Teachers and librarians teamed up recently to offer new experiences in an effort to instill a love of reading in young adults. Debuting with great success were the Ever-Read YA Literary Festival for people of all ages in Evergreen Park and Senior LitFest for students in senior English classes at Oak Forest High School.
“This is like a dream come true,” said Oak Forest English teacher Jennifer Schanz, who worked with Amanda O’Rourke, a former English teacher who is a media specialist at the high school, to come up with a professional event to promote interest in reading and writing and to connect students with common interests.
”My goal is to get kids to read independently. … There’s something magical about them having ownership,” Schanz said before the March 22 event at the school. “We figured seniors are the perfect target audience and we want them to leave with the love of reading, so that’s the gift that keeps on giving. I’ve been so lucky as a book nerd to go to a lot of book festivals locally and around the country. I’ve seen this happen in real life so I know the kids will enjoy it too. … They’ll get 55 minutes of goodness guaranteed.”
That day, about 350 seniors “skipped” English class for a literature experience featuring author readings, free book swag such as printed tote bags and signed copies from the authors, live music performances and book-related activities.
Schanz was most looking forward to hearing the guest speakers.
“Honestly, the best part is we have two former Oak Forest graduates who are published authors coming. I could cry. It’s so magical,” she said. “I’m so proud of them that we’re kicking it off with them makes me so happy.”
A student meets author Ian Ryan during Oak Forest High School’s first Senior LitFest, which allowed seniors to “skip” English class to instead hear author readings, get free book swag, hear live music and enjoy book-related activities. Ryan is an alum of the high school. (Jennifer Schanz)
Those authors are Bridge Morrissey, who writes young adult novels and romance novels for adults, and Ian Ryan, who writes poetry and short stories and is well-known in Oak Forest for his baseball skills.
Morrissey, who has another book for young adults coming out this summer, paid her own way to fly to the festival from her home in Los Angeles.
“This is going to be incredible for kids,” Schanz said. “I have a bookshelf in my classroom that I dish out to kids. I can’t keep her books on the shelf – they don’t come back!”
Ryan, who Schanz taught, began emailing with another Oak Forest alum — George Saudners, author of “Lincoln in the Bardo” among other novels — who speaks to students often. “Ian was absolutely inspired by having George come and visit in 2016,” she said. “George has been so generous. He chats with my students every year out of the goodness of his heart. He has inspired these two to do the same thing.”
They decided to target seniors so it “can be fresh every year, a rite of passage,” she shared. “It’s a fun thing the younger kids can look forward to.”
It’s also a way to give something back to the students who lost events during the COVID-19 pandemic. “It feels like after the years the kids lost so many ceremonies, it feels good to add another one to our traditions,” she said.
The event went off beautifully. It “was even better than we hoped!” Schanz said. “From students to administrators and from the authors themselves, we were so thrilled with how much enthusiasm and fun we generated at our first Senior LitFest. This really feels like the start of a tradition.
“The most beautiful surprise was how professional and prepared our senior interviewers were,” she continued. “I have attended many book festivals, and these kids did a better job than professionals I have experienced. They balanced general writing questions with specific observations about their work and provided the perfect segway for amazing advice to our seniors about life beyond Oak Forest High School.”
Authors Bridget Morrissey, far left, and Ian Ryan, far right, stand with student interviewers Julia Fierro, left, Hannah Karadsheh and Ethan Coe during Senior LitFest last month at Oak Forest High School. (Jennifer Schanz)
The daylong event was broken up into several sessions as different classes cycled through.
“Each period had different questions, but as a lucky observer of the whole day, it was like one long conversation you didn’t want to end,” she said. “A cute surprise was when a current senior, Matt Angone, ran to get each author a famously delicious cookie from our cafeteria after the authors mentioned missing them since graduating.”
Also in its first year, the Ever-Read YA Literary Festival, sponsored by the Evergreen park Public Library and Evergreen Park Community High School opened the high school’s Learning Resource Center to all interested people on March 16.
About 50 young adults and 25 adults attended the free event, mostly high school students and some middle school students, representing Evergreen Park Community, Marist, Brother Rice, Mother McAuley, Central Middle School and nearby communities, said Tina Ward, media specialist at EPCHS.
Participants were able to sharpen their writing and drawing skills at workshops led by authors, meet award-winning authors, take home a book signed by an author and listen to presentations. It featured 10 authors whose expertise includes modern romance, historical fiction, comics, young adult fantasy, middle-grade fantasy and memoirs.
Ward said the idea for the festival came from Mary Black, teen librarian at the Evergreen Park library.
“Neither of us had seen a large young adult literary festival on the South Side of the city,” Ward said. “We are both passionate about introducing young adults to various authors and to get books into kids’ hands to help encourage literacy.”
“Dr. Ward and I share a mission to build a reading culture in the teen community by collaborating on creative and memorable literacy programs,” Black said. “We have teamed up for many programs over the years because we know that by working together, we can instill a love of reading, increase access to resources, and improve academic success.”
Poet Tara Betts, from left, moderates a discussion with Amanda Joy and Arshay Cooper, who were the keynote authors at the Ever-Read YA Literary Festival last month at Evergreen Park Community High School. (Tim Moran)
She said the event, which included writing and drawing workshops, exceeded its expectations.
Ward said although the writing workshops were popular, “I would say everyone loved the author panel and the ability to receive a book and have it signed by the author.”
The event leaned heavily on local talent. “Myah Bawadi is a St. Xavier student, and Zachary Jeffries is an Evergreen Park resident,” Ward said. “Arshay Cooper’s memoir is about his childhood growing up on the West Side – he attended Manley High School. Everyone else is an Illinois author.”
Black added that Chicago poet and professor Tara Betts moderated two “entertaining and thought-provoking panel discussions,” and Evergreen Park Mayor Kelly Burke kicked off the festival.
Thanks to sponsors, students were able to receive more than one free book. “They were thrilled,” Black said. “Our volunteers had their T-shirts signed by all of the authors. I had a senior student, Jed, who really connected with Arshay Cooper’s book and they were able to spend some quality time together and even exchanged phone numbers.”
She and Ward plan to host the event again in 2026 so they have time to research other grant sources.
This year’s event was sponsored by the Illinois Arts Council, Gift of Carl Foundation. Evergreen Park Library Foundation and Evergreen park High School Educational Foundation. “We also received 30% of our donations directly from the families in our community,” Black said. “We exceeded our goal of $20,000 to host a second-to-none literary festival on the South Side.”
Melinda Moore is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
