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Books for Keeps is a local nonprofit organization that provides free books to children in the Athens area. They do so through many methods including at public elementary schools and with this bus. This point of this program is to increase book access, so that literacy rates can increase. Better literacy rates allows people to connect better with the world around them. A lack of proficiency can affect reading of things that we don't even realize we read like food labels and street signs. These cause barriers in not only everyday life, but an ability to thrive in a career.

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Photo 2: Little Free Library at 5 points

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Photo 2: Little Free Library at 5 points

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There are a few little free library locations around Athens. The one above is next to the fleet feet at 5 points. These are another effort to increase book access. It also just makes reading seem more fun. This encourages people to grab a book, when they otherwise wouldn't have. Each is decorated uniquely, which also grabs people attention.

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Photo 3: Howard B. Stroud Elementary School

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Photo 3: Howard B. Stroud Elementary School

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Howard B. Stroud Elementary School in Athens partnered with Books for Keeps and Creature Comforts’ Get Comfortable program to improve early literacy rates. This initiative, launched in 2021, aims to increase the percentage of Clarke County third graders reading at grade level from 20% to 60% by 2027 through mentorship and book access.

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Pill Bug, designed by Joni Yonkis Herzog

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Article 1: Books for Keeps and Creature Comforts partner up to increase Athens literacy rates

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Article 1: Books for Keeps and Creature Comforts partner up to increase Athens literacy rates

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This program started when the people of the Athens Clarke County community noticed that the literacy rate for children in second and third grade was unusually low. Only 20% of students in second and third grade actually tested AT grade level. The Get Comfortable program partnered with the Books for Keeps program and allows mentors to meet with the children at schools and assist them with reading. It was noted that students involved in this program increased their reading proficiency by 3.4 times compared to students who were not in it. By 2027 they want to expand this program to 9 elementary schools across Athens.

“There’s a very alarming statistic about third grade reading scores saying that third graders who are behind in reading are about four times less likely to graduate high school.”

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Books for Keeps and Creature Comforts partner up to increase Athens literacy rates

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Books for Keeps, a nonprofit to increase literacy rates among Athens elementary students that began in 2009, created a literacy mentor program in 2021. The initiative caught the attention of

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Since the creation of The Bus Stop Improvement Program and the Art Shelter Program, 815 various bus stop improvements have been completed including; 91 improved landing pads, 417 benches, and 305 bus shelters, with 44 of those being Art Shelters.

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Article 2: With fewer libraries and low literacy rates, GA ranks at bottom of U.S. in reading engagement

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Article 2: With fewer libraries and low literacy rates, GA ranks at bottom of U.S. in reading engagement

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Georgia is ranked 46th out of 50 states in reading engagement based on a recent study. Georgia has one of the lowest numbers of libraries and book stores per capita. This most certainly contributes to the low literacy rates.

Here are some statistics given by the study:

Number of public libraries per 10k people: 0.06

Number of library visits per capita: 1.7

Number of independent bookstores per 10k people: 0.05

Number of books and serial volumes per capita: 1.4

Literacy Rate: 23.6 (23.6% of the adult population lacks basic reading proficiency)

NAEP Reading Score: 216

Number of reading events per 10k people: 0.3

Google searches per 10k people: 11.61

Total score: 12.43 (Vermont's score was 70.25)

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With fewer libraries and low literacy rates, GA ranks at bottom of U.S. in reading engagement

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Georgia ranks out of the worst 5 states in the U.S. in reading engagement based on a recent study. Here’s why.

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Ginko Bus Stop, designed by Richard Herzog

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Port Liminal by Adam Owens

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"The goal of the program is to serve transit riders in the county with bus shelters that also function as public art, emphasize the transit system and bring creativity to the built environment." - Athens Clarke County

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“It’s really hard to get well when you don’t know where you’re going to be that night,” - Flagpole

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https://www.redandblack.com/athensnews/sheltering-hope-athens-rallies-against-homelessness/article_30da6354-c9b5-11ee-bd6e-bfbe7cb5f4a6.html

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Panel Discusses Challenges of Growing Homelessness in Athens - Flagpole

