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Explore “The Right to Read” with Documentary, Panel Discussion at BCCC
Free film screening at 7 p.m. September 21 will be followed by a Q&A panel with experts on the reading crisis in America as a civil rights issue. More than one-third of fourth graders in the United States read at a “below basic” level, according to a recent report by the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Even more alarming, more than half of Black, Hispanic, and Native American fourth graders score “below basic” on reading tests, the report found.
“What good is winning the right to vote if we can’t even read the ballot?” asks NAACP activist Kareem Weaver in the “The Right to Read.” The 2023 documentary by Jenny Mackenzie and executive produced by “Reading Rainbow” host LeVar Burton addresses the literacy crisis as the greatest civil rights issue of our time.
Bucks County Community College invites the public to a free screening of “The Right to Read” at 7 p.m. Thursday, September 21, at the Newtown Campus. The documentary will be followed by a panel discussion featuring three educators and activists.
The following panelists will share their expertise on the topic after the screening.
Brooks Imel, Ph.D., is an independent educational consultant who works with neurodiverse students as an admissions counselor and executive function coach. His doctoral research focused on the cognitive processes involved in reading, and how comprehension differs when students read from screens versus paper.
Kevin E. Leven is co-leader of the Bucks County Anti-Racism Coalition, a nonprofit charity organization dedicated to educating, informing, and taking action on matters of racial justice. He is also a columnist for the Bucks County Beacon online publication, where he regularly contributes to the “Race Matters” monthly op-ed column.
Lynne B. Millard is Principal Leadership Coach and Special Advisor of School Impact with the School District of Philadelphia. In this dual role, the veteran educator develops and coaches new school leaders, and serves as a liaison between department leaders, key stakeholders, and the Deputy Superintendent.
“The Right to Read” documentary and discussion is sponsored by the College’s Office of the Provost, Bucks Wellness, DEI Programs, Library, and Social & Behavioral Science Department. Learn more about the film on The Right to Read website.
The free event takes place in the Zlock Performing Arts Center, located in the Gateway Center building on the Newtown campus at 275 Swamp Rd., Newtown, Pa., 18940. There is ample free parking.
“The Right to Read” is among several educational forums at Bucks County Community College to encourage dialog on issues surrounding diversity, equity, and inclusion. To learn more, visit the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion page or contact diversity@bucks.edu.
BCCC’s Wordsmiths Reading Series Continues September 22
The Wordsmiths Reading Series, one of the longest-running cultural events at Newtown-based Bucks County Community College, continues its proud tradition of live readings with three exciting gatherings for the fall 2023 season.
On Friday, September 22, at 7:30 p.m., poets Joanna Fuhrman and Lynn Levin will read selected poems in room 142 of the historic Tyler Hall on the Newtown campus.
Fuhrman, an assistant teaching professor in creative writing at Rutgers University, is the author of six books of poetry, most recently To a New Era (Hanging Loose Press, 2021). Fuhrman’s next book Data Mind, a collection of prose poems about the internet, is forthcoming from Curbstone/ Northwestern University Press in 2024. Her poems have appeared or are forthcoming on The Slowdown podcast and in The Pushcart Prize Anthology and Best American Poetry 2023. Last year, Fuhrman became a co-editor of Hanging Loose Press after publishing with them since she was a teenager.
Levin, a poet and writer, is the author of nine books, most recently House Parties (Spuyten Duyvil), her debut collection of short fiction. Philadelphia Magazine calls the stories “vivid, funny, and quietly powerful” and says, “House Parties may break your heart, but it’ll never do it the same way twice.”
A Bucks County poet laureate and winner of the Bucks County Short Fiction Contest, Levin has published stories, poems, essays, and translations in Valparaiso Fiction Review, Elm Leaves Journal, Cleaver, Boulevard, Southwest Review, Michigan Quarterly Review, Mandorla, and other places. She lives in Southampton, Pennsylvania and teaches at Drexel University.
The next reading in the fall series, at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, October 20, will feature poets Patricia Smith and Hayden Saunier.
