BATV participates in Read Across Jamaica Day
READ ACROSS Jamaica Day is a national literacy initiative formed to foster a love of reading in children in Jamaica and across the diaspora. The Caribbean’s only all-business channel, Business Access TV (BATV), seeing this as a critical part of youth development, participated in the initiative on Tuesday, May 8, at the Stella Maris Preparatory School, St Andrew.
Garth Walker, managing director of BATV, engaged the students in an interactive session.
Since its inception in 2003, Read Across Jamaica Day has provided many opportunities for young children to be influenced positively through an appreciation for literacy.
Inspiring the future of Jamaica to dream big and believe in the value and validity of their dreams was one of the reasons for Walker participating in Read Across Jamaica Day.
“The initiative itself is remarkable and should be completely taken advantage of. Reading and engaging with the children not only helps to grow their appreciation for reading and books, but allows them to see just how important literacy and education in general really are,” explained Walker.
The reading exercise, which kept students engaged for just over 45 minutes, included a short questionand-answer session and a short pep talk from the CEO on the beauty of following dreams.
The school’s vice principal, Pat Peryer, said: “It’s amazing to have him come back. It’s good that he remembers us, and it shows the children really how far you can go when you commit to not only reading, but a good education. I’m happy he has decided to share Read Across Jamaica Day with us. I was here when he was a student, and I’m so happy to see all his achievements.”