TAMIU Annual Report 2021

TAMIU students enrolled in the Multilingual Children’s Literature course during the Spring 2020 semester crafted a series of children’s books used by student tutors involved in the TAMIU-Lamar Bruni Vergara (LBV) Literacy Partnership. A total of 42 books were created by 42 University students and were donated to the TAMIU - LBV Literacy Partnership during a Book Hand-Off event this May. The collaborative service-learning project was led by Dr. Kaitlyn M. Culliton, assistant professor of English. Throughout the collaborative process, students wrote, illustrated, and published original picture books that engaged with their community and reflected on their own experiences. “Significant research has demonstrated that early literacy is the best way to offer students lifelong academic success and to bridge achievement gaps between students. However, early literacy acquisition is subject to STUDENTS CRAFT CHILDREN’S BOOKS, LBV LITERACY PARTNERSHIP several social and cultural challenges. The TAMIU-LBV Literacy Partnership provides tutoring to address early achievement gaps by reading with students in weekly tutoring sessions,” Dr. Culliton explained. Currently, book sets reside in literacy centers in TAMIU-LBV Literacy Partnership schools. The TAMIU-LBV Literacy Partnership is a community engagement initiative funded by the Lamar Bruni Vergara Charitable Trust. Through the LBV Trust’s generous support, the Partnership provides one-to-one tutoring to children throughout Laredo and professional development targeting early literacy. The collaborative effort includes support from Laredo College, Laredo Independent School District, and United ISD. Additional information on the TAMIU – LBV Literacy Partnership is available at go.tamiu.edu/lbv-partnership Students enrolled in the Multilingual Children’s Literature course this past Spring 2020 semester crafted a series of children’s books that will be used by student tutors involved in the TAMIU-Lamar Bruni Vergara Literacy Partnership (TAMIU-LBV). The books were handed off to the TAMIU- LBV Literacy Partnership during an in-person event that included a children’s book display, at the Sue and Radcliffe Killam Library Great Room. OUTREACH 30