How two women are changing children’s lives through literacy

Words by Paige Townley

When two passionate problem-solvers join forces, change is bound to follow. That was the case for Monica Anderson Young and Dr. Dee Dupree Bennett. The two college sorority sisters reunited at an alumni event after three decades, when Young happened to share with Bennett a concern that had been on her heart: literacy in Alabama.

Young’s concern stemmed from her daughter McRae, an assistant district attorney in Mobile County, who noticed that children in courtrooms often lacked distractions or meaningful activities while waiting, as electronic devices aren’t allowed in Alabama’s courts. This fact struck a chord with Young, and Bennett, who has spent practically her entire adult life in early childhood education, saw the same potential in those moments: a chance to engage kids in reading.

“Kids come into courthouses for many reasons, and they just have to sit there,” Young explains. “Dee and I saw the need to act because we know this scenario never stops. There is always a crop of new readers coming through our society.”

Though literacy is a big topic to tackle, the two friends dove in by addressing the immediate need they saw and put together a literacy kit specifically for use with young readers in the courtroom, SHORT In Court, a story centered around the fictional character of SHORT the squirrel, who lives outside the courthouse and likes to explore his community. “We describe it as ‘topical literacy’,” Bennett explains. “By collaborating with community partners, such as McRae for this booklet, we make sure we’re telling the story of SHORT in that scenario accurately.”

In addition to a story about SHORT’s experience within the particular setting—a story that Bennett and Young hope helps demystify the setting young readers find themselves in and help put them more at ease—the interactive booklet also includes extras, such as crayons, a sticker, and even a game to play. “We brought this character to life, and almost at the very same time, the Alabama Legislature passed the Alabama Literacy Act, which aimed to improve reading proficiency in public schools across the state by ensuring students can read on grade level by the end of third grade. “A piece of that act indicated a need for stakeholder participation in closing the literacy gap,” Bennett adds. “We knew SHORT could fill that gap and be an active participant in literacy.”

Then, another unexpected happened: the COVID-19 pandemic. Soon after they piloted the very first booklet, the world practically shut down. But that also led to another discovery—the many places in society children experience often without explanation and certainly with nothing to do.

“A friend came to us and pointed out many places, like the doctor’s office, banks, and car dealerships,” Bennet says. “At every corner, there was another space for these booklets. We became very cognizant of the many places kids were waiting.” 

Young and Bennett quickly followed up their inaugural booklet with SHORT Gets Sick, which was released in partnership with Children’s of Alabama’s emergency room, followed by SHORT’s Money Tree, which was completed in partnership with the Alabama Securities Commission to combine literacy with financial literacy. Partnerships continued with other booklets, such as SHORT Tours the Town!, a book sponsored by Alabama Power that teachers young readers about first responders and city government. Currently, there are 12 literacy kits covering different topics or highlighting unique parts of Alabama, making literacy an adventure across the state. “There’s so much packed into every page to carry a different experience for kids and even their parents or guardians too,” Young says. “We try to layer in many things, and we’ve even made sure to have every booklet in both Spanish and English.”

To further the positive effect of SHORT, Young and Bennett began looking for other ways to promote him. They began hosting annual virtual birthday parties, which also exposed kids to learn more about Alabama. Last year, more than 80,000 children interacted virtually with SHORT for his fourth birthday. “The virtual parties allow us to virtually take children across the state every February with a different theme, which is always tied to a location in Alabama,” Bennett explains. “Some children may never get to go to Huntsville, but we can take them virtually on a tour of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center with SHORT. Same with Mardi Gras because we can virtually take them to the Mobile Carnival Museum. It’s another layer of education we’re able to provide.”

They also brought the reading superhero to life, taking him to visit schools in person across the state. On average, SHORT visits 20 to 30 schools across Alabama every year, asking students at each school to make the same promise: to try to read every day.

“We haven’t touched every nook and cranny of Alabama yet, but we certainly want to,” Bennett shares. 

And until they do, they’ll be taking advantage of every other opportunity to help children through improving literacy rates. “This is our love letter to Alabama,” Young says. “It’s not our full-time jobs, but it means so much to us. If a child cannot read, then they will have a very difficult future. We care about their futures and want to do all we can to improve them.”

When two passionate problem-solvers join forces, change is bound to follow. That was the case for Monica Anderson Young and Dr. Dee Dupree Bennett. The two college sorority sisters reunited at an alumni event after three decades, when Young happened to share with Bennett a concern that had been on her heart: literacy in Alabama.

Young’s concern stemmed from her daughter McRae, an assistant district attorney in Mobile County, who noticed that children in courtrooms often lacked distractions or meaningful activities while waiting, as electronic devices aren’t allowed in Alabama’s courts. This fact struck a chord with Young, and Bennett, who has spent practically her entire adult life in early childhood education, saw the same potential in those moments: a chance to engage kids in reading.