The final reading for the fall comes on Sunday, November 12, at 1 p.m. when poet Courtney Bambrick and the still-to-be-chosen 2023 Bucks County Poet Laureate will read selected works.
Dr. Ethel Rackin, a Language and Literature professor at the College, is the director of the Wordsmiths Reading Series and Poet Laureate Program. Dr. Rackin has been organizing these public collaborations since 2010, shortly after she began her teaching career at Bucks.
The first Wordsmiths reading was in the 1960s, and featured Allen Ginsburg strumming on his guitar, and chanting verses to the audience as they swayed sitting on top of cushions on the floor. Since then, the series has featured dozens of outstanding and respected poets over the years. In recent years, the series has also featured renowned fiction writers. Poets featured in the series have won a host of awards, including the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book award, and the PEN Literary Award.
For more information on the Wordsmiths Reading Series, contact Dr. Rackin at Ethel.Rackin@bucks.edu.
Bucks County Short Fiction Contest is Open for Entries
The Fall 2023 Bucks County Short Fiction Contest is open for entries from Bucks County residents who are 18 or older and are not employees of Bucks County Community College. The deadline for submissions is 12 p.m. on Thursday, October 19, 2023.
The top three winners will receive gift cards of $200, $100, and $50, and will share their work at a celebratory reading in November with this fall’s final judge, writer Emma Copley Eisenberg, attending.
Stories must be previously unpublished, including in blogs and online platforms, and must be submitted online. Complete rules and the submissions link are available on the Bucks County Short Fiction Contest page.
Eisenberg’s first book, “The Third Rainbow Girl: The Long Life of a Double Murder in Appalachia,” is a work of hybrid nonfiction that mixes memoir, cultural criticism, and reporting. It was named a New York Times Notable Book and Editor’s Choice of 2020. Her debut novel, “Housemates,” will be released by Hogarth Books, a division of Random House, in June of 2024.
She is currently a Visiting Assistant Professor of Creative Writing at Wesleyan University, and has taught creative writing at Bryn Mawr College, Temple University, and the University of Virginia, where she received her MFA in fiction. Raised in New York City, she lives in Philadelphia, where she co-founded and now serves on the board of Blue Stoop, a community hub for the literary arts.
The Bucks County Short Fiction Contest receives funding and administrative support from the Department of Language and Literature at Bucks County Community College. For further information, contact the contest director, Professor Elizabeth Luciano, at elizabeth.luciano@bucks.edu.
BCCC’s Brewing & Fermentation Science Program Partners With Moss Mill Brewing
BCCC’s Brewing & Fermentation Science Program Partners With Moss Mill Brewing Company to Release Centurion Ale
The STEM Department at Bucks County Community College is excited to announce the release of Centurion Ale, an exploratory beer release made possible by a collaboration between Bucks County Community College’s Brewing & Fermentation Science Program and Moss Mill Brewing Company in Huntingdon Valley, PA.
Centurion Ale, named after the College’s mascot and sports teams, was made with several malted barley grains from Proximity Malt; German Tettnang hops; and a German ale yeast strain. It has a deep amber color with an ABV of about 5.5%. The flavor is one of malt (biscuit) with just enough hop bitterness producing a well-balanced beer. Amber in color, Centurion Ale is available now on tap at Moss Mill Brewing Company as well as in canned 4-packs to-go. The artwork for the can was selected via a county-wide contest and the winner was Susan Alexander of Quakertown.
The College offers an associate of applied science degree in Brewing & Fermentation Science—the only brewing science associate degree in the Philadelphia metro area—to prepare students for employment within the brewing and/or fermentation industries. Students must be at least 21 years of age prior to registering for courses involving beer production. To learn more about the 60-65 credit program, visit the Brewing & Fermentation Science page.
Bucks County Community College and Moss Mill Brewing Company anticipate that this will be an ongoing partnership, with each new Brewing & Fermentation Science cohort having the opportunity to be a part of the brewing process.
