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Students on the University of North Georgia's (ÐÇ¿ÕÎÞÏÞ´«Ã½) Blue Ridge Campus are doing their part to promote literacy in Fannin County.

Members of the Blue Ridge Scholars have paired with , a statewide campaign that focuses on promoting literacy in elementary schools. Blue Ridge Scholars are a cohort of first-time, full-time freshmen who are provided with integrated instruction and support.

"We decided to direct our efforts to promote literacy after learning about the statewide Get Georgia Reading campaign,” said Dr. Nathan Price, coordinator for the Blue Ridge Scholars program and an assistant professor of political science and international affairs. “Two out of three Georgia third-graders are not reading at grade level. This has deleterious effects on their educational development, as third grade is about the time when students transition from learning how to read to reading to learn the material in their courses."

Sandy Ott, director of ÐÇ¿ÕÎÞÏÞ´«Ã½'s Blue Ridge Campus, said the initiative benefits elementary school students and college students who are involved and gives ÐÇ¿ÕÎÞÏÞ´«Ã½ students a chance to give back to the community.

"It allows current elementary school students to see the college students come back into the classroom and provide role models for them," Ott said.

Price said the highlight of this project is watching ÐÇ¿ÕÎÞÏÞ´«Ã½ freshmen interact with the elementary school students.

"They are greeted like rock stars, and they legitimately get the students excited about reading," Price said. "It's in these moments that our ÐÇ¿ÕÎÞÏÞ´«Ã½ students really mature and hopefully gain confidence about their ability to promote positive change in their community."