The Essence of a Year in the Life of the

New Jersey Center for the Book

by Pat Morris

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The New Jersey Center for the Book completed its tenth year as a vibrant organization under the extraordinarily capable direction of the chair, Renee B. Swartz, and succeeding in its mission to provide multiple ways to highlight avenues for literacy in the Garden State.

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This year marked several events that showed the diversity of literacy.  Science is Fundamental was a program at Monmouth County Library that targeted, on various day, different age groups. This was modeled on the first science literacy activity held a couple of years ago for the Center, Stellar Science Spectacular, at the Liberty Science Center.

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Another event held at the Monmouth County Library to commemorate the anniversary of the Civil War was the Civil War Tea.

September is always a great time for the National Book Festival in Washington on the Great Mall.  New Jersey Center for the Book promotes the state and its reading efforts there.

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The Center honored New Jersey’s own Walter Dean Myers at its Tenth Anniversary celebration held at the Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers, New Brunswick. SC&I Dean Jorge Reina Schement presented acclaimed author Walter Dean Myers with the Rutgers School of Communication & Information Award for Distinguished Literature for Children and Young Adults.

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The Literary Lion Award was awarded to Riletta Cream, Camden County Freeholder.  One of the events that Freeholder Cream chaired was the celebration of the Walt Whitman House in Camden.  Riletta Cream is a true literary lion.

The Miss Rumphius Award this year went to Dr. Dana Sheridan of the Cotsen Children’s Library at Princeton.  Dr. Sheridan received her award at the Fall NJASL Conference.

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The Letters About Literature Celebration for 86 finalists and winners was held at the Princeton University Art Museum.  In addition to honoring the students, the Center paid special attention to the teachers who have been so instrumental over the years in using the program in their curriculum and helping their students succeed.

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Teacher of the Decade Award was given to Brian Hanson-Harding, Northern Valley  Regional High School, Old Tappan, NJ.

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Special Teacher Recognition Citations were awarded to Laura Stegmuller, Burlington Township Middle School; Donna Marcy, Columbia Middle School, Berkeley Heights; Catherine Mc Guinness and Lisa O’Shea, Community Middle School, West Windsor-Plainsboro; Cean Spahn and Charles Janesak, Lewis F. Cole Middle School, Fort Lee; Christine Maffa, Churchill Jr. High School, East Brunswick; Joan Marie Bellotti, High Tech High School; Mary B. Vargas, Toms River High School North; and Janis Rose, Rutherford Schools.