot and the Line, Juster was one of the first supporters of Reader To Reader during our earliest days. Over the years he has donated thousands of books from his personal collection and has been a vocal advocate of our cause.

“Reader To Reader is such a simple idea and such a farsighted one – provide books for students of all ages who don’t have them. I can’t think of a worthier endeavor or one that will have a more profound effect,” Juster notes.

And we can't think of a more worthy person to honor than Norton. Three cheers for Norton Juster!

Reader To Reader Receives Dakin Award

(Excerpted from the Amherst Bulletin)

Where Movers, Shakers Live Up To Reputation

By BEN WILLIAMS

Bulletin Contributing Writer

Published on June 13, 2008

This year's Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce awards presentation was a night for celebrations, socializing and - in keeping with the "Movers and Shakers" theme - belly dancing by some of the town's most prominent citizens.

The celebrations, held June 5 at the Robert Crown Center gymnasium at Hampshire College, started off with a cocktail hour and quickly took on the air of a high school reunion as guests poured in and friends and business colleagues discussed everything from recent political news to the NBA finals, and this year's award recipients. An estimated 400 people packed the hall.

Each recipient had a small display on the side of the room, featuring collages of pictures, various awards and letters from state and national officials, and even a looping video display.

Patty Brandts, executive director of the Chamber, and Cinda Jones, its president, engaged in a comic back-and-forth introducing the award recipients and showcasing the growth of the Chamber, noting that since 1995 the organization has added 300 members, and the awards dinner has quadrupled in attendance.

The two then called each recipient on stage to speak, accompanied by their own theme song.

David Mazor came to the stage to the tune of "You Oughta Be in Pictures," referencing his previous work in the film industry. Mazor received the Dakin Award in Human Services for founding the "Reader To Reader" program, which helps build libraries and get books to poor communities, and has its headquarters at Amherst College.

Mazor was quick to thank his wife and volunteers for their contributions.

"When you do a thing like this it begins as your own dream, and doesn't turn into an organization unless a lot of other people pick up the same dream," said Mazor, who accepted the award "on behalf of all the people involved with Reader To Reader."

Reader To Reader Lauded by State Senate

The Massachusetts State Senate presented a citation to Reader To Reader founder and executive director, David Mazor, in honor of his receipt of the Janet Dakin Award for Human Services. The citation was presented at the annual Amherst Chamber of Commerce Awards Banquet and was presented by state representative Ellen Story.