Wearing a tall “Dr. Seuss” hat, Graciela Cigarroa, wife of the new chancellor of the University of Texas System, will join other high profile friends of the University of Texas Elementary School in east Austin Friday, March 13, in reading books to children in celebration of Dr. Seuss’s birthday.
Dr. Ramona Treviño, principal of the elementary school at 2200 E. 6th Street, said the 7:45 a.m. to 10 a.m. program would begin with a morning assembly with first graders singing, “We love you, Dr. Seuss.” The event celebrates the work of the late Theodor Seuss Geisel, who was known for his children’s books written under his pen name, Dr. Seuss.
“It sends a very important message to the children in our school when university leaders take time from their busy schedules to read to them,” said Treviño. “It lets them know that their academic success is important to people all the way up to the very highest levels of the university.”
Other guests scheduled to read to students include University of Texas System Board of Regents Chair Scott Caven and his wife, Vivien Caven, as well as former University of Texas System Chancellor Dan Burck and his wife, Penny. Also wearing tall hats as they read will be Dr. Steven Leslie, executive vice president and provost at The University of Texas at Austin, and university professors who are affiliated with the elementary school.
UT Elementary School, which opened in August 2003, is managed by The University of Texas at Austin and operates as an open-enrollment school campus providing services to children in east Austin.
Treviño said the elementary school is an integral part of The University of Texas System’s initiative to improve public education in Texas. The school enrolls students in pre-kindergarten through fifth grades.
“Our connection to the university is important to the students and families here,” Treviño said. “We want them to know that our expectation for them is that they will be successful and will someday go to college.”