Moss Mill is located at 109 Pike Circle, Unit D, Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006, and is open Wednesday and Thursday from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday from 12 p.m. to 10 p.m.; and Sunday from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m.
BCCC Hosted Its Second Annual President’s New Student Convocation
Continuing the tradition launched last year, Bucks County Community College (BCCC) held the Second Annual President’s New Student Convocation on Thursday, August 31 at the Newtown Campus (275 Swamp Road, Newtown, PA 18940) in the Gymnasium. Convocation is the official introduction to academic life at the College and welcomes new students and their families with a ceremony to mark the milestone.
BCCC’s president, Dr. Felicia Ganther, introduced the inaugural event in 2022. “The start of our students’ academic journeys is an exciting time for them and for the College— it’s a new beginning, the next step on their pathway to their educational and life goals—and the entire college community is happy to celebrate the occasion.”
This year’s keynote speaker was Bucks County native Karen Gross, founder of She Rocked It, a media and mentorship platform, who was accompanied by acclaimed musician Tim Motzer. Together, the duo presented the Rock-It Roadmap™, a series of six lessons for a courageous life, education, and career. Through words and music, Gross energized the new students to raise their unique voices, follow their audacious dreams, and build a supportive community at Bucks.
“We’re proud to keep this tradition going for our new students and really let them know how monumental this moment is in their academic careers,” said Dr. Rodney Altemose, Interim Associate Vice President of Student Affairs at BCCC. “The start of a new academic year is always an exciting time, and we’re celebrating in true Bucks style.”
BCCC Launches 47th Bucks County Poet Laureate Competition
The search is on for the 47th annual Bucks County Poet Laureate, according to Bucks County Community College (BCCC) Professor Ethel Rackin, Ph.D., director of the longest-running poet laureate program in Pennsylvania.
The contest is open to Bucks County residents over the age of 18 who have not previously served as poet laureate, said Rackin, who teaches language and literature at BCCC, where the program is based.
Each entrant must submit 10 original poems of any style or length along with an entry form to the college’s Language and Literature Department. Entries must be submitted online by Friday, September 8, 2023. The winner receives a $500 honorarium, a proclamation from the Bucks County Commissioners, and will be featured at a Fall reading and reception at Bucks County Community College with the previous year’s poet laureate, Tom Mallouk.
Poetry of any kind is welcome. The entry requires 10 poems, any style, form, or length. All work must be original, published or unpublished, typewritten or word-processed, one poem per page, in black ink. The poems and entry form must be submitted online. There is no charge to enter the contest, but there is a limit of one entry per person.
Two judges will blindly select the winner. The preliminary judge will narrow the entries down to a few dozen for the final judge, who will choose the winner and three runners-up from the pool of finalists.
The 2023 final judge will be Joanna Fuhrman. Fuhrman, an assistant teaching professor in creative writing at Rutgers University, is the author of six books of poetry, most recently To a New Era (Hanging Loose Press, 2021). Fuhrman's next book Data Mind, a collection of prose poems about the internet, is forthcoming from Curbstone/ Northwestern University Press in 2024. Her poems have appeared or are forthcoming on The Slowdown podcast and in The Pushcart Prize Anthology and Best American Poetry 2023. Last year—after publishing with them since she was a teenager, Fuhrman became a co-editor of Hanging Loose Press.
The preliminary judge will be Courtney Bambrick. Bambrick is poetry editor at Philadelphia Stories. Her poems have appeared or are forthcoming in Inkwell, Invisible City, New York Quarterly, Beyond Words, The Fanzine, Philadelphia Poets, Apiary, Schuylkill Valley Journal, Mad Poets Review, and Certain Circuits. She teaches writing at Thomas Jefferson University’s East Falls campus in Philadelphia.
The Bucks Poet Laureate Program is one of the oldest in the country. It also holds a High School Poet Contest every spring, yet another way that Bucks County Community College contributes to the cultural heritage of the region.
For more information, contact Ethel Rackin at ethel.rackin@bucks.edu.
