First Lady Crissy Haslam Visits Frayser Achievement Elementary School in Memphis

NASHVILLE – First Lady Crissy Haslam visited Frayser Achievement Elementary School in Memphis today to encourage student participation in the Read20 Family Book Club. Mrs. Haslam read Laurie Halse Anderson’s Independent Dames to approximately 40 students and donated books to the school. Anderson’s Independent Dames, a book with stories about women who influenced the Revolutionary War, is featured as the Read20 Book of the Month to commemorate Women’s History Month in March.

 “Literacy can be the most important skill to promote success in school and in life,” said Mrs. Haslam. “The Read20 Family Book Club aims to provide students with fun reading experiences and encourage them to practice their literacy skills for at least twenty minutes each day.”Frayser Achievement Elementary School is part of Tennessee’s Achievement School District, a special district created to accelerate the bottom 5% of schools in Tennessee to the top 25% in the state.  The Tennessee Department of Education works with each ASD school and community to identify the best options to support continuous improvement in the at-risk school. In doing so, Tennessee will dramatically expand students’ life and career options, engage parents and community members in new and exciting ways, and help to ensure a bright future for the state.

“We want all of our Tennessee students to have a high quality education and opportunity to succeed in and out of the classroom,” said Mrs. Haslam. “The Achievement School District is key in providing our at-risk schools with resources they need to become high-performing places for children to learn.”