Common Reading Program Activities for College Communities

1. Ana Perez, Associate Marketing Manager, Education & Library ana.perez@simonandschuster.com Common Reading Program Activities for College Communities

2. PRESENTATION OUTLINE • Introduction • Session objectives • Starting or enhancing existing program on your campus • Book selections • Trends • 5 case studies • Program examples • S&S program overview • How we can help you! • Book selections • Book recommendations • Conclusion

3. INTRODUCTION • Simon & Schuster publishes a wide variety of fiction and nonfiction titles that align with the core purpose of college & university programs across the country—to support students in transition, promote engaging conversations, explore diverse perspectives, and foster community. • Associate Marketing Manager, Education & Library • Here to help! • Common.Reading@Simonandschuster.com

4. SESSION OBJECTIVES • Offer program advice and examples through case studies • Provide actionable and applicable takeaways • Raise awareness for S&S Freshman Year Reading Program • Provide book suggestions

5. WHAT IS COMMON READING? • Students read a book and discuss with their new classmates and professors usually in the fall • Can be only a seminar, freshman vs. First Year students, etc. • Or can be an entire campus, or community with participating public libraries • Every institution is different! • Overseen by FYE/Orientation, Student Success, or other departments and colleges, dedicated programs • Benefits: • Orientation, retention, transition, community-building, increased engagement • Program elements: • Author visit • Extracurricular or curricular • Book selections by committee, faculty, or students

6. STARTING A PROGRAM • Set program goals • What works for your institution • Define your audience • Create objectives and mission statements • Establish reading period • Create selection committees • Purchasing information • Provided by the institution • Campus Bookstore • Students purchase their own • Create a budget • Book purchases • Author fee • Create a timeline • Review process 1 year in advance • Each institution is different!

7. WHAT ARE PROGRAMS LOOKING FOR? • Well-written • Format • 250 pages • Paperback is preferred • Price Point • Average: $16.00 list price • Themes: • Sustainability • Activism • Diversity • Issues of identity • Author as effective speaker • Some require an author visit • Inter-disciplinary

8. BOOK SELECTION • Based on the text standards • Review process • Mediocre nonacademic? Intellectually engaging? • Criteria as part of the mission statement • Theme for each year • Community • Technology • Compassion • Author visit • Ask us!

9. TREND ANALYSIS: 400 PROGRAMS • Categories: • Civil Rights / Racism / Slavery • Crime & Punishment • Immigration • Themes: • African American • Latin American • Protagonist under 18 • Genres: • Non-fiction: memoir, biography/autobiography, essays • Fiction: novel, short stories • Published in the last 5 years • Future trends: • #MeToo movement, incorporation & implications • New political climate, free speech debates on college campuses • The same titles will remain popular

10. PROGRAMEXAMPLES: THEMATICALLY ROBUST • All the Single Ladies by Rebecca Traister at Grand Valley State University (2017-2018) • Program Overview • Community Reading Project (CRP) • Program mission statement and vision • Dedicated book selection committee with criteria • Initiatives • Resource guide • “Book Club Kits” • Events and activities • Author visit • Film series, panels

11. PROGRAMEXAMPLES: ACADEMIC & INTERDISCIPLANRY • Born on a Blue Day by Daniel Tammet atBristol Community College (2017-2018) • Program Overview • OneBook • Initiatives • Academic goals • Readings, writing assignment, and a library research project • Classroom activities and Disciplinary-Oriented Resources: Healthcare, Language Arts, Childhood development,Education • Events and activities • Speaker

12. “I can share that Janet Mock’s book has been a total hit this year. Student engagementand student interest in the book—and especially in Janet Mock—were exceptionally high. We also had the opportunity to work more than ever before with community partners.” —Megan Macklin, Program Manager, Office of Campus Community Relations, UC Davis PROGRAMEXAMPLES: COMMUNITY-WIDE • Redefining Realness by Janet Mock at UC Davis (2017-2018) • Program Overview • Campus Community Book Project (CCBP) with Campus Council on Community and Diversity (CCC&D) • Initiatives • Incorporated a local high school • Discussion guide, resources • Events and activities • Author events part of a local speaker’s series • FY Seminar collaboration

