Best of the Week 2019-2020: Holy Cross Values

ST. ED'S ACADEMIC CHALLENGE CELEBRATES FAMILY AND THE LOVE OF READING THROUGH "SHARE THE LOVE OF BOOKS" BOOK DRIVE

This month, St. Ed's Academic Challenge team and moderators Mrs. Ashley Ventura and Mrs. Julia Janisko are hosting a "Share the Love of Books" Book Drive to give back to the community of Lakewood in time for Valentine's Day. "Last year, our graduating seniors expressed that they wanted Academic Challenge to facilitate a service opportunity to meet the needs of our community," says Mrs. Ventura. "We had been in discussion about several opportunities, and we landed on the Book Drive. We were inspired to have the Book Drive in February because it is one of the few months that does not have a school-wide service opportunity, like the Thanksgiving Food Drive."

"Additionally, our Academic Challenge team loves pursuing knowledge beyond what is taught in the classroom. The Ohio Academic Competition (OAC) in Copley, which we will be competing in at the end of the month, even pulls their tournament questions from published works that are for sale at the beginning of the tournament," says Mrs. Janisko. "The Academic Challenge team at St. Ed's wanted to make an impactful investment in the lives of their communities."

Those books donated to the "Share the Love of Books" Book Drive from now until February 13 will be used to continue the legacy of St. Ed's little free library at the front entrance of the school and the remainder will be donated to the Cleveland Kids' Book Bank to provide access to community members who cannot reach our library. "As the Academic Challenge moderators who are both English teachers, we understand that literacy and reading is an important skill and a powerful decision-maker in a person's potential success and future," says Mrs. Janisko. "Literacy is taught, and we can break the generational cycle of illiteracy through access to literature."

"We feel this book drive does a great job reflecting St. Ed's Holy Cross value of Hospitality," says Mrs. Ventura. "Through this book drive, we break down the barriers between illiteracy and access to our community through our little free library. This service project also embodies our support for Family, one of our Seven Standards of an Edsman. Our students are not only brothers within the walls of St. Ed's, but they play a part in the community that surrounds our school, which is also an important part of our family as well. Our students have done an excellent job with organizing and promoting the book drive collection and have truly shown their generosity. Not only have they donated their time to facilitate the drive, but they've spent time learning why this is important for our community and how it will impact those around us." As of now, over 650 books have been donated to the "Share the Love of Books" Book Drive. For those interested in contributing to the book drive, please bring your donated books to Room 120 or Room 122 or to the front lobby before school until Thursday, February 13.