Governor Bush appointed Dr. Lassiter to the TCH board in 1996. In 1999 he served as Vice Chair of the Council, and was recently elected Chair for the year 2000. TCH is developing Parallel and Crossover Lives, a community-based oral history and cultural preservation project, which examines Texas history and culture through a focus on the experiences of black Texans prior to and after public school desegregation. For more information on this project, please contact Monte K. Youngs at extension 125. The TCH recently partnered with the Wharton County Public Library to bring Prime Time Family Reading Time to Wharton this spring.
Programs take place over six or eight weeks, with a new topic each week.
The series was funded by a grant from the LEH and the American Library Association. In addition, the TCH has received a grant from the E.L. Kurth, Jr. Charitable Foundation to conduct 2 Prime Time Family Reading Time programs in East Texas' Angelina County this fall. The T.L.L. Temple Library in Diboll will conduct its second Prime Time series, and the McMullen Memorial Library in Huntington will host a first-time series. These new initiatives, Parallel and Crossover Lives and Prime Time Family Reading Time, respond to audiences underserved by past TCH programs, and provide TCH with the opportunity to broaden its reach and extend its mission. It is supported by appropriations from the U.S. Congress and by gifts and grants from foundations, corporations, and individuals.