HAHNVILLE – Hahnville High School teacher Deborah S. Unger recently received a $4,640 Service Learning Grant from the Joe W. and Dorothy Dorsett Brown Foundation.

Through her “Adolescents Advocate Literacy” project, Unger and the students in her gifted English classes will promote reading at Hahnville High, at numerous St. Charles Parish elementary schools and within the St. Charles Parish community at large. Recognizing the relationship between literacy and achievement, these gifted students are committed to making a difference and will take leadership roles by creating several literacy projects. One literacy project involves a partnership with various St. Charles Parish elementary schools, where Unger’s students will read to approximately 25 classes, organize activities related to the books and present the books as gifts for those elementary classroom libraries.

For another literacy project, Unger’s students will read and write book reviews for books that they have selected during

a field trip to Barnes and Noble. Due to their varied, individual interests, the range of books will vary from nonfiction about science and history to classic novels and best-sellers.

By writing and publishing book reviews, Unger’s students will promote literacy among residents of the St. Charles Parish community at large.