The grant, according to library executive director John O. Gonzales, is for the JPKL Project CLAP, or Just Keeping People Literate through Cultural Literacy After-School Programs Outreach-Department of Public Health Community Guidance Center Project Brabu Subgrant Award.
Gonzales said the amount will provide literacy outreach services to adults, children and youths on Saipan who are unable to access library services because of challenges like lack of transportation and other difficulties.
“Our goal is to promote lifelong love and learning for cultural and physical health literacy and in the process facilitate informational fluency and personal responsibility against underage drinking and driving and be culturally adept and physically healthy at the same time,” Gonzales said.
In its grant proposal, the JKPL Project CLAP through Chamolinian Cultural Village Inc. said they aim to “provide meaningful, opportunities in partnership of local cultural groups throughout the target villages to teach our children and youth traditional Chamorro and Refaluwasch dances and arts and crafts, cultural literacy through poetry and drama, and healthy physical activities and behavioral strategies against underage drinking and driving in the process.”
The project will enlist the expertise of Arts Council-registered Refaluwasch and Chamorro cultural artists, the assistance of cultural language experts to teach proper structure, written, and grammatical use of Chamorro and Refaluwasch, contract various team coaches and teams in baseball, basketball, volleyball, and soccer to develop sports camps and intramural competitions, and to partner with Koblerville Elementary Glee Club and others to train children and youth on various activities that focus on song, language, orthography, spelling, phonetics, and storytelling.
The project also plans to partner with Kagman High School to enlist selected students with its Poetry & Drama Club and for other activities.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has just awarded the library with $200,000 to repair its roof.
For more information, visit www.cnmilibrary.com or call 235-READ (7323).