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For individuals, homelessness is often associated with mental health issues and substance abuse. But for cities, high levels of homelessness correlates to a lack of housing, according to the director of the Athens Homeless Coalition. Individuals can find themselves in a cycle of trauma, mental illness and substance abuse that “feeds on and perpetuates itself, and it’s very hard to get out of,” Michael Bien said during a “State of Homelessness” presentation Jan. 30 sponsored by Envision Athens and attended by about 200 people at Epting Events’ Barber Street venue. On a macro level, though, cities with high numbers of unhoused people tend to be those with a low supply of housing and high demand, Bien said. “It’s a supply […]

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Homelessness count in Athens reaches new high | Athens Politics Nerd

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Homelessness in Athens has reached a new high this year, according to the Athens-Clarke County Continuum of Care’s annual point-in-time count. 386 people

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Stuart Semple is an artist that comments on the anti-homelessness design of many benches and bus stops. He created a campaign where you can buy stickers to put on these spots that prevent people from being able to sleep there.

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Together we can shut down Hostile Design

Hostile designs are designs against humanity. They are made specifically to exclude, harm or otherwise hinder the freedom of a human being. Quite often they aim to remove a certain section of a community from a public space.

This site exists to provide a platform to raise awareness around hostile design, empower you to name and shame those involved in it and create a living archive of hostile design around the globe. Ultimately the idea is that through awareness we can dissolve prejudice, influence planners and city councils and create more inclusive welcoming public space for everyone.

Latest hostile design crimes

What are Hostile Designs?

Hostile designs are designs against humanity.

They are made specifically to exclude, harm or otherwise hinder the freedom of a human being.

Quite often they aim to remove a certain section of a community from a public space.
Give me an example?
Quite often Hostile Designs are aimed at people without homes, but they can also be aimed at teenagers, skateboarders.

A good example might be spikes attached to a doorway or ledge to prevent people sleeping there.

They might take the form of bars or dividers on benches, to stop sleepers.

It could even be the use of annoying music (such as bagpipes) in a public space to prevent loitering.

Once you start looking you will see it happening all over the place.

If you take a look at our Design Crime Gallery page you will see photos from all over the world of Hostile Design crimes.
What's so wrong with it?
It is a horrendous and prejudicial practice, that planners, fabricators, designers and councils pay huge amounts of money for.

It often attacks the most vulnerable people in our community, regularly the homeless.

It sends out a very clear signal, that certain people aren't wanted.

We all end up with brutal looking, unfriendly public spaces.

It gives a sense of credibility to prejudicial attitudes, and stops people having to address real issues.

it's morally wrong to design people out of their towns and cities.

Those involved in designing against humanity, or funding designs against humanity are committing the worst possible design crime.

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Article 1: Redefining the 'Southern Woman'

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Article 1: Redefining the 'Southern Woman'

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This article is an overview of the author's thoughts on the various stereotypes assigned to Southern women. I loved how she discussed her own experience and effectively tied this issue directly to our campus by bringing up sorority culture. She mentioned women of color and of the LGBTQ+ community in her analysis of the impact of these stereotypes on modern women, which I appreciated. The line about "antebellum opulence" gave me so many ideas for painting.

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OPINION: Redefining the ‘Southern woman’

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I remember watching “Gone With the Wind” for the first time on my parents’ back porch, the cicadas and katydids weaving a soft symphony around me. I had my computer

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This article is an overview of Queer history in Athens, from the formation of the first small pride movements throughout university groups to the installation of the famous Pride sidewalks downtown and the growth of queer nightlife. The article references personal accounts and letters and lays out various places you can visit to learn more about queer history here.

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Queer Space — Historic Athens Welcome Center

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Explore Athens, Georgia’s queer spaces with our self-guided tour.

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Picture from the interior of Cillie's, downtown Athens

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Picture from the interior of Cillie's, downtown Athens

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Cillie's is a little shop downtown that is filled to the brim with trinkets - the most random pop culture references, small gifts, and political statements. Right at the entrance, there are multiple jars of pride flags with multiple Harris campaign posters. This shop unashamedly declares its stance around its entrance, window displays, and throughout the slightly chaotic aisles.

