Watch an interview with AB's founder, Rebecca Constantino, as the library at Aldama Elementary in Highland Park is transformed.

​"The greatest predictor of literacy for children living in poverty is the quality of their school library"

Watch Access Books volunteers makeover the library at 93rd Street Elementary on People TV's "Shelf Life."

Join us for a nighttime celebration of Literacy and Science to benefit long-neglected school libraries in the greater Los Angeles area

Friday, December 8th, 6-9 pm 
Dinner and pre-program 6-7 pm
Program starts 7pm 

Featuring:

Andy Weir
Best-selling author of The Martian, Andy Weir was first hired as a programmer for a national laboratory at age fifteen and has been working as a software engineer ever since. He is also a lifelong space nerd and a devoted hobbyist of subjects like relativistic physics, orbital mechanics, and the history of manned spaceflight. ​

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Sanden Totten (Master of Ceremonies)
Sanden Totten is a host and co-producer of American Public Media's Brains On!, a podcast for kids and curious adults about the scientific mysteries of the universe. Prior to that, he was KPCC's Science Reporter, where he covered everything from space exploration and medical technology to endangered species and the latest earthquake research. 

Michael Lopez-Alegria (Astronaut)
A veteran of four space flights, Lopez-Alegria has logged more than 257 days in space and performed 10 spacewalks totaling 67 hours and 40 minutes of EVA. He retired from the Navy in June 2008, left NASA in March 2012, then joined the Commercial Spaceflight Federation as its president. In October 2014, Lopez-Alegria became an independent consultant; he is based in Washington, D.C. 

Dave Zobel (Science Writer)
In addition to his seven-year stint as a writer for public radio’s "The Loh Down on Science," Dave Zobel has penned segments for the University of Texas at Austin’s "StarDate," NPR’s "Day to Day," and the game show "Says You!" A science pundit who’s appeared on G4 and Discovery, Zobel sits on the board of Trash for Teaching, an L.A. not-for-profit that rescues manufacturers’ discards and repurposes them as science and art kits for schools. 

Interactive pre-show entertainment from Two Bit Circus, a band of mad scientists, roboticists, visual artists and storytellers. Two Bit Circus weaves multiple disciplines into a breathtaking fusion of science, technology and creativity. 

Where:
Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems
Bldg S Forum One Space Park Drive
Redondo Beach, CA 90278 

$100 per person price includes buffet dinner (non-alcoholic beverages) and a signed copy of Andy Weir's new book, Artemis.

Families are welcome!

Purchase Tickets

The $50,000 award will benefit school libraries

From the G2 Overachivers Grant website:

Dr. Rebecca Constantino is truly an overachiever – a graduate Professor in language acquisition at the University of California, a mother of three, and the founder of Access Books. Access Books is a non-profit organization that refurbishes inner city school libraries and has provided over 2 million books to underserved libraries and children in the Los Angeles area. Given the indisputable linkage between literacy and future success, Rebecca is a dedicated champion for these children’s futures.

Last November, Access Books Bay Area partnered with Girl Scout Troop 61626, who conducted a Girl Scout Take Action project at the Ravenswood Family Health Clinic.

Ravenswood Family Health Clinic serves low-income families in East Palo Alto, and together we established a lending library in the waiting room of the clinic. The girl scouts donated books and raised money for new books for the project, and Access Books Bay Area matched with $500 in funding for new books!

Rebecca Constantino interviewed on 102.7 KIIS FM

Listen to the interview here. From the Community Council’s website:

“Headquartered in Los Angeles, CA, non-profit Access Books refurbishes the libraries of California’s most impoverished elementary school libraries in our cities’ most underserved communities.