 Irvington, NY - The Irvington Middle School (IMS) hosted a reception on Feb. 4 for local writers/authors to participate in a new program, the River Writers’ Grant. Assistant Principal, Ellen R. Helgans served as hostess and provided an overview of the program.
Sixteen local writers/authors were on hand for an informational session that shared the guidelines of the program, set to begin April 3.
The program will bring local authors together with grade 7 students and English teachers, Tom Sandler and Julie Ippolito, who will work side-by-side with authors in the classroom in a workshop setting. The writers will provide inspiration and support for students, acting as mentors through the writing process. The program hopes to expose students to different genres of writing, help them develop their voice and engage students in writing for a variety of purposes.
This grant is funded by the Irvington Education Foundation. Hope Davis, an IEF member, worked tirelessly on this project. Under the direction of Greer Fischer, assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction and technology, the program idea was introduced during the summer; its scope was defined in late fall. Jennifer McArdle, chairperson of the English Department contributed to the project.
The authors who attended were:
Kate Buford (Morning Edition/NPR Commentator (essays) 1995-2000; Marketplace commentator (essays) 2000 – present)
Colleen Carroll (Author of a 12-volume series of children’s books called “How Artists See” Abbeville Press, 1996-2004)
Brenda Connor-Bey (Poet Laureate for the Town of Greenburgh; award winning poet, writer and arts-in-education specialist)
Charles Davey (Full-time writer, editor and designer of books: children’s – trade and educational; architecture; interior design; social history)
Allison Gilbert (Weinstein) (Emmy award-winning journalist who has worked for such media networks as NBC News, ABC News, and most recently, CNN)
Jeff Gordinier (Author of upcoming book “X Saves the World,” Viking; longtime writer/editor for magazines like Details, Esquire, Fortune, Elle, Spin & Entertainment Weekly)Alayne Katz (Attorney/persuasive argument writing)
Brian Kiley (Comic/comedy writer) (is this too brief)
Ronnie Krauss (TV writer, mostly children’s shows: PBS, Disney & Fox – Magic School Bus; Reading Rainbow; Cyberchase)
Robert Massie (American historian and Pulitzer Prize winning author of “Peter the Great”)
Sylvia Nasar (Author: “A Beautiful Mind” August 2006)
Katie Schlientz (American Kennel Club’s magazine department, freelance writer)
Barrett Seaman (30 years as a correspondent and editor for Time Magazine; author of “Binge,” and “Going for Broke: the Chrysler Story”)
Peter Sis (award-winning illustrator: chosen Best Illustrator of the Year – by N.Y. Times Book Review seven times)
Todd Sliss (sports editor, Scarsdale Inquirer, and poet)
Lissa Weinstein (Ph D; author: “Reading David: A mother and Son’s Journey through the Labyrinth of Dyslexia,” Penguin 2003)
For more information on this program, please call Ellen Helgans, IMS assistant principal, at 914-269-5320.
 |
