LYNN — On Friday, the REAL Program hosted its inaugural Breakfast of Champions event to celebrate community education leaders.
REAL Program Director Jan Plourde said in a statement that the purpose of the event was to “celebrate not only the power of education but also the champions who make it possible.”
At the event, three North Shore community members were honored for their contributions to educational equity in the area. The first honoree was Mary Klug, an ESL teacher at the REAL Program who has done extensive volunteer work.
She was followed by Dr. Laura Luna, a psychologist with more than 20 years of experience in Lynn Public Schools. Dr. Luna, who was also the event’s keynote speaker, discussed the transformative power that reading had on her growing up. She also talked about how in her position as a school psychologist, she has witnessed firsthand the impact that the REAL Program has had on students struggling with literacy. She thanked the program for all their work.
The final honoree was State Sen. Brendan Crighton, who was recognized for his work advocating for educational equity. While Crighton was unable to attend the event, a representative from his office was there to accept the honor on his behalf.
The REAL Program is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving literacy and educational equity in Lynn. It offers six different programs that provide resources and support to both children and adults.
Collectively, these programs have distributed more than 350,000 books to children and families, offers education summer programs to more than 30 children annually, tutor more than 30 children daily, give more than 20 adults access to weekly English classes, and brought a new preschool program into the Lynn community.
For more information, visit www.therealprogram.org.
