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| Bill & Wanda Williams 2008-2009 Read With Me Spokespersons |
“If a child learns to read and develops a love for reading, the possibilities are limitless as to what he or she can do,” explained Bill Williams about why he and wife Wanda are serving as this year’s spokespersons for Knox County’s Read With Me program. Bill and Wanda are helping recruit volunteers to read in elementary classrooms across the County this year.
- Click here for volunteer form
The Read With Me program is designed to help our children be successful. Volunteers spend one hour a week reading with children in 1st through 3rd grade classrooms. According to Mayor Mike Ragsdale, "Nothing is more important than our children. They will be our future doctors, engineers, and teachers. The quality of their education directly impacts our progress as a community. Read With Me is about helping our children."
The program is successful because of the sense of partnership it builds with schools, businesses, parents and volunteers all working together to improve and enhance the reading skills of children. WBIR anchor John Becker became a Read With Me volunteer shortly after arriving in Knoxville, “You walk into the classroom the first day nervous and worried about making a difference. The last day, you walk out with little doubt that you did.”
Initiated by Mayor Ragsdale in the first year of his administration, the Read With Me program allows the Knox County community to participate in improving its children's success by simply reading with them. Mayor Ragsdale has been reading in Sterchi Elementary classrooms since 2001, “It amazes me how much progress children can make in one short year. I encourage everyone to join this volunteer effort, for the children, and for yourself.”
