by Adam Grybowski
First-year students will read The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls as part of this year’s Shared Read program, an initiative started by Academic Affairs and Student Affairs that aims to introduce students to Rider University’s learner-centered mission. The University distributed the books (purchased through the support of the Rider Alumni Foundation, Student Affairs and Academic Affairs) to students on the first day of the Mock Classroom held during New Student Orientation.
“Our goal is to highlight the importance of reading, an activity integral to the life of an educated person, and to provide students with a common topic of discussion with their peers, faculty, staff and administrators,” says DonnaJean Fredeen, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. In The Glass Castle, Walls tells her story about surviving parental neglect in a dysfunctional but vibrant family. The book delves into the social issues of homelessness, alcoholism, racism and poverty.
The University is planning to offer many activities throughout the year focused on the book’s themes.
In selecting the book, Fredeen worked with faculty and staff members Vanita Neelakanta, Chuck McCall, Chick Chickering, Christine Melhorn, Christine Eugene, Kendall Freidman and Ira Mayo. The group spent February through April reading numerous books, which Fredeen says sparked many hallway conversations among the committee.
“Sharing a book within a community provides an opportunity for all of us to take part in intellectual discourse on the ideas presented,” she says. “Personally, I have engaged in excellent conversations regarding many different books since I announced this program. In fact, the Shared Read Committee enjoyed our conversations so much that I suspect we will be reading a few common titles over the next several months.”