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Guadalupe Center

Stefanie Estes, ROR-KC’s Book Coordinator, worked with a group of high school students every week for two months. The goal of the project was to create a database of diverse books for children birth to 5 years old.

Literature featuring diverse characters is essential for all children to understand the world in which they live in. Here at Reach Out and Read Kansas City, we understand how important it is to get these books in our clinics and into the hands of children. The challenge? Being able to afford them.

Illustration of a dog and children of various ethnicities interacting with books. Far left under dog: Out of 3,600 children's books reviewed by the CCBC in 2012 (arrow pointing right). black child: 3 percent were about African Americans. latino child: 1.5 percent were about Latinos. native american child: Less than 1 percent were about native americans. Asian pacific child: 2 percent were about asian pacific americans. under large stack of books with a blonde girl sitting atop: Which leaves 93 percent caucasian.
Diversity in Children's Books 2012 - The Cooperative Children's Book Center

As you can see by the graphics provided by The Cooperative Children’s Book Center, publication of diverse books have increased in the past 10 years. Unfortunately, many are not available at a discount yet, making it hard for ROR-KC to purchase. It leaves us relying on book drives to get these titles.

When the Guadalupe Centers High School Real World Learning Coordinator, Keith Schoen, contacted ROR-KC’s Book Coordinator, Stefanie Estes, inquiring about any student projects for the Impact Academy to work on as part of their semester final, Stefanie jumped at the chance to work with student in our community.

Stefanie worked with this group of high school students every week for two months. The goal of the project was to create a database of diverse books for children birth to 5 years old. During the process, they took a field trip to the main KCMO public library to look at children’s books and get a feel for quality and concepts in literature. While there, Stefanie explained that library cards are given free of charge and made sure the students that did not have one had one before leaving.

Percentage of books depicting characters from diverse backgrounds. Based on the 2015 publishing statistics compiled by the Cooperative Children's Book Center. School Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison. IMAGE OF 5 CHILDREN OF MIXED ETHNICITIES AND ONE WHITE RABBIT, ALL LOOKING IN MIRRORS. 0.9 percent American Indians/First Nations. 2.4 percent Latinx. 3.3 percent Asian Pacifics/Asian Pacific Americans. 7.6 percent African/African Americans. 12.5 percent Animals, Trucks, etc. 73.3 percent white.
Diversity in Children's Books 2015 - The Cooperative Children's Book Center

At a local preschool, each student had the chance to test out their book selections by giving a reading to the children. In preparation for this, Stefanie performed a mock story time and taught the students the art of reading to a classroom of preschoolers!

Stefanie said, “Helping students become confident public speakers via their final presentation and seeing them take ownership of their project over the course of our time together was magical.”

Ashlyn Welch, an educator at the Guadalupe Center, commented on the partnership by saying “Partnering with Reach out and Read at the Guadalupe Centers High School Impact Academy was an incredibly wonderful experience. The passion that Stefanie and the Reach out and Read team had for their work really inspired students to contribute to their mission. It was clear that, as students engaged with their project, they were gaining knowledge that would carry them beyond this classroom. One of my favorite moments was when the students were able to visit the Guadalupe Centers Early Childhood Center and share books they had researched and hand picked for Reach out and Read. Watching them experience the impact of their work with the next generation of young learners was a testament to the value of providing students opportunities to have a positive impact on their community.”

Working with the Impact Academy was an amazing opportunity to bring awareness and change when it comes to getting more diverse books into the hands of our community’s children. To view the list created by the students in the Impact Academy at the Guadalupe Centers High School, click here.

Percentage of books depicting characters from diverse backgrounds. Based on the 2018 publishing statistics compiled by the Cooperative Children's Book Center. School Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison. Illustration of children of various ethnicities and one bear looking in mirrors. 1 percent American Indians/First Nations. 5 percent Latinx. 7 percent Asian Pacific Islander/Asian Pacific American. 10 percent African/African American. 27 percent Animals/Other. 50 percent white.
Diversity in Children's Books 2018 - The Cooperative Children's Book Center
Illustration of children of various ethnicities and one group of animals. 41 percent white. 29 percent animals. 12 percent black. 9 percent asian. 6 percent latinx. 3 percent disability. 0.001 percent Pacific Islander. 0.008 percenter Arab. 0.15 percent Indigenous. @melaninchildstories
Diversity in Children's Books 2020 - The Cooperative Children's Book Center

based upon the main characters(s). White 33%. animal/vehicle/non-human 29%. Black 10%. Arab .4%. Latino/a/x/e 5%. 6.9% brown (unspecified race). .1% Pacific Islander. 4% LGBTQ+. 4% Disabled. 11.5% Jewish. 8% Asian. Indigenous 8%.
Diversity in Children's Books 2021 - The Cooperative Children's Book Center

Reach Out and Read Kansas City

Reach Out and Read Kansas City

Mailing Address:
3901 Rainbow Boulevard

Mailstop 1051

Kansas City, KS 66160 

Physical Address:
KU Medical Center Support Services Building
2100 W. 36th Ave
Kansas City, KS 66103

Phone: 913-588-2793