Number of Participants: 11
Hours Donated: 1
Value of Time Served: $93
Event Type: Children & Youth
Sport: Boys Basketball
School: Ballston Spa Senior High School
Date: March 23, 2023
Location:
Ballston Spa High School
Ballston Avenue, Ballston Spa
NY
About:
“When I took over the program in 2019-2020 season, we committed to making service a part of what it meant to be a student athlete. We have participated in Wreaths Across America, a new yearly tradition, and I connected with elementary teachers to have the players get into their classrooms to be guest readers. I wanted the players to experience something a little out of their comfort zone, and I have had my own children in those classrooms, and knew they enjoyed having people come in and read.
Our district was putting a high emphasis on literacy and engaging young readers. This year, our new Reading Specialist at Gordon Creek Elementary connected with me, and we scheduled it to formally coincide with PARP, Pick A Reading Partner, in our elementary schools. I know the schools do a lot more with PARP, across all 4 elementary schools, but we focused on Gordon Creek. We let teachers request to have players in, and many selected former students. Players read a story, answered questions, signed autographs, and chatted with the students for 30 minutes to an hour.
The older kids also have a great experience catching up with former teachers, laughing with the students, seeing their excitement at having a guest in, especially for those that attended games throughout the year and had their favorite players in their room.” Information provided by Benjamin Eldridge B Spa Boys Basketball Coach