The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) will tip off the last stage of the Read with MEac reading program in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools (WS/FCS) with a reading event at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday at North Hills Elementary.

"We continue to be elated with our partnership with the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County School System to encourage the excitement of reading among the fourth grade students," said MEAC Commissioner Dennis Thomas.  "Participating in this event allows the MEAC family to engage with the youth and further support the WS/FCS community."

Thomas and WS/FCS Superintendent Don Martin will speak to fourth-graders in North Hills media center and read to the students from some of their favorite books.

"We are tremendously appreciative of the MEAC's efforts to encourage our students to read," Martin said. "Early childhood literacy is a key indicator of future academic success, and a program like Read with MEac is a great way to get students to read."

The Read with MEac program encourages fourth-graders to read as many non-exclusive books as they can from Jan. 10 until Feb. 18. The program was organized by the conference's Senior Woman Administrators (SWA) and is aimed at encouraging education and promoting the love of reading to students. Students participating in the program will receive a bookmark and a ticket voucher to the 2011 MEAC Basketball Tournament, March 7-12, at the Joel Coliseum.

Representatives from the men's and women's basketball teams of the 13 MEAC schools will visit the winning fourth-grade class. The top eight readers at the winning school will be invited to serve as ball boys/girls during the tournament. The winners will be recognized during the game along with the school's principal, teachers and representatives from WS/FCS.

The class with the most books read will earn a special appearance from representatives of the men's and women's basketball teams of the MEAC's 13 member institutions.  The top reading school will also receive a $3,000 award's check. Second place will receive $1,000 and the third place top reading school will receive $500.

In addition, the top eight readers at the winning school will be invited to serve as ball boys/girls during the tournament.  The winners will be recognized during the game along with the school's principal, teachers and representatives from the WS/FCS.

Hall-Woodward won the top prize in the first and second year of the Read with MEac program. The winning school will be announced on February 21.

For more information about the Read with MEac program, contact Patricia Porter, MEAC Director of Media Relations/Corporate Partnerships, at (757) 951-2055.