As part of our series featuring state councils, we spoke with Kim Burris, President of the West Virginia Reading Association (WVRA). Their annual conference is fastly approaching: it will be held in White Sulphur Springs on November 17 and 18. You may have read about West Virginia on Reading Today Online or in the August/September issue of Reading Today. (IRA Members click here to read the interactive digital version of the magazine.) Kim shared her passion for the Association in her answers to the following questions.
1. Are you especially proud of any of your council's projects?
I'm proud of WVRA for achieving the IRA Five Star Award of Excellence for nine years. We work well with our state department of educaiton and we want to continue the strong ties between our organization and our state department of education. I'm also proud of the following council projects:
- Studies and Research Committee (This is a very active committee that picks something current in education, studies it, and disseminates information out to members. The committee chair involves people from all over the state with various backgrounds. She is my shining start in mentoring and branching out to people.)
- Parents and Reading Honor Council (Local councils are awarded this status if they complete projects/activities involving parents with reading.)
- WVRA Honor Presidents (This is awarded to local council presidents who have completed several projects promoting their local councils and reading within their county/community.)
2. What are the benefits of joining your council? 
Our association is the largest curriculum based organization in the state. Members receive the "Interchange" (our council's newsletter) four times a year, information from the Studies and Research Committee, and a reduced registration rate to the annual conference.
3. Are there any future projects in store for your council? We are working hard on expanding our association by "Connecting, Communicating, and Collaborating." We also have started a new membership category this year for students in middle school and high school. We are hoping to build this throughout the state. Our first student council has a goal of becoming an IRA Council!
4. How does one join your council? Membership information is on our website at wvreading.com.
5. Is there a website, newsletter, or another way to find more information about your council? Is there a person that prospective members can contact? Our website is wvreading.com. You can find information about our annual conference and most of our projects and awards. There is contact information for all our officers and committee chairs. Our Director of Membership Development is Ering Albaugh and her email is erin_albaugh@hotmail.com. People can also contact me at wvra@suddenlink.net for information.
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