On Nov. 15, JMU’s Reading Road Show/The Gus Bus program received a National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award, one of 12 U.S. programs the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities recognized for outstanding after-school and out-of-school programs that are transforming the lives of young people throughout America. Kim Hartzler-Weakley (’00, ’07M), coordinator of Children and Youth Services at JMU, and 12-year-old Sarah Hussein, one of many local youth who have been impacted by the Reading Road Show, received the award from first lady Michelle Obama.

Stay tuned: the Winter print issue of Madison will have more of The Gus Bus story and the JMU people who have made it a beloved fixture in our local community.