Magazine Literacy Bee

Hi! I have to admit that this is my first blog and I don't even know where to begin. I want it to be beneficial to many people and in many respects, so I guess I will just tell you a little about me and what I am trying to do in my community.

My name is Elizabeth, and I am a graduate student at Pace University in the MS Publishing program. When people ask me what this is, I explain it as a specialized business degree in the field of publishing. We learn about all aspects of business that make magazine and book companies successful, and now online content as well. (Blogs are actually a huge part of this!)

What I am aiming to do is host a KinderHarvest magazine drive for literacy in my area, which is New York City, and to do so very soon. At this point in time, it is just me. I have one other student in the program who plans to be involved. I won't mention this person yet, although I am very grateful to know that I have support waiting for me when I am ready to move forward. This will happen tomorrow, I believe.

I sat down and really gathered my thoughts tonight.

I think that what I did would help you if you want to start something like this in your area but are unsure of where to begin. I went to the KinderHarvest link on the Magazine Literacy website, magazineliteracy.org, where there is a helpful list of steps to start a drive. Then, I sat down and really applied these.

I researched programs in my area that would be good candidates to receive the magazines collected by the drive. One aspect that I love about this program is that the benefits stay local! I did not realize this until I sat down to pick out the charities our magazines would benefit. I tried to focus on programs that emphasize literacy promotion as part of their core philosophy; however, that is my personal choice.

Next, I thought of all the places where I would be likely to drop off extra magazines as potential collection sites because I frequent those places or because magazines are sold there. Supermarkets, bookstores, pharmacies, libraries, and local schools are givens. But what about Starbucks? Target? My campus bookstore? Doctors' and dentists' offices always have extra magazines. I could call them to see if volunteers could stop in and collect them.

I also had questions come to mind about this program that I felt are as of yet unanswered, but I was able to put a name to these questions, group them, write them out so that I know what answers I am seeking and whom to ask.

I will get more into that next time. I suppose this is a pretty good introduction of where things stand. I will say this. It is October 3rd. I hope to put this on the last two weeks of this month, and I believe that it will be organized and successful.

All the Best,
Elizabeth