What Scares Me Today

...is this.

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Study Finds One-Third in D.C. Illiterate

WASHINGTON (AP) - About one-third of the people living in the national's capital are functionally illiterate, compared with about one-fifth nationally, according to a report on the District of Columbia.

Adults are considered functionally illiterate if they have trouble doing such things as comprehending bus schedules, reading maps and filling out job applications.

The study by the State Education Agency, a quasi-governmental office created by the U.S. Department of Education to distribute federal funds for literacy services, was ordered by Mayor Anthony A. Williams in 2003 as part of his four-year, $4 million adult literacy initiative.

The growing number of Hispanic and Ethiopian immigrants who aren't proficient in English contributed to the city's high functional illiteracy level, which translated to 170,000 people, said Connie Spinner, director of the State Education Agency. The report says the district's functional illiteracy rate is 36 percent and the nation's 21 percent.

Adults age 65 and older had the lowest literacy score of any group, the report found.

The District of Columbia Chamber of Commerce, which contributed to the report, said the city lost up to $107 million in taxes annually between 2000 and 2005 because of a lack of qualified job applicants.


Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Identity Library Crisis

Just got word that the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), and the American Library Association (ALA) have chosen Identity Crisis to be on their 2007 YALSA Great Graphic Novels for Teens list.

It's not the honor that really fluffs me up, it's this:

"The purpose of the Great Graphic Novels for Teens list is to encourage teens to discover and enjoy quality works of sequential art that are both engaging and entertaining."

Encouraging people to read comics. In the libraries. That's where I learned to love books. I'm so so thrilled to see they're arming themselves with comics. And that's why I love librarians. Really.

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Win $5,000 while writing about The Zero Game

For those who didn't know, The Zero Game was picked by Florida to be the book that the state reads for their Read Together Florida program. One of my favorite parts is the High School Essay Contest we put together. You go to high school...you write the best essay...you get $5,000 sugar-smacks. Keen. And considering I would've killed for some financial help in high school, this one truly hits home. I entered one essay contest in high school. I won 2nd place. And lost to my girlfriend. Suckola.

The point is, the deadline for the essay contest has been extended until January 31, 2007. So see below and good luck.

http://info.fldoe.org/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-4108/jressay_deadline.pdf

Brad

Win a trip with Brad to DC

For the past month, The Book of Fate has been read by kind citizens and students in the state of Florida as part of the Governor's Read Together Florida program. So how does that benefit you? Well, if you win the contest they're sponsoring, I'll take you on a free trip to Washington, DC. Really. No joke. And all you have to do is enter. No purchase necessay, though the only catch is you have to live in Florida. But if you win, we're going to the Capitol, sis.

All the details are here: www.volunteerfloridafoundation.org

See you in DC.

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