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“Oh, the places you'll go...and the people you'll meet in Kansas. And all you have to do is read.”
Students meet famous Kansans past and present in celebrating Dr. Seuss’ birthday
Some 18,000 Kansas schoolchildren celebrated Dr. Seuss’ birthday with three Kansas governors: current Governor Kathleen Sebelius, first state Governor of Kansas, Dr. Charles Robinson and the third Governor of Kansas, Samuel J. Crawford.
Kansas NEA celebrated Dr. Seuss’ birthday by inviting famous Kansans, current and past, to read to 110 Topeka schoolchildren at the Kansas Museum of History. The event was “web cast” by Cox Communications to 18 schools and 18,000 students.
"Architecture, art, commerce, cuisine, customs, geography, history, people... Kansas - It's as big as you think and it's definitely worth reading about," said KNEA President Christy Levings.
During the web cast, Governor Sebelius read Oh, The Places You Will Go to the children and answered questions from kids across Kansas. Among the questions asked by students from Inman, Ark City, Andover, Larned and Valley Center, were:
- How do you use reading everyday in your job?
- What is your favorite book?
- What is the most interesting fact you’ve learned about Kansas since becoming governor?
- Do you have to go to college to become a governor? What did you study?
Cox Communications donated a $1,000 grant to the Lincoln Elementary School library in Iola and a collection of Dr. Seuss books to the Theodor Roosevelt Elementary School in Manhattan. The names were drawn by Gov. Sebelius.
“Cox Communications is proud to be a part of Kansas NEA’s Read Across America event. No matter how old you are, reading can be fun and exciting. We want to help instill that in children today,” said Kimberly Edmunds, region vice president and general manager for Cox Communications Kansas.
After Gov. Sebelius drew the winners of the Cox Communications grants, the students, from Quincy and McCarter elementary schools in Topeka, were read to by Read Across Kansas Reenactors , all in full costume. Among the reeanctors were 1860’s Kansas Governor Sam and his wife Isabel, Territorial Supreme Court Justice Rush Elmore, Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, Harriet Beecher Stowe and Civil War reenactors. Most are involved in the Lecompton Reenactors and live in Topeka, Fort Scott, Lawrence, Tecumseh and Lecompton.
In other parts of the state KNEA local affiliates and local schools are working with area museums, chambers of commerce and community groups to promote reading, and especially reading about Kansas. Thousands of kids and adults from Elkhart to Atchison and St. Francis to Baxter Springs are participating in everything from poetry slams and reader theaters to reading parades and community leader "read-ins."
"We plan events that show our students that we adults think reading is important…and it’s fun," Levings said. "In honor of Dr. Seuss remember this: You're never too old, too wacky or too wild, to pick up a book and read with a child!"
The local event was sponsored by the Kansas National Education Association in conjunction with Cox Communications and the Kansas State Historical Society.
March 2 marked “Read Across America” Day and Dr. Seuss’ birthday. “Read Across” is part of an annual literacy campaign by the Kansas NEA that encourages adults “to pick up a book and read with a child.” Nationwide, millions of students are expected to participate in Read Across America events. For more, go to www.nea.org/readacross .
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The Read Across Kansas Reenactors
When Kansas became a state on January 29, 1861, Dr. Charles Robinson was the first state governor . Originally of Hartwick, Massachusetts, he came to Kansas Territory in 1855 as the leader of a company of settlers sponsored by the New England Emigrant Society. They founded Lawrence, Kansas Territory, which was the headquarters of the free-state movement, determined to keep slavery out of Kansas.
Howard Duncan is a retired environmental engineer. He is one of the founders of, and a playwrite for, the Lecompton Reenactors. The troupe does about four dozen performances per year.
Mrs. Sara Robinson was the first First Lady of Kansas and wrote a book about the Sunflower State. The property the Robinsons donated to the state is the current site of the University of Kansas.
Diane Bernheimer works for Allstate Insurance in Topeka.
Governor Samuel J. Crawford was the third Governor of the State of Kansas . Crawford was the youngest man to hold the office of Governor of the State of Kansas, and was the first two term Governor. The Governor's wife is Isabel Marshal Chase Crawford , who at age 18, was the youngest First Lady of the State of Kansas.
Dr. Herschel Stroud is a retired Topeka dentist and his wife, Jacqueline Stroud, portrays Crawford’s wife. Jacqueline and Herschel lecture nation-wide on Civil War topics, concentrating on Civil War Medicine. Herschel was recently appointed by Governor Kathleen Sebelius to the National Governor's Advisory Council to the United States Abraham Lincoln Commission (ALBC). The first meeting of the Advisory Council was held in Washington, DC, at the Library of Congress. The nation-wide commemoration will start February 12, 2008, and culminate at the Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, DC on February 12, 2009.
Matilda Barber is a young widow whose husband, Thomas, was murdered by proslavery men during the Wakarusa War in 1855. Thomas became known as the first "martyr" of "Bleeding Kansas" and Barber County is named for him. His name is one of many names stenciled on the House Chamber in the state capitol.
Cassie "Matilda" Blackwell is a ninth grader at Northern Hills Middle School.
Judge Rush Elmore was appointed as a Justice to the Kansas Territorial Supreme Court by President Pierce. He brought slaves with him when he moved to Kansas from Alabama. The main street in Lecompton was named Elmore Street in his honor.
Paul Bahnmaier is a retired teacher from Lecompton.
“Union Infantryman” was in the Kansas Volunteer Infantry Home Guard during the Civil War.
Jack Williamson is a retired Social Studies teacher and is now a KNEA UniServ director.
Kansas U.S. Senator Jim Lane was the leader of the Free State Movement.
Tim Rues is the curator for Constitution Hall in Lecompton.
Clarina Irene Howard Nichols campaigned for a woman's right to vote and was an activist, supporting the causes of children, education and families in the Kansas Territory. She published the Chindowan newspaper that advocated the abolishment of slavery.
Michelle Martin is a history instructor at Ft. Scott Community College.
Frederick Douglass, the famous abolitionist and editor, served as an adviser to President Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War and fought for the adoption of constitutional amendments that guaranteed voting rights and other civil liberties for blacks.
Rev. Leo Barbee is pastor at Victory Bible Church in Lawrence and is the athletic chaplain for the KU basketball and football programs.
Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote a book about slavery called Uncle Tom’s Cabin.
Bonny Fugett is a retired Lecompton elementary school teacher.
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