Studentreasures® Celebrates Publishing its 10 Millionth Student Author

TOPEKA, Kan., June 19, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Studentreasures, the leading publisher of student-created books, today celebrated publishing its 10 millionth student author with the delivery of books to a class in Brooklyn's P.S. 161 The Crown School.

More than a million students and classes authored books through Studentreasures during the past school year, including the class that helped the Topeka, Kansas-based Studentreasures reach the 10 millionth milestone: Cheryl Jarbo's first graders who wrote the book "Our Cinquain Poems."    

Named best free program for schools by Scholastic's Instructor magazine, Studentreasures supports today's schools by developing tomorrow's authors, and preserving memories forever by publishing keepsake hardbound books. Publishing opportunities are available to school educators in elementary through college.

Studentreasures has assisted schools in teaching writing skills and encouraged students to find their voices for nearly two decades.

"For the first time, research shows that creativity in the U.S. is declining," said Chad Zimmerman, president & CEO of Studentreasures. "Studentreasures supports teachers with simple, yet flexible programs that foster creative thinking and imagination as a critical part of children's education."

Studentreasure books by students are widely credited by teachers for generating excitement among students because their class writing projects result in full-color, hardbound books.

"The very act of publishing a student's writing accelerates their sense of pride," said Zimmerman. "Celebrating the 10 millionth published student author is a truly significant milestone and we look forward to continuing to provide millions of children an outlet for creative thinking and expression."

To mark the occasion, Studentreasures hosted a publishing party at P.S. 161 The Crown School. Students received free copies of their classroom book, Tri-C Publications' Summer Skills books and creativity packs to fight summer brain drain. The school was also presented a $1,000 check to use towards stocking library shelves. Images, video and additional media materials are available at www.studentreasures.com/10million.

"Through the Studentreasures book publishing program, my students gained a true sense of ownership for the project and there was an added enthusiasm because they realized their hard work would be captured in a real book," said Cheryl Jarbo. "They had fun being creative and became more independent writers. This project also helped me become a better teacher because I learned a lot about my students and how to help them grow as writers."

Studentreasures published books for schools in all 50 states during the 2011-2012 school year. In addition to hitting a major milestone, Studentreasures also honored nine books through its National Book Challenge. "From pets and vets to hot air balloons and space, the quality of this year's recognized books is truly amazing," said Zimmerman. "We were in awe of the kids' creativity and as a company we're proud to be able to contribute in a meaningful way to stimulating kids' creativity."

See all winning books at www.studentreasures.com/10million.

About Studentreasures®

Studentreasures Publishing, a division of Nationwide Learning, LLC, is the leading student-created book publisher donating more than five million hardbound books and publishing more than 10 million student books for schools throughout the United States and Canada during the past 18 years. The Topeka, Kansas-based company's mission is to support schools, develop student authors, and preserve memories through each hardbound book created. The program builds self-confidence, and improves reading, writing and artistic skills. Each hardbound book becomes a treasured keepsake. For more information go to www.studentreasures.com.

SOURCE Studentreasures