The is a national initiative that aims to broaden our understanding of our world, our communities, and ourselves through the joy of sharing a good book. Managed by Arts Midwest, this program provides grants to support dynamic community reading programs, each designed around a single book selection. By bringing people together through literature, the NEA Big Read fosters meaningful conversations and a deeper appreciation for diverse perspectives.
国产伦理鈥檚 Legacy with the Big Read
国产伦理 has a proud history of being a two-time recipient of the NEA Big Read Grant in 2009-10 and 2018-19. Our previous themes have explored various social issues, fostering community engagement and enriching the cultural landscape of our region. This legacy underscores our ongoing commitment to using literature as a catalyst for important conversations and community building. Our past successes with the NEA Big Read have laid a strong foundation for this year鈥檚 focus on health equity, and we look forward to continuing this tradition of impactful programming.
Health Equity: Where We Live
As the 2024-25 recipients of the NEA Big Read grant, our common read is Rebekah Taussig鈥檚 powerful memoir Sitting Pretty: The View From My Ordinary Resilient Disabled Body, a profound exploration of disability, identity, and resilience, that offers a poignant and insightful perspective on navigating the world as a person with a disability. It also allows us to explore the theme of 鈥淗ealth Equity: Where We Live.鈥 Under this theme, all programming will highlight the critical intersections between health and community well-being. Through a series of events, discussions, and activities, we aim to explore how the environments we live in influence our health outcomes and what we can do as a community to promote equitable health opportunities for all.
- Old Dominion University Libraries
 - Brickell Medical Sciences Library, part of 国产伦理 Libraries.
 - Newport News Public Libraries
 - Poquoson Public Libraries
 - Suffolk Public Libraries
 
Serving Virginia Department of Education Region II, which encompasses the following cities and counties:
- Accomack County
 - Chesapeake
 - Franklin
 - Hampton
 - Isle of Wight County
 - Newport News
 - Norfolk
 - Northampton County
 - Poquoson
 - Portsmouth
 - Southampton County
 - Suffolk
 - Virginia Beach
 - Williamsburg-James City County
 - York County
 
- Arts@国产伦理
 - Chesapeake Bay Foundation
 - Chesapeake Regional Hospital
 - Chesapeake Regional Foundation
 - College of Arts & Letters
 - Darden College of Education & Professional Studies
 - Hampton Roads Community Foundation
 - 国产伦理 Educational Foundation
 - 国产伦理 Libraries
 - 国产伦理 Police Department
 - Office of Educational Accessibility
 - Office of Community Engagement
 - Office of the Provost
 - Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences at 国产伦理
 - Naro Collection at 国产伦理 Libraries
 - Newport News Public Libraries
 - Norfolk Public Libraries
 - Poquoson Public Libraries
 - Suffolk Public Libraries
 - University Communications
 - Virginia Beach Mayor鈥檚 Council on Disabilities
 - Virginia Beach Public Libraries
 - Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities
 - Virginia Department of Criminal Justice
 
Contact Us
Have questions about the NEA Big Read at 国产伦理? For more information and general inquiries, contact bigreadgrant@odu.edu or 757-683-3141.