Saturday mornings are usually pretty quiet at Lycoming College’s Snowden Library. On Feb. 6, however, groups of students convened around the fireplace to read aloud and raise money for a great cause.
February marked Lycoming’s 12th Annual College Read-In event, which encourages civic engagement and social literacy by presenting an opportunity for student groups to earn community service hours and contribute to initiatives to raise funds and awareness.
This year, under the guidance of Melissa Correll, instructional services librarian and assistant professor at Lycoming, the library teamed up with the student group Colleges Against Cancer to co-sponsor the event. Colleges Against Cancer selected John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars, a book about two teenagers with cancer, to read and the American Cancer Society as the beneficiary of funds collected.
Lycoming College’s swim team was one of seven student groups to support the read-in.
In order to participate, student groups pledged a donation of at least $15. They signed up for one-hour time slots to take turns reading out loud, passing the books around to the other group members. Students thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to unplug and enjoy some old-fashioned fun.
This year, more than 70 students participated in the Read-In, and raised more than $140 for the American Cancer Society. And yes, they did have to break out the tissues!