Vero Beach. Eight students from Vero Beach High School who entered this year's Accelerated Reader contest have earned rich rewards for their hunger for reading books. None could be happier than Erik Astrom who won the grand prize of a Toshiba laptop computer presented by Dr. Laile Fairbairn of the Rotary Club of Vero Beach Sunrise. The other seven students took away high value cash prizes

Erik Astrom said that the toughest book he read was Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged, "it seemed to be overwhelming at the beginning, but the book held my attention more than any other reading."

"Our main goal is not just to promote learning, but for our students to develop a pure love of reading," said June Sullivan, head of the Vero Beach High School Media Center which organizes the program.

"Students are encouraged to read as many books as they can in the school year - some can get through 30 or more books in that time. It's not just that we want to challenge their reading skills, but we want our students to become lifelong learners," she added.

When each book is read; and they have to be read in their entirety, students take a computer quiz which is aimed at discovering their knowledge of content and power of retention. Points are awarded based on the difficulty of the book and the student's performance on the test. The object is to garner as many points as possible to qualify for the prizes.

Date of issue: June 14, 2009

For further information call Bob Rushton at 772 643 7175

Rotary Club of Vero Beach Sunrise

325 West Forest Trail

Vero Beach, FL 32962