Creating a love for literacy and helping students become successful readers is getting a boost at Pomeroy Elementary, thanks to a $7,000 grant from Verizon Wireless.

The grant from the Verizon Foundation will enable the school to fund the “Pomeroy Book Buddies” after-school program, which will provide books, reading instruction and technology to help students in third and fourth grades improve their reading skills.

“Literacy is one of the Verizon Foundation’s major funding priorities due to its enormous impact on education and economic development,” said David Russell, Verizon vice president of external affairs. “This program is a wonderful example of serving the community’s literacy needs and Verizon is pleased to partner with Pomeroy Elementary through this grant.”

Pomeroy teacher Catalina Rangel came up with the idea to create the program and applied through the Verizon grants program several months ago. She was surprised during a recent faculty meeting when Verizon representatives and Harris County Judge Ed Emmett presented her with a check to fund the book club.

“We are very appreciative of this grant,” Rangel said. “It will go a long way toward improving the skills of those having difficulty in reading, and also help them develop a life-long love for reading.”

Rangel said she believes the after-school book club will not only help those struggling readers, but those who are learning English as a second language. The after-school book club will start in the near future.

“Our goals are to provide effective intervention strategies for students,” she said. “We believe that this program will provide support for second language acquisition of bilingual students.”

Another mission of the program is to give students more frequent access to books and library resources.

“Ninety-two percent of our students come from economically disadvantaged homes and books in the home are rarely available,” Rangel said. “Combining access to books, technology and discussion about what they’ve read will raise the interest and motivation of students to learn and read.”

In addition, students will be able to participate in reading activities through on-line resources, such as TeachingBooks and ReadWriteThink. The TeachingBooks program allows students to “meet an author” the moment students read a selected book. The computer program also includes interactive slide shows, interviews and relevant links from around the web.

“Being able to meet these authors is wonderful and it encourages students to read more and enjoy it,” Rangel said. “It gives them a personal connection to the author and their experiences.”

During the after-school program, students will be given a questionnaire to inquire about their reading interests. The results of the surveys will help teachers provide books and resources that capture the attention of students.

“We are excited about starting this program,” Rangel said. “We want to make a difference in these students’ lives and set them on a path to success.”