South Queens, NY – On November 12^th, Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato (D-South Queens) began distributing Summer Reading Certificates to students at their homes across the district, due to many students opting out of in-person learning and not being able to assemble with their classmates in school. The home deliveries started this week and will continue over the next several days. The Assemblywoman will visit 30 families with students that completed the summer reading challenge to congratulate them personally on their achievement.

“Committing to reading 40 days during a summer while we were in a pandemic and had to socially distance is no easy task, and our students went above and beyond,” Pheffer Amato stated. “I am so incredibly proud of all the students who participated in my 2020 Summer Reading challenge and was excited to personally deliver the certificates to the students at their homes. Education is the most important opportunity for our children to invest in for their future success and reading plays a huge role. I look forward to hosting the Summer Reading challenge next year and distributing certificates at their schools. Happy reading to all the students in my district!”

The New York State Assembly Summer Reading Challenge requires students to read for 40 days out of the summer, and to mark their daily progress and number of books read on a calendar. When filling out the form, students are also asked what their favorite book of the summer was. Since Pheffer Amato’s election in 2016, she has given out thousands of summer reading awards across the district at various schools. The COVID-19 pandemic has prevented the Assemblywoman from holding award ceremonies at each individual school that participates in the Summer Reading Challenge.