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American Education Week events at the Friday Institute
November 13-17, 2006
Sponsored by the National Education Association (NEA), the theme for American Education
Week was "Great Public Schools: A Basic Right and Our Responsibility." Throughout the week,
NEA and its 2.8 million members hosted events across the country designed to raise
awareness about the critical need for educators, parents, students and communities to work
together for great public education in America. American Education Week began in 1921 as a way to generate public awareness and support for
education at a time when illiteracy was still a major problem in the United States.
The following events were held at the Friday Institute as part of American Education Week:
A literacy advocate excited about sharing bookjoy, Pat Mora founded the family literacy initiative,
El día de los niños/ El día de los libros, Children's Day/ Book Day, now housed at the American
Library Association. The year-long commitment to daily linking all children to books, languages
and cultures is celebrated on April 30th. Mora is a popular national speaker and educator, shaped
by the U.S.-Mexico border where she was born and spent much of her life.
Mora's new collection of
poetry, "Adobe Odes," will be published by The University of Arizona Press later this year. Her
poems, characterized as "proudly bilingual" by The New York Times, include "Aunt Carmen's Book
of Practical Saints." The Washington Post described her acclaimed memoir "House of Houses" as
"a textual feast... a regenerative act... and an eloquent bearer of the old truth that it is through
the senses that we apprehend love." An award-winning author of poetry, non-fiction and more than
25 children's books, Mora is completing "Dear Teacher: Seven Practices for Creative Educators."
She's excited about her other fall poetry book, this one for children: "¡Marimba! Animales A-Z."
Among her awards are the 2006 National Hispanic Cultural Center Literary Award, The University
of Texas at El Paso's Distinguished Alumna for 2004, and a Civitella Ranieri Fellowship to write
in Umbria, Italy.
The Friday Medal, which was created to honor significant, distinguished and
enduring contributions to education for the people of North Carolina and beyond through
advancing education, advocating innovation and imparting inspiration. Celebrating the
achievements of Bill and Ida Friday, the medal will be given annually to those who best
exemplify the vision, mission, ideals and goals of the Friday Institute.
To find out more about American Education Week activities and the College of Education,
visit www.ced.ncsu.edu/edweek/.
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