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Picture from the Mary Frances Early College of Education

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Picture from the Mary Frances Early College of Education

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This is one of the many murals and images decorating the walls of the College of Education telling the story of Mary Frances Early. She was the third black student to be admitted, and the very first to graduate from the University of Georgia after earning her master's degree in music education in 1962. Her accomplishment, and their acknowledgement, are very important to the culture and diversity of Athens.

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As we talked about in class, Mary Frances Early College of Education was originally named Aderhold Hall. Due to the racist past of the previous name. UGA had the name switched to the first African American woman who graduated from the university.

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Picture of a protest for Earth Day poster in Lamar Dodd

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Picture of a protest for Earth Day poster in Lamar Dodd

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This is a poster about a protest happening for Earth Day on April 22 in the College of Art, telling us to "Love Your Mother" earth. The organizers clearly feel strongly about the issues our planet is facing and are calling upon us to help them spread awareness to love and keep our Earth clean.

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Eric Carle is famously known for his books like The Very Hungry Caterpillar or Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See and his unique artistic style. BUT, he also was an activist for children’s literacy. He wanted to encourage young children to read, while also encouraging other artists to create accessible books for the children. He founded the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in hopes of promoting literacy and creativity. He used simple language, rhythmic text and colorful artwork to help children build foundational literacy skills. His books are beneficial for the early development of children and can have a lasting impact!

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Charmaine Minniefield is a Georgia-based artist and activist whose works are based on themes of social justice and racial equality. She works to preserve African American history in Georgia. Her focus is creating community-based projects to inspire and teach people about racial inequality throughout history. She does murals, public art installations, multimedia artworks, and digital video presentations. This mural is called “Woman Who Shaped the World” and honors famous African American women in America’s history, like Harriet Tubman and Maya Angelou.

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Article #1: University Architecture & Racism

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Article #1: University Architecture & Racism

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"The building which houses the Mary Frances Early College of Education is named after O.C. Aderhold, who became the president of UGA in 1950. Aderhold was also president when the university was integrated in 1961. Horace Ward applied to UGA’s School of Law in 1950. Ward accused the university of barring his admission due to his race, and in response, Aderhold promised that he would create a “special committee” at UGA to study the matter, according to “We Shall Not Be Moved.” [...] ...Ward received a letter from Aderhold that informed him about the special committee’s denial of Ward’s application. The president agreed with the decision, he wrote."

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An updated list of UGA buildings named after racist figures

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The Red & Black has compiled more controversial names of buildings due to their namesake or for the history behind them.

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Athens community fundraising with Music!

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Athens community fundraising with Music!

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Jam In The Streets or Jam for Cam is a music festival that was started by Sigma Nu to fundraise for melanoma research due to one of the brothers in 2018 passing away from melanoma. the organization uses visual culture to bring together the community both physically and emotionally, people i would have never met or seen were all here to listen to music and support melanoma research.

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Flanigan is an Athens art activist who uses portraiture and murals to bring awareness to the black experience. He grew up in Athens and incorporates youth into mural paintings he even works with Clarke County to create murals with students inside their schools. in the article he mentions that he grew up very close to the Lyndon house but didn't know what it was until he grew up due to their lack of youth programing. He was also a proponent of the name change of Mary Frances early and he painted a portrait of her in celebration of this victory.

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In Emily's work, she addresses ecological issues in the environment by using science-fiction and biological elements. She graduated from the University of Georgia with a Interdisciplinary Design degree in 2019. In her work, The Snail, Emily creates a scene with a snail surrounded by a cluster of rocks and rooted by pine straw. During March-October these eggs laid by the snails, line the foliage along the Ichetucknee River Basin. She works across many different mediums creating narratives to evoke questioning about the planets ecological future.

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In this article, minority students don't agree with the decision of the Mayor and Commission of Athens-Clarke County not passing a racial equality resolution. These inequities sought to address, “housing, economic opportunity and youth development for Black and minority communities in Athens." Two UGA students, Varela and Etienne, believe that with collaboration from other individuals that they can bring awareness for the minority communities. I think its important to include this quote, “Don’t just be someone who comes here and takes up the resources and takes up all the space,” Varela said. “Be a member of your community.”

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UGA students respond to ACC racial equality resolution about minority challenges

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Minority students at the University of Georgia have varying opinions about the challenges they face. Although not directly connected, the Athens-Clarke County Mayor and Commission did not pass a racial