By: Jade Wise
Pasadena ISD Communications
One year ago, Hurricane Harvey devastated Thompson Intermediate and surrounding community.
The storm’s floodwaters exceeded five feet in parts of the school, rendering the campus completely unusable. One of the hardest hit areas was the library, where the school’s collection of over 10,000 books were destroyed by high humidity and mold.
With so many books needed, the campus has been working to replenish the library. Donations poured in and the campus and administration joined forces and wrote several grants.
On the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Harvey, Thompson received a $50,000 grant from the American Association of School Librarians’ (AASL) Beyond Words: the Dollar General School Library Relief Fund.
Thompson is one of two campuses nationwide to receive the 2018 catastrophic disaster relief grant, which is awarded to applying school library programs who have experienced a total or near total loss and score highest on the awards rubric.
Dollar General, in collaboration with the AASL, American Library Association (ALA) and the National Education Association (NEA), sponsors the fund in the states served by Dollar General to provide funds to school libraries affected by a disaster.
“Thankful cannot begin to describe my feelings right now,” said Thompson librarian MaryBeth Nicol. “The school library is a haven where students can travel to new places, learn new things and experience others’ experiences. With this grant, we will be able to put books back into the hands of our students and they can once again relish learning in the library.”
Dollar General representatives present Thompson principal Tanis Griffin and librarian MaryBeth Nicol with a $50,000 check as part of the American Association of School Librarians’ (AASL) Beyond Words: the Dollar General School Library Relief Fund. (L to R:): Yessenia Ortiz, Angelica Durham, Angie Sqrow , MaryBeth Nicole, Tanis Griffin and Julie Joseph.