Dear Colleagues,
While we may not have an in-person Staff Appreciation Week event for you today, we do have a fun announcement. Do you have or know kids looking for something to do this summer? Do you want them to keep reading and avoid ‘learning loss’ until school’s back in session? What if there was a way to incentivize them, say, maybe with tickets to our opening Cal football game?
The good news is Patrick Laird, a senior running back for our Cal football team and national honors candidate for the Golden Bears this fall, is an avid reader who developed his love for reading as a young child with encouragement from his parents and older siblings. To help promote reading among elementary school students, Patrick came up with the idea for a summer reading challenge. First and second graders who sign up and read at least four books by Aug. 24 will receive four tickets to Cal’s season-opening football game against North Carolina on Sept. 1. Students in grades 3-6 who read at least six books will also receive four tickets to the game.
Parents can register their kids by visiting walkonthenrun.com. Patrick’s program is off to a great start with nearly 2,000 students already signed up. I’ve already signed up one of my boys, and I’m hoping you can help us spread the word and fill California Memorial Stadium this September for a fantastic cause.
Thank you for all you do in support of student learning,
Jo
Jo Mackness, Interim AVC-HR
If you are a manager who supervises UC Berkeley employees without email access, please circulate this information to all.