Tome Student Literacy Society, or Tome, is a program that fosters leadership, creativity, and reflective thinking. Tome, though it is a large book, started from the idea of librarians and volunteers, in hopes of making a Georgia-based nonprofit supporting students through competitions, book awards, club activities, resources, and then a conference, TomeCon. North Atlanta’s very own Library Media Specialist, Lori McCall, embraced the idea after encountering it at an ALA (American Library Association) meeting and decided to incorporate it into the clubs offered in North Atlanta.
In 2017, three years after the formation of Tome, North Atlanta joined. McCall and students meet every so often in the Media Center on Thursday mornings for group reading or book discussions. Over seven years, McCall has witnessed Tome’s impact as both a sponsor and a club participant. They read an excellent selection of age-appropriate books that encouraged creativity to flow. What’s more is that they were able to meet some of the authors, and connect with books or characters out of their comfort zone.
Students pick projects based on any Tome list book and compete with other high school students, another aspect of Tome that takes months to prepare for but is immensely rewarding. McCall assists with the projects to create originality in their projects through numerous media of choice. “I love seeing my kids get awards and prizes for the projects they’ve worked so hard on,” she said. “I hope Tome achieved exposing students to a lot of good books and giving them a chance to be creative during presentations which in turn helps their many skills in the long run”.
Recently, students at North Atlanta received multiple awards in almost every category they performed in. It’s not easy going against Georgian schools all gunning for an award but NA manages to place every year. Sophomore, Claire Collins praises Tome for enabling her to explore books she wouldn’t have picked up while also honing her analyzing methods and recognizing authors’ skills. Collins values the in-depth details Tome draws out to help understand the books’ profound meanings. “The supportive community I’ve made through Tome is a channel I’ve never had and Tome has also made me a tremendously better writer inside and outside of school,” she said.
Since McCall pays a membership that includes all students at North Atlanta no matter if you come to a meeting or not, everyone’s all in. Popping in for a meeting or two or sharing the word with other students will expand the understanding of Tome and bring in more book lovers or potential ones. Tome is about being creative, reading good books, discussing, and opening one’s mind. So, grab your bookmarks, strap in, and join Tome!
