Mundelein High School English teacher, Ryan Buck, has won the support of the Book Love Foundation Board of Directors and has been awarded a grant for $2000 to purchase books for his classroom library.  “We believe in you and believe in your work,” said Penny Kittle, Book Love Foundation president.

According to Kittle, Buck earned the scholarship for the following reasons:

• He has applied the research on increasing the volume of reading in his classroom and is seeing results. We know how hard it can be to innovate in your teaching. We know the stamina it takes professionals like you to commit to work that many do not understand or support. We celebrate your persistence.
• You read professionally. We believe that teachers must read current journals and research. We believe it is a foundation for excellence in teaching.
• Your personal stories of successes and failures moved us. We look for the personal connections applicants make to their students and their commitment to the success (against all odds) of every reader. We see that in you.
• We see your potential as a leader in our field. We are investing in you because we hope you will explore ways you can lead others. You have a vision that others need. We expect that this grant will inspire you to recognize the leader inside of you and then to act on it.

Buck was also instrumental in creating the floor-to-ceiling book cover murals in the English Department hallway that received national and international press coverage.