Beleaguered school sets a record for reading

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – A team of high school seniors set a six-day reading record on Monday as a way to bolster students’ interest in books and boost their school’s spirit.

Southside High School’s principal said he pursued the reading marathon to inspire a school still reeling from the 2001 arrest of a senior who had smuggled a duffel bag full of bombs and guns into the school intending to carry out a killing spree.

The teen, who was sentenced to more than eight years in prison, surrendered peacefully after students notified officials that he had passed someone a threatening note.

“That was just one of the shadows we’ve tried to overcome,” said principal Christopher Krantz, who took over the school in 2004. “When I came here, the school was just kind of stumbling. It had been through eight principals in eight years. It had some negative press; it had lost pizazz.”

When the clock struck 5 p.m. Monday, six National Honor Society members drew a standing ovation from hundreds of parents, teachers and classmates. Cheers also rang out 11 hours earlier, at 6 a.m., when they matched a Guinness World Record set in October 2005 by five Britons who read aloud continuously for 117 hours at the airport in Manchester, England.

In mostly one-hour shifts, they read more than 20 beloved children’s books, including the six-volume Harry Potter series, seven “Goosebumps” thrillers and Katherine Paterson’s “Bridge to Terabithia.” They wrapped up their epic, 128-hour performance on the school auditorium stage with “Oh, the Places You’ll Go,” a Dr. Seuss classic.

Between their reading spells, the students played table tennis, cards and Scrabble or crawled into their tents onstage for little more than four hours of sleep at a time. A nurse or a doctor was on duty nearby at all hours.