This fall, Great Bend USD 428 will become the first Kansas school district to use the educational program One District, One Book in a formal way, Superintendent Brad Reed said.
The program is designed to increase literacy and the love of reading. Its creator, Gary Anderson, will visit Great Bend on Aug. 13 for the Back to School Celebration.
“He will speak to our entire K-12 staff in the morning, and then meet with our K-6 staff for another session in the afternoon,” Reed said.
USD 428 is prominently featured in a short article about the One District, One Book program that will appear in the September issue of School Administrator, published by the AASA, the leading national school superintendents’ association.
“It is kind of neat to have our district featured in a national magazine,” Reed said.
The article explains that Great Bend’s 1,600 elementary students will all read “The World According to Humphrey,” by Betty G. Birney. Reed will introduce the book from his office with a video that will be streamed live into all five elementary schools.
Anderson isn’t the only featured speaker for the Back to School Celebration. The keynote speaker will be Dr. Monte Selby, an educator, author, songwriter and global motivational speaker from Denver, formerly from the faculty at Emporia State University.