Our Community of Readers
Reaching Rural Readers is a virtual book club created by two passionate education professors, Kathrina O’Connell, EdD. at Concordia College, and Danielle Kubasko Sullivan, PhD. at Bemidji State University. Each summer, high school students from rural Minnesota can join the fun as we explore one exciting young adult book each month.
Our teen participants connect with other readers from across rural Minnesota and join in engaging in book discussions led by English education and elementary education majors at Bemidji State University and Concordia College. Plus, they get the chance to chat with the authors themselves during our monthly book talks!
We are excited to extend our reach to Norway this summer! Secondary pupils from Norway will be participating in this year’s discussions. Their participation creates an opportunity to explore rurality, community, and identity —and to share the love of books and reading with one another.
Thanks to generous donations and grants, we’re able to provide all the books for free! Donated funds are used to purchase these amazing reads and mail them directly to our rural students’ hands. Authors often donate their time or provide discounted speaking rates for these events. Our fantastic facilitators volunteer their time to make this program a reality.
“You don’t always have access to the library, so it was kind of cool to meet other kids who were interested in reading. I liked the variety of books you chose and that we got to meet and talk to the authors.”
Serving Rural Minnesota Communities One Reader at a Time
Since launching in Summer 2024, Reaching Rural Readers has brought the joy of reading to teens in 20 rural Minnesota communities—and we’re just getting started!
