Initiative To Raise Awareness For Crisis In Early Literacy Education

HENDERSON, NV. JUNE 6, 2006 -- A shocking one in three children in America enters kindergarten unprepared to succeed. To raise awareness about the crisis in early education, Clark County School District is teaming up with the non-profit group Jumpstart, Pearson, Starbucks, and American Eagle Outfitters to launch "Read for the Record", a national campaign to create the largest shared reading experience ever. Yesterday at a "Read for the Record" kick-off event at Louis Wiener Elementary School, school district literacy expert Danielle Miller announced that Clark County will become the first district in the nation to become "Champions" for this call to action to support early literacy.

The "Read for the Record" campaign will set the world record for the number of children reading the same book - with an adult or older child - on the same day. The campaign will take place on Thursday, August 24 and the official campaign book is a custom limited edition of the children's classic The Little Engine That Could.

Rob Waldron, Chief Executive Officer of Jumpstart, a national non-profit organization focused on preschool literacy, said, "A child from a low-income family is read to an average of 25 hours before entering kindergarten, while a child from a middle-income family is read to an average of 1,700 hours. This disparity is at the core of a huge national problem that impacts the futures of millions of children, but it is entirely solvable. By reaching out to the Clark County School District, we hope to engage your entire community in joining our campaign to help be a part of the solution."

Danielle Miller, also principal of the Nate Mack Elementary School, said she is proud that Clark County School District has been selected "as the first in the nation to become champions for the 'Read for the Record campaign'." She added, "As educators, we know that early intervention is critical to the success of each child."

"Pearson has a long-term commitment to the work of Jumpstart through our Pearson Teacher Fellowship program to bring qualified teachers to preschools serving low-income communities, said Paul McFall, President of Pearson Scott Foresman elementary education publishers. Our funding and support for Jumpstart's Read for the Record Campaign is one additional step to ensure that our at-risk children are not forgotten, and that we provide them the help they need to be successful when they get to kindergarten."

Pearson Scott Foresman representatives Dr. Karin Ekanger and Tim MacDonald represented the corporate sponsor at the kick-off. Ekanger said the company is offering reading activity kits for the district elementary schools based on The Little Engine That Could, along with copies of the classic book.

To support Jumpstart's "Read for the Record," Pearson and its Penguin Young Readers division are publishing a custom limited edition of The Little Engine That Could by Watty Piper, with new art by Loren Long. The custom limited edition includes a foreword by NBC's TODAY host Matt Lauer as well as proven Jumpstart reading techniques for adults to read with a young child. First Lady Laura Bush is Honorary Chairperson for Jumpstart's "Read for the Record" and will support the campaign with televised public service announcements. Underwritten by Pearson and its businesses - Pearson Education, The Financial Times and the Penguin Group (USA) -100% of the sale price of the custom limited edition will benefit Jumpstart.

The Jumpstart program pairs a caring and trained college student with an at-risk pre-school child one-to-one for a year to build critical language, literacy and social skills. This simple, yet powerful model prepares children to learn, encourages families to get involved with their child's learning and inspires college students to become teachers and child advocates. This year alone, Jumpstart will prepare nearly 10,000 children for kindergarten making it the largest such organization in America.

On August 24, 2006, "Read for the Record" will engage hundreds of thousands of adults and children all across the country to raise awareness about how to address the completely solvable problem of school readiness, and increase support for Jumpstart's important work with at-risk children. Go to www.readfortherecord.org to register to "Read for the Record" and also find out how to provide a copy of The Little Engine That Could to an at-risk child.

ABOUT JUMPSTART

Jumpstart is a national non-profit early education organization that ensures low-income preschoolers enter school with the foundation of skills necessary to their future success. Jumpstart directly combats the rising trend of school unpreparedness by pairing low-income preschoolers and caring adults in year-long, one-to-one mentoring relationships. The program operates 60 sites nationwide, each supervised by one of our highly skilled site managers. Jumpstart's five regional offices support the work of our sites and ensure high quality implementation of the Jumpstart program.

ABOUT PEARSON SCOTT FORESMAN

Pearson Scott Foresman is the leading elementary educational publisher of scientifically-researched instructional materials, assessment tools, digital media, and professional development. Pearson Scott Foresman's programs span all disciplines, including Pearson Scott Foresman's Reading Street, the first reading program to align with the No Child Left Behind Act. Pearson Scott Foresman is part of Pearson Education, the world's leading educational publisher and a business of Pearson, the international media company (NYSE: PSO), whose other major businesses are The Financial Times and Penguin Group.