Christopher Robert

PRIME TIME Announces Fall 2011

Louisiana Sites

In April the LEH and PRIME TIME honored Louisiana PRIME TIME sites and the Nebraska Humanities Council.  This year's award ceremony took place April 2 at Houmas House Plantation and Gardens on River Road in Darrow, La. The LEH and PRIME TIME recognized Louisiana agencies and host sites that successfully completed their first PRIME TIME programs. The 2010 award recipients are, from left to right, Holly Bell, program coordinator of the Mahalia Jackson Early Childhood and Family Learning Center, New Orleans; Cindy Blanchard from the Central Intermediate School, Central, La.; Jim Howell and Sara Woodard (in red), Start the Adventure in Reading at Capdau University of New Orleans Charter School, New Orleans. Also receiving awards, but not pictured, were Joe Johnson, program coordinator, Communities in Schools New Orleans at Fischer Charter School, New Orleans; Martha Baden, program coordinator, Alice Boucher World Languages Academy, Lafayette, La.; and Charee Theriot, program coordinator, St. Martinville Primary School, St. Martinville, La.  

Each year, the LEH also honors individuals and agencies that have made outstanding contributions to the study and understanding of the humanities. This year, the LEH presented the Public Humanities Program Award to Jane Hood (former executive director), Chris Sommerich (current executive director) and Erika Hamilton (director of literary programs) of the Nebraska Humanities Council (NHC) for their role in expanding PRIME TIME's national initiative. Presenting the award to Erika Hamilton, center, were LEH Executive Director and President Michael Sartisky and PRIME TIME Director Miranda Restovic. 

From 2002 to 2010, the NHC implemented 71 highly successful PRIME TIME programs throughout the state (this is the second highest number of programs in any state outside of Louisiana). In 2002, the NHC received one of several NEH national expansion grants that provided funding and resources for the completion of one PRIME TIME program. In 2004, the NHC came on board as a self-funded affiliate. Since receiving the initial funding for a single PRIME TIME program, the NHC has not received additional national expansion grants from the LEH.  Each of the 70 additional programs occurred as a result of the council's diligent fundraising efforts and overwhelming commitment to bringing high quality humanities programming to families in need. The NHC plans to complete 14 additional programs in 2011.

In receiving the award Erika Hamilton stated: "PRIME TIME has become a priority for the NHC because it addresses an important issue in our state - the achievement gap in reading scores and graduation rates for Hispanics, African Americans and Native Americans. This program helps strengthen participants' interest and skills in reading, discussing and applying what happens in the books to what has happened or may happen in their own lives."

An Interview With PRIME TIME Program Coordinators

Georgia PRIME TIME Project Director and Director of Youth Services for the Georgia Public Library Service, Elaine Black, provides News and Views with a fresh take on the program coordinator's perspective.  In "An Interview with PRIME TIME Program Coordinators" Elaine elicits direct responses to several questions which highlight critical elements of the program coordinator role, and the resiliency that is required to successfully implement PRIME TIME for the target population.  Vincent Chukumah a staff librarian with the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System and Elisa Kadish, Branch Manager with the Gwinnett County Public Library were both trained as PRIME TIME program coordinators for the NEH-funded Common Ground project. 

"CHUKUMAH:   My biggest challenge organizing PRIME TIME is recruiting families that will participate in all six sessions of the program. To have a successful PRIME TIME program you have to have a minimum of 12 families in attendance in all six weeks of the program. I had registered about 50 families before the program started and before the first week, I had lost more than half of the families...."

Click here to read the full article and find out how Vincent resolved this common recruitment issue.

After piloting and field-testing the PRIME TIME model for 5 years, the program was launched as a statewide initiative in Louisiana in 1995.  One of the first statewide programs took place in Calasieu Parish at the Epps Memorial Library in 1996.  At that time, Cornell Thomas was a library staffer who assited the program coordinator (Yolanda Blanchard) and others in some aspects of planning and implementing the program.  In this charming essay, Mr.Thomas reflects on the significance of PRIME TIME's 20-year milestone; connecting the program's start in Calcasieu Parish to its most recent Spring 2011 program.  Cornell appropriatley honors the efforts of earlier Calcasieu team members while chronicling his own recent experiences with PRIME TIME as branch manager and PRIME TIME program coordinator for the Iowa Branch Library.  Click here to read the full essay.

Since 1996, approximately 20 PRIME TIME programs have been successfully implemented in Calcasieu Parish.  We are immensly grateful to all team members from the Calcasieu Parish Library, The Literacy Council of Southwest Louisiana, W.T. Henning Elementary School, and Gillis Elementary School whose time and effort continue to help PRIME TIME reach its goals.

July 2011 PRIME TIME Training Workshop