6 2 - Dominican University

2010-2011
Performing Arts Schedule
With an exciting season of
events ahead, we invite you to
unplug and connect at DUPAC,
your home for the creative
spirit. For complete information
and to purchase tickets, go to
www.dom.edu/pac.
October 7, 2010
Reader’s Theatre – Martin Hall
October 9, 2010
Sara Evans: President’s
Signature Concert
Vibrant singer-songwriter
blending contemporary sound
with bluegrass roots
November 12-14, 2010
The Wiz
The beloved story of courage,
brains, heart and home
November 20, 2010
Sergio and Odair Assad
Captivating Brazilian
guitar virtuosos
December 4, 2010
Sweet Honey in the Rock ®
A very special holiday concert
with world-renowned
a cappella ensemble
January 29, 2011
Ensemble Español
A sizzling celebration of the
passion of Spanish dance
February 25-27, 2011
The Women of Lockerbie
by Deborah Brevoort
A powerhouse drama
of unthinkable loss
and redemption
March 4, 2011
Circo Aereo
Circus meets theatre
in this playful
Franco-Finnish collaboration
March 12, 2011
Camerata Ireland
31st Annual Trustee Benefit
Concert, featuring acclaimed
pianist Barry Douglas.
March 18-19, 2011
Black Box Experiment:
Wendy Wasserstein,
the Uncommon Woman
A celebration of the life
and work of Pulitzer
Prize-winning playwright
April 15-17, 2011
She Stoops to Conquer by
Oliver Goldsmith
A delightful and charming
comedy of romantic
entanglement
May 1, 2011
Garrison Keillor
Best-selling author and host of
The Prairie Home Companion
GSLIS Releases National Study
T
he Graduate School of Library and Information Science recently
released the results of a three-year national study on the
effectiveness of summer reading programs offered by public libraries
across the country. The study, conducted in collaboration with the
Johns Hopkins University Center for Summer Learning, was funded
through a National Leadership Grant from the Institute of Museum
and Library Services.
The study provides a rigorous quantitative and qualitative evaluation
of the impact of public library summer reading programs on summer
reading loss through the examination of students from large and small
communities in rural, urban and suburban areas during the summer
between third and fourth grade. The study pays particular attention to
students from low-income families.
Students completing third
grade and entering fourth
grade were specifically
selected for the study
because this grade appears
to be a transitional year from
learning to read to reading to
learn. According to the
National Assessment of
Educational Progress, fewer
than one-third of U.S.
fourth-graders meet the
proficient standard; in fact,
over 85 percent of students
in high-poverty schools fail
to reach the proficiency level.
DU NEWS
According to the study results, students who participated in public
library summer reading programs scored higher on reading
achievement tests at the beginning of the next school year than
those students who did not participate. In addition, there were
additional benefits for students who participated in the public library
summer reading program: they did not experience summer reading
loss and began the next school year with more confidence.
“Public librarians have been under pressure from federal, state and
private funders to prove that tax dollars spent on summer reading
programs yield a valuable return on investment,” says Susan Roman,
PhD, dean of GSLIS, and the project administrator for the study.
“This study definitively shows that summer reading programs play a
significant role in preventing summer reading loss and that public
libraries provide an important bridge between academic years. Based
on the study’s findings, it is also clear that investing more resources in
summer reading programs especially in economically depressed areas
can contribute to closing the achievement gap that is plaguing our country.”
Fall 2010 Dominican University Magazine
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