RUSVM students donate library books to Tucker-Clarke Primary School in St. Kitts

BASSETERRE, St. Kitts, March 31, 2011 - Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine’s seventh semester class donated more than 200 books to the Tucker-Clarke Primary School on Wednesday.  Books ranged from Dr. Seuss classics to science and technology to books about dogs and included varying degrees of reading difficulty—some paperback while others were hard cover.  Seventh semester students from the School of Veterinary Medicine collected the books on their breaks between semesters, bringing books back from the United States. 
 
The books were delivered to the library and the students at the school were excited to begin reading the books. Many of the titles were new, some were gently used and others were cherished childhood classics.   Students representing various grades in the Tucker-Clarke Primary School posed for a photo with a few of the donated books in the library.
 
Librarian, Ms. Shorna Maynard, was thankful for the books and began looking through the titles as they arrived.  She will first organize the books by grade level and then shelf the books before the students are able to check them out and begin reading.  The Tucker-Clarke Primary School has students, age five through twelve, in Kindergarten through sixth grade.
 
“On behalf of Tucker-Clarke Primary School, we greatly appreciate the tremendous and dynamic offering,” said Mr. Leslie Richardson, deputy principal at Tucker-Clarke Primary, during the book presentation ceremony.  “We hope to use the books to improve our student’s literacy skills and reading abilities.  Thank you kindly and we look forward to future partnerships with Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine.”
 
The book donation began as an accident for seventh semester student, Emily Kaser.  Kaser’s daughter and husband had also been living in St. Kitts since she began her studies at Ross—which was more than two years ago.  In the summer of 2010, Kaser’s daughter and husband moved back to the United States so that he could return to work and her daughter, Laura, could begin school.  After the move, Kaser decided to donate some of her daughter’s belongings to a local St. Kitts orphanage.  From that donation, she learned, from a volunteer at the orphanage, that Tucker-Clarke was renovating their library and did not have enough books to fill the shelves.
 
And that is how the book collecting started.  Kaser begin asking her classmates to assist with the donations as she expressed the primary school’s need of library books.  She sent emails, made announcements in classroom and solicited help from Ross University student government officers.  The seventh semester students met the challenge and begin a drive to bring books for donation back from the United States on their visits back home during breaks.
 
“I am so thankful to have been able to do something for the students at the Tucker-Clarke School,” said Kaser.  “I just hope to encourage other classes to consider doing something like this because there are so many more schools that need supplies or books.  I hope my fellow Ross students make it a tradition.”
 
Kaser, and her fellow seventh semester RUSVM classmates, will be leaving the island in April to begin their final year of veterinary clinical coursework at various veterinary schools throughout the United States. 
 
“The book donation as just another way the students, before their departure, could do something positive for St. Kitts,” continued Kaser.
 
 
About Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine
Ross University is a provider of medical and veterinary education, offering doctor of medicine and doctor of veterinary medicine degree programs. Founded in 1982 and located in St. Kitts, West Indies, the School of Veterinary Medicine is accredited by the St. Christopher & Nevis Accreditation Board and the American Veterinary Medical Association Council on Education to offer the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree program (AVMA COE, 1931 North Meacham Road, Suite 100, Schaumburg, IL 60173, 847-925-8070). The School of Veterinary Medicine is affiliated with 22 AVMA-accredited U.S. veterinary schools where students complete their clinical year. The University’s Veterinary Teaching Hospital is the only facility outside the U.S. and Canada accredited by the American Animal Hospital Association.