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or anyone who listens to the daily announcements, it is common to hear about the summer reading program a few weeks before school ends. The program encourages students to read over the summer, promotes literacy and students a chance to read books they don’t often have time and energy to during the school year, librarians Amity Bateman and Shannon Vakili said.

“We start promoting a few weeks before school gets out … and then we keep a list of the names of those students who have signed up,” Vakili said. “You come in … on the last day of school to select the books that [you] would like to check out for over the summer.”

The approximately twenty students who participated were allowed to check out seven books for the duration of this summer.

English teacher Steve Lavelle said he believes having the summer reading program is priceless.

“I’m really appreciative that our library and our school offers such a supportive, constructive program for kids to become better readers, better thinkers, better writers and better people,” Lavelle said. “That’s how much I believe in that.”

The reading program allows students to discover a wide range of books and read different genres and types of books, Lavelle said.

“I think the library giving kids the opportunity to take as many books to check out over the summer [lets them] get into all different genres … and find the niche of genre they enjoy,” Lavelle said.

Vakili said the program benefits students in many ways.

“It provides them access to books that they might’ve been interested in reading but didn’t have time to read in the school year, Vakili said. “Reading for pleasure in general, is beneficial in lots of ways for people, so we also like to encourage that. All the sort of benefits you may think to come with reading outside of required reading outside of school come with [the program].”

Lavelle said he supports the program and its benefits, as well.

“Please kids, take advantage of this. Reading can help you in so many ways, get [you] ready for the rest of your high school career and college and beyond,” Lavelle said.