The Cover to Confidence Student Directed Learning Community (SDLC) is currently sponsoring a children’s book drive until Oct. 24. The children of Burrowes Elementary School in Lancaster City will receive the new and gently-used donations.
Books for children ages four to 10 can be dropped off on the second floor of Steinman Hall, the Elizabethtown Public Library, outside the Hub of the Brossman Commons or in residence hall lobbies.
Cover to Confidence is one of the several SDLCs at Elizabethtown College. An SDLC is a house of independent living for junior and senior Etown students who wish to live the College’s motto of “educate for service.”
These students are able to do so through unique, personalized service projects. Each house consists of three to five members and exemplifies a specific theme. An SDLC’s theme is the motivation behind its service activities.
“Early adolescence literary and confidence development” is the theme of the Cover to Confidence SDLC, which includes juniors Cecilia Hartley, Lauren Van Pelt, Allison Patterson and Kelly Knorr.
Patterson and Knorr are both majoring in communications, while Hartley and Van Pelt are majoring in early childhood education. Their faculty mentor is Dr. Monica Belfatti, assistant professor of education, and they partner with the Elizabethtown Public Library.
This SDLC advocates for both literacy and confidence development in local children and participate in service activities that promote this goal.
Hartley and Van Pelt had education field placements in Burrowes Elementary School last fall. In an email interview, the SDLC members said they noted “the need for more books in the classroom.”
The members of Cover to Confidence concluded that a book drive for Burrowes Elementary school would be a perfect avenue for developing literacy and confidence in young students.
“Literacy is such an important part of elementary education,” said Cover to Confidence members, who are eager to sponsor their first book drive.
They hope that this drive will increase the availability of books to elementary students in Lancaster City. Members of the SDLC note that “drives like this are a great way for the entire college community to give back.”
Orchestrating the drive has been an easy task for the girls of the SDLC, and Etown students can participate effortlessly. Despite the uncomplicated nature of the book drive, its outcome will be “priceless.” An expanded availability of books tends to boost interest in reading.
Students in Burrowes Elementary School will be able to develop vital literacy skills while utilizing a wider variety of books. This book drive is just one way that Cover to Confidence plans to achieve its objectives.
The SDLC uses a number of different outlets in promoting literacy and confidence. In addition to organizing this book drive, members administer a book club for young girls in the Elizabethtown Public Library.
They also plan to participate in “Into the Streets,” a campus-wide service day Saturday, Oct. 22, in which Etown students give back to the local community.
In February, Cover to Confidence will hold an African-American Read-In at the Elizabethtown Public Library. Ultimately, the members of Cover to Confidence will passionately engage in any activities that coincide with their ambitions.
“We chose to live in a community like this because we were driven toward the idea of being able to learn from each other,” the members said. While promoting students’ literacy and confidence is the core objective of Cover to Confidence, the desire to learn also motivates its members.
Through their various service projects, they have noticed that they are “not only learning more about our surrounding community, but also about new disciplines.” The four members of Cover to Confidence aim to “connect with the surrounding community” in a beneficial and constructive way.
