Program to collect books for schools begins

Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2000 | 8:45 a.m.

The Clark County School District and the nation's largest home builder are combining to provide new and used books for school libraries.

The program, Building Opportunities for Our Kids in School, or BOOKS, kicks off this week at the Las Vegas Valley's 11 Pulte Homes communities and Borders bookstores.

The communities and bookstores will collect the new and used books to be divided among the 50 local elementary schools that have a dire need for more books.

"We developed this program after learning that Clark County was lower than the national average in terms of elementary funding and book ratios per student," Steve Petruska, president of the Las Vegas division of Pulte Homes, said.

The national average for elementary funding is $15.44 per student while in Clark County it's $8.45 a student. Nationally there is a ratio of 18 books at a school library per student, but in Clark County it's just 10 books per student, Petruska said.

The book drive will culminate during Nevada Reading Week, Feb. 28 through March 3, when the books will be delivered.