Ward is president of the Target Foundation, which partnered with the Heart of America Foundation to renovate libraries at five D.C. public elementary schools: Amidon-Bowen, Davis, Garfield, Garrison and Orr. Will there be any new books at the libraries?
We’ve redesigned the libraries, which will each feature 2,000 new books. Every student and his or her siblings will also take home several new books to add to his or her collection. We want to instill learning and create an environment in the school, but also continue the learning outside the school and at home.
How did you choose the five D.C. schools?
We worked closely with the Heart of America Foundation as well as with the local school district. Students must show low levels of reading proficiency, so there’s a need to help get the reading scores up. And the school must serve at least 65 percent of children from low-income families, and these five schools have in fact a very high percentage of students who are on free and reduced lunch.
What can students and teachers expect out of their new libraries?
We’re really focusing on leveraging the library as the heart of the school and, quite frankly, the whole community. It’s a place where the parents can come and engage and the whole community can come and engage to help promote students successfully completing their education.
How big a deal is it for students to have this new space?
When we’ve seen students, parents and teachers walk into these libraries for the first time, we have seen them literally jumping and shouting for joy, bouncing up and down. They’re almost in awe that all of these new books and this incredible technology was designed for them. We want them to know that school is important, education is important, reading is important, and that they are important, and they deserve a well-designed, beautiful place where they’re safe and encouraged to learn to their full potential.
– Ben Giles
