Third annual K-grams Kids’ Fair set for Feb. 9

ANN ARBOR—”From ABCs to College Degrees” is the theme of this year’s Kids Fair sponsored by the K-grams program at the University of Michigan.

Some 2,000 U-M students will pair with more than 950 local elementary school youngsters at Crisler Arena on Friday (Feb. 9) from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Each of the U-M students participating in the event made diplomas for their elementary school buddies as a souvenir. The theme was created in hope of encouraging the children who “don’t always have to chance to interact with college students” to continue their education, says Ani Shehigian of Livonia, K-grams internal relations officer.

At least 90 U-M campus groups will set up booths and offer entertainment to students from six Ann Arbor schools, two Ypsilanti schools and one Detroit elementary school. The booths will offer activities ranging from sports games, sponsored by varsity and club sports teams, to educational displays like the one that shows the path that a neuron travels in the body, sponsored by a student neurological sciences group.

The Kids Fair is a culmination of a year-long pen pal program that pairs U-M students living in residence halls with elementary school children. The program has been successful on many levels, helping college students in the residence halls get to know one another, and helping the elementary school children with their reading and writing skills, according to Shehigian.

U-M students have cited having access to service and leadership opportunities as their top benefit of belonging to K-grams. However, K-grams’ sudden widespread success is also attributed to its straightforward format and organization. According to Shehigian, K-grams is a lot of fun and “not a lot of commitment.” K-gram volunteers collect letters and deliver them to the elementary schools; student coordinators organize any trips to the elementary schools. The organization “always keeps the college students in mind, making it as easy for them as possible to participate,” said Shehigian, who is enrolled in the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts.

For more information, contact Ani Shehigian at (734) 615-4762, ashehigi@umich.edu; or Catherine Monk at (734) 997-9508, cmonk@umich.edu.

Kids FairCollege of Literature, Science, and the Artsashehigi@umich.edu