GLENPOOL, Okla. – The former thrice-named U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo partnered with the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Department of Education Accessing Educational Choices Program to host a reading event on Sept. 21 at the Glenpool Conference Center.
Harjo read her newest book, “Remember”. The book invites young readers to pause and reflect on the wonder of the world around them, and to remember the importance of their place in it.
Harjo was assisted by Miss Muscogee Nation Chenoa Barnett. who showed the pictures in the book to the students more closely.
The first 200 eligible students received lunch and a book bundle including “Remember” and Harjo’s memoir.
The “Joy of Reading” event was a part of the Indigenous Readers Sessions. In these sessions students read stories aloud with an author or a narrator. At the end of the session they are given book bundles to foster literacy.
Story topics focus on enhancing student’s understanding of the value of family, communities, Native culture, determination, and resiliency.
Replays of the reading are available for students who missed the event on the ACE website. Students and parents can find next year’s scheduled cultural and educational events on the ACE website as well. The program offers events for all ages Pre-Kindergarten through 12th grade.
Family Fun Night
The following week after the Joy of Reading event, ACE staff hosted a Family Fun Night at Incredible Pizza on Sept. 28 in Tulsa, Okla.
Attending family members were given a game card with a free buffet dinner.
On Nov. 1, applications will be available for a one-time $500 reimbursement that students can use to purchase education materials that will benefit their academic success. The application will be available on the ACE website. On the site, parents and students can access the ACE catalog and view upcoming events.
Resources for all ages pre-kindergarten to high school seniors are available through this program.
Family fun, ACT prep, concurrent enrollment fees, cultural labs, and Indigenous reader modules are just some of the educational activities offered by ACE.
The ACE Program mission is to enhance student and family educational choices by creating a Service Provider System that includes evidence-based, culturally-responsive service options to improve Native American student academic outcomes, according to the ACE website.
For more information visit https://mcnaceservices.com/ace-program/.
