College hosting read-in as part of Black History Month

HOUSTON – In conjunction with Black History Month in February, San Jacinto College North will host a “read-in” that will showcase selected well-known works of African American literature.

The read-in will be held Feb. 24 at 11:30 a.m., in the Charles Grant Fine Arts Auditorium on the North campus, located at 5800 Uvalde in the North Channel area. The free event will be open to the public and refreshments will be served.

Auditions for readers, which are open to the public, will be held on campus Feb. 10 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., in room 215 of the Slovacek Student Center. People wanting to audition can bring their own reading material, or material will be provided by the College.

A task force recently met to make plans for the African American read-in, with Dr. Richard Bailey, vice president of instruction at the North campus, serving as task force moderator.

“The African American read-in will be an important expression of the cultural diversity of our community,” Bailey remarked at the meeting. “We want this to involve San Jacinto College students, as well as community members.”

DeRhonda McWaine, a North campus counselor, was selected to chair the committee that will coordinate and stage the read-in.

At the task force meeting, members discussed finding an emcee for the event, how to recruit readers, and different types of formats for the presentation, including a multi-media format that might feature slideshows, stage props, some music, partner and group readings, and special-effects lighting.

The idea of bringing in local recording artists to perform Zydeco music was discussed. Dr. Bailey said the idea would be taken under advisement. “But we do not want to lose the main focus of the event, which is the reading of some really great African American literature,” he commented.

Dr. Karen Hattaway, San Jacinto College North’s English department chair, agreed to assemble a diverse collection of African American literature that the task force can review for inclusion in the read-in presentation.

To get ideas for the local event, several members of the San Jacinto College task force will attend an African American Read-in that will be held Jan. 31 in Dallas.

For more information about the read-in, or about auditioning for the event, please call DeRhonda McWaine at 281-998-6150, extension 7513, or send an e-mail to derhonda.mcwaine@sjcd.edu.