UPPER MARLBORO, MD — On March 29, the Maryland State Education Association (MSEA) and Prince George’s County Educators Association (PGCEA) celebrated Read Across America Month with Barack Obama Elementary School. MSEA donated a collection of new books to the school with a grant from the National Education Association (NEA), and MSEA President Cheryl Bost read “Someone Builds the Dream” with the students.

During the month of March, MSEA celebrated and encouraged a love of reading by donating a total of nearly 1,000 new books to schools throughout Maryland.

“As a fourth- and fifth-grade teacher I have seen how important it is for a student to be able to develop a love of reading,” said MSEA President Cheryl Bost. “It opens doors to new worlds and new perspectives. We’ve chosen fun and inspiring books where our students can see themselves and we hope that will motivate them to dream big.”

“In Prince George’s we picked Barack Obama Elementary School to receive the donation because of the school’s multicultural and multi-faceted approach to reading,” said PGCEA President Dr. Donna Christy.

MSEA, which represents 75,000 Maryland educators, designed its Read Across America program to help support students from historically underserved communities across the state. MSEA is a state affiliate of the National Education Association (NEA), which began Read Across America 25 years ago to bring the joys of reading to students of all ages and make children feel valued and welcomed by celebrating diverse readers and books. Read Across America is the nation’s largest celebration of reading.