13. PROGRAM EXAMPLES: LOCAL SECTION • The Distance Between Us by Reyna Grande at Cal Poly Pomona (2017-2018) • Program Overview • First Year Experience Committee selects a book based on faculty and student suggestions • Academic expectations with University Seminarfor new students • Initiatives • Local selection visited Reyna Grande’s neighborhood and did a walking tour • Essay Contest • #CPPCommonRead • Event and activities • Author event with school’s mariachi band

14. “The book has been wildly popular - students spent tons of time engaging with the text and making choices to develop their poems.” – Dr. Amber Nicole Pfannerstiel, Assistant Professor of Digital Media, Millersville University PROGRAM EXAMPLES: STUDENT SELECTION • All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely at Millersville University (2017-2019) • Program Overview • One Book, One Campus • 2-year pilot program selection by the students • Initiatives • Reading groups • Black out poetry • #villeonebook • Events and activities • Authors lecture with English class visit

15. OUR PROGRAM • General timeline • Institutions request review copies in the Fall/Winter • Selections are usually announced during Spring semester, prior to the summer break for the following Fall • Summer reading or during the semester • Semester specific or for academic year(s) • Assist with bringing the author to campus • May work with Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau or lecture agent • Provide Assets • Reading Group Guides • Vidoes • Cover image, author photo, etc

16. MARKETING EFFORTS • Catalog • Updated yearly • Curated to reflect interests and trends • Arranged categorically, with themes • Mailed in the fall • Distributed at conferences • Website • Updated quarterly • Houses digital catalogs • Includes titles not in the physical catalog • Lists all the selections • FreshmanYearReads.com • Sign up for our newsletter!

17. CONFERENCES • NODA Annual Conference • Association for Orientation, Transition & Retention in Higher Education • Annual Conference on the First-Year Experience • Author Events

18. PURCHASING INFORMATION • Purchasing Options • Through campus bookstore • Direct from S&S • Bulk orders and literacy program discounts • Bulk eBooks • Glose • Custom editions • Welcome letter, School logo

19. BOOK SELECTIONS • Recent S&S selections for 2018 - 2019: • This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. The Climate, Naomi Klein at Alaska Pacific University, and University of Alaska—Anchorage • Sing, Unburied, Sing, Jesmyn Ward at Williams College, Duke University, and New York University, Liberal Studies • The Terrorist’s Son, Zak Ebrahim at North Iowa Area Community College • Beartown, Fredrik Backman at Tulane University

20. BOOK SELECTIONS • Popular Simon & Schuster selections: • The Glass Castle, Jeanette Walls • Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion, Gregory Boyle • The Distance Between Us, Reyna Grande

21. BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS Heavy: An American Memoir by Kiese Laymon In this powerful, provocative, and universally lauded memoir, essayist and novelist Kiese Laymon “provocatively meditates on his trauma growing up as a black man, and in turn crafts an essential polemic against American moral rot” (Entertainment Weekly). Barking to the Choir: The Power of Radical Kinship by Gregory Boyle In a moving example of unconditional love in dif­ficult times, Gregory Boyle, the Jesuit priest shares what working with gang members in Los Angeles has taught him about faith, compassion, and the enduring power of kinship.

22. BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS Never Caught: The Washingtons’ Relentless Pursuit of Their Runaway Slave, Ona Judge by Erica Armstrong Dunbar A startling and eye-opening look into America’s First Family, Never Caught is the powerful story about a daring woman of “extraordinary grit” (The Philadelphia Inquirer). Heart in a Body in a World by Deb Caletti Each step on Annabelle’s 2,700 mile cross-country run brings her closer to facing a trauma from her past in National Book Award finalist Deb Caletti’s novel about the heart, all the ways it breaks, and its journey to healing. Because sometimes against our will, against all odds, we go forward.

23. CONCLUSION • Best practices • Start selection process early • Contact the publisher! We are here to help! • Takeaways … even though every institution is different • Engage with the book’s themes • Events • Resources for a rounded reading experience • Include multiple departments • Have all materials in one place, with clear instructions of how to be involved

24. QUESTIONS ORFEEDBACK? Stop by booth #21!