SMART Media Inquiries:
Jessica Corcoran, 971-634-1605

And the Award Goes to…
SMART Announces 12th Annual Book Award Winner

Portland, Ore. – More than 5,500 children across Oregon cast their vote this winter for SMART’s (Start Making A Reader Today) 12th Annual Book Awards, and the results are in: The winner is Snowmen at Night by Caralyn Buehner.
SMART launched the Book Awards in 2000 to further inspire an interest in books and reading in Oregon’s children.  Each winter, SMART introduces nominees for the Book Awards to be read and voted on by SMART students.  Book Awards nominees are selected by SMART volunteers and staff based on a variety of factors, including quality of story and illustrations, appeal to young readers and appropriateness for building literacy skills. Voting is conducted by secret ballot in more than 220 sites across the state. 

Taking one-third of the votes, Buehner’splayful tale about snowmen and their nighttime adventures captured the hearts and imaginations of SMART children. Additional placements of SMART Book Awards nominees were as follows:

About SMART® (Start Making A Reader Today)
SMART, Start Making A Reader Today, is a statewide nonprofit organization that envisions an Oregon where every child can read and is empowered to succeed. We partner with schools around the state and engage community volunteers to read one-on-one with K-3 children, helping strengthen literacy skills and encourage a love of reading. Over the past two decades, SMART has steadily grown to become Oregon’s largest volunteer literacy program. In 2010-2011, we will serve 7,000 children statewide with the help of 5,000 community volunteers. Children in the program receive 14 new books throughout the school year to keep and read with their families. Together, with support from communities and schools around the state, SMART is improving the reading capacity of Oregon’s children. Visit www.GetSMARTOregon.org or call 1-877-598-4633 to learn more about SMART.