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<p align="center" style="margin:0in;text-align:center"><strong><span style="font-size:16.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">MDE and Library of Michigan Promote
</span></strong><o:p></o:p></p>
<p align="center" style="margin:0in;text-align:center"><strong><span style="font-size:16.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Equity in Literacy with Selections of
</span></strong><o:p></o:p></p>
<p align="center" style="margin:0in;text-align:center"><strong><span style="font-size:16.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">African American Authors and Their Books</span></strong><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">January 29, 2021</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">LANSING – In celebration of African American History Month, the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) and the Library of Michigan are excited to release the first week of outstanding African
American authors and their literary works that have been selected through nominations from Michigan educators.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">This month-long series is coordinated with MDE’s release of its
<a href="https://www.michigan.gov/documents/mde/Equity_in_Literacy-Full_Version_714779_7.pdf">
Equity in Literacy</a> resource guide to help local schools and teachers improve literacy skills of all students, with a particular emphasis on children of color and working class and poor children.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">“Our nation has a long history of outstanding African American authors whose works need to be shared,” said State Superintendent Dr. Michael Rice. “To improve literacy in our state and country,
we need not only to improve our students’ technical literacy skills but also to increase their interest in and engagement with the works that they read. Diversity in children’s literature is critical to engagement. All children need to see themselves in their
literature. All children need to see a broad range of people and cultures in their literature. Diversity in literature engages children, and the engagement leads to more reading, greater fluency, greater vocabulary development, and a broader knowledge of the
world. Most importantly, it leads to children who become life-long readers because they value what they read, not because they are told to read.”</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Seven African American authors and their literary works will be featured each week during the month of February along with information about the nominator and a brief description of the nominator’s
use of the work with students. The weekly <a href="https://www.michigan.gov/documents/mde/AfricanAmerHistMonthWeek1_714469_7.pdf">
calendar</a> will be posted on <a href="https://www.michigan.gov/mde/0,4615,7-140-28753_74161-547487--,00.html">
MDE’s Equity in Literacy</a> website.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Among the authors and selections for the week of February 1-7 are:
<em><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Selected Poems</span></em> by Langston Hughes,
<em><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">The Other Side</span></em> by Jacqueline Woodson, and
<em><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Isaiah Dunn is My Hero</span></em> by Kelly Baptist.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">The Equity in Literacy resource provides guidance to schools throughout the state about evidence-based literacy strategies, initiatives, and programs to improve literacy achievement and access
to literacy, with special attention to reducing class, racial, and ethnic disparities.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">In releasing this guidance, Dr. Rice said that in 2021 in the United States, all children should learn to read, and learn to read well enough that they can fully pursue their dreams in adulthood.
</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">“Yet in no state, let alone in the country as a whole, have we managed to come close to this level of substantial literacy for 100 percent of our children. This should be cause enough for
concern in and of itself,” Dr. Rice said.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">“Of additional and profound concern is that, on average, our children of color and our working class and poor children in Michigan and across the country underperform their peers. This is
not a reflection of their capability. As educators and policymakers, both in Michigan and across the country, we have a collective responsibility to do better.”</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Earlier this month, MDE launched the initiative to recognize and celebrate outstanding African American authors and their literary works. Educators throughout the state were invited to nominate
authors and their literary works that educators have used in their classrooms with students.
</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">The request generated 143 nominations submitted from 71 different traditional school districts, public school academies, nonpublic schools, and others.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">“We greatly appreciate the educators who accepted the challenge and submitted a nomination,” Dr. Rice said. “Their interests and submissions were instrumental to the success of this new initiative.”</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">To recognize African American authors is to celebrate and to raise up their literary work, expand the use of diverse literature in classrooms, and offer students an opportunity to engage in
literature in which they see themselves (mirrors) and others (windows) in their reading, as presented in the work of
</span><a href="https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flnks.gd%2Fl%2FeyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.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.59boBdwt8SiYOUFezsNploT4yCIeBm57KASkAOEqcqI%2Fs%2F597604808%2Fbr%2F94714574408-l&data=04%7C01%7Clancasterc5%40michigan.gov%7Ce52de0ecc83c46e17c5408d8c48b1059%7Cd5fb7087377742ad966a892ef47225d1%7C0%7C0%7C637475448848546545%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=jxKUI01HrX%2F8%2F0nc4itNf8ObQjZfENCZ8VCY4CSpoPU%3D&reserved=0"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Dr.
Rudine Sims Bishop</span></a><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">. </span>
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">In addition to celebrating outstanding African American authors through this initiative, MDE is hosting a free virtual conference for educators and administrators,
<strong><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Building Mirrors and Windows: Children Seeing Themselves and Others in the Literature that We Teach</span></strong>, on February 25, 2021. The conference will provide participants with ideas to increase
the amount of diverse literature available to students and how to use the materials for instruction and student engagement.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">For more information on the conference or the African American authors project, please contact
<a href="mailto:mde-earlyliteracy@michigan.gov">mde-earlyliteracy@michigan.gov</a>.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">The Equity in Literacy guidance document describes research-based literacy instruction and addresses practices that support access to high-quality literacy learning for all Michigan students.
The document is divided into five sections:</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<ol start="1" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color:black;mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1">
<span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Practices for creating engaging literacy learning environments</span><o:p></o:p></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="color:black;mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1">
<span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">The daily involvement of students in literacy<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="color:black;mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1">
<span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">The scientific or technical aspects of literacy<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="color:black;mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1">
<span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">The role of family engagement<o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="color:black;mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1">
<span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Resources to support equity in literacy<o:p></o:p></span></li></ol>
<p style="margin:0in"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">The Equity in Literacy guidance will be a living document. The guidance and resources, including the book recommendations, will be periodically updated. The document and additional resources
are also available on MDE’s </span><a href="https://www.michigan.gov/mde/0,4615,7-140-28753_74161-547487--,00.html"><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">Equity in Literacy website</span></a><span style="font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif">.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
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