Southeastern Public Library System One of 77 Organizations Nationwide to Receive ‘Big Read’ Grant
May 29, 2013 — The Southeastern Public Library System of Oklahoma (SEPLSO) today announced that it has received a grant of $13,125 to host The Big Read in all fifteen of its libraries, including the McAlester Public Library. The Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts, designed to revitalize the role of literature in American culture and to encourage citizens to read for pleasure and enlightenment. The Big Read is managed by Arts Midwest. The Southeastern Public Library System is one of 77 nonprofit organizations to receive a grant to host a Big Read project between September 2013 and June 2014. The Big Read in SEPLSO’s libraries will focus on True Grit, by Charles Portis. Activities will take place starting October 5 through November 16, 2013.
“All of our libraries are excited to be part of the celebration of Charles Portis’s classic tale of how a 14-year-old girl seeks a man with ‘true grit’ to help bring to justice the man who killed her father and shows she has ‘true grit’ herself,” said Wayne Hanway, Executive Director of SEPLSO. “Not only is it a great story, the action takes place right here in southeast Oklahoma. This is an important book about a colorful time in our local history, and it’s so good that it has been made into two movies.”
NEA Acting Chairman Joan Shigekawa said, “It’s wonderful to see that these 77 communities are making reading and the celebration of books a priority. I look forward to seeing the innovative ways they find to engage their communities in these great works of classic and contemporary literature.”
The Big Read provides communities nationwide with the opportunity to read, discuss, and celebrate one of 31 selections from U.S. and world literature. The 77 selected organizations will receive Big Read grants to promote and carry out community-based reading programs featuring activities such as read-a-thons, book discussions, lectures, movie screenings, and performing arts events. Participating communities also receive high-quality, free-of-charge educational materials to supplement each title, including Reader’s, Teacher’s, and Audio Guides, which also are available for download on neabigread.org.
For more information about The Big Read please visit neabigread.org.
The Southeastern Public Library System of Oklahoma is a multi-county public library district serving the residents of Choctaw, Coal, Haskell, Latimer, LeFlore, McCurtain, and Pittsburg Counties through libraries in Arkoma, Broken Bow, Coalgate, Hartshorne, Heavener, Hugo, Idabel, McAlester, Poteau, Spiro, Stigler, Talihina, Valliant, Wilburton, and Wister, and through various online and outreach services.
The National Endowment for the Arts was established by Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. To date, the NEA has awarded more than $4 billion to support artistic excellence, creativity, and innovation for the benefit of individuals and communities. The NEA extends its work through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies, and the philanthropic sector. To join the discussion on how art works, visit the NEA at arts.gov.
Arts Midwest promotes creativity, nurtures cultural leadership, and engages people in meaningful arts experiences, bringing vitality to Midwest communities and enriching people’s lives. Based in Minneapolis, Arts Midwest connects the arts to audiences throughout the nine-state region of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. One of six non-profit regional arts organizations in the United States, Arts Midwest’s history spans more than 25 years. For more information, please visit artsmidwest.org.
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