Alcorn students present their children’s books at Author’s Corner Debut
Often when people think of or engage in research, thoughts of writing a long eloquent paper filled with theoretical jargon fills their mind. This is not the case for the Reading in Research class in the College of Education and Psychology at Alcorn State University. In this class, research is an engaging social conscience practice that manifests itself into actions and a total literary experience.
The students showcased their work in the first Author’s Corner Debut. Jazmine K. Sanders was selected to chair the event. Faculty, staff, family and friends of the students attended and showed great support.
Students in this class identified issues in reading through research, wrote grants and individual books to address those issues. Under the guidance of Dr. Sophia S.L. Marshall, associate professor/ PRAXIS coordinator and the consulting skills of Ms. Gail Gettis, a renowned artist and coordinator of the World Class Teaching Program/ instructor, students were able to use their creativity to publish authentic original works.
The following is a list of their work: “The Cowboy” by Deante V. Spann; “Eisen Gets Promoted” by Hailey J. Scott; “I Want to Make an A” by Johnna Hooten; “Under the Big Oak Tree” by Kayla A. Cloy; “We Have to Make an A” by Raven Pitchford; “Ricky Rocks in Reading” by Jalen Baker; “Benny Beagle Gets Lost in Bookville” by Jazmine K. Sanders; “Jenny Learns to Read” by Kene Oden; “Pipe Down Piper” by Kyree Freeman; “Pepper’s New Friends” by Geneiiah Weddington; “Testing with Hope” by Samara Rand; “Flora Does It Fluently” by Tatiana David; “Jeffrey’s Power” by Jordan Payne; and “I Can Hear the Beat” by Arnitra Crosby.
Jazmine K. Sanders, an elementary education major, expressed how excited she was to have been a part of the event.
“As a student of ED 405: Research in Reading, I am over joyed to have participated in The Author’s Corner,” said Sanders. “The Author’s Corner presented an opportunity for us to present the books we wrote as a course requirement.”
Sanders was so pleased with the book writing process that she plans to continue writing children’s books in the future.
“I plan to not only publish my book for retail selling, but I also plan to continue to write children’s books. There’s a great possibility that Benny Beagle, the main character of “Benny Beagle Gets Lost in Bookville,” will remain a focal point in my writing for a while.”
Brenda Baker, mother of Jalen Baker, showed pride in her son’s work. She also applauded the instructors for developing the students into authors.
“As a parent I would like to thank Dr. Sophia Marshall for an outstanding job with the students at Alcorn. Jalen writing a book and having it published is awesome. I never dreamed that my son would have a book and his name as the author. This was a great experience for our young black readers to express themselves. I am sure they will write more books and have them published. This was an assignment that money couldn’t buy!”
