UPDATE: Burton’s appearance was moved to April 27 at his request. Read more at https://communique.uccs.edu/?p=18323
Former “Star Trek” actor and “Reading Rainbow” host LeVar Burton will speak at 7 p.m. April 14 at the Gallogly Events Center.
During his presentation, Burton will discuss literacy in America and what colleges, universities, and their students, can do to truly improve literacy rates.
“Bringing LeVar Burton to UCCS is beyond exciting,” Stephen Cucchiara, assistant director, Student Activities, said. “Literacy is a topic that affects all individuals. Not to mention, LeVar enhanced many of our childhoods with motivation, inspiration, and desire to read.”
Tickets for the event go on sale Feb. 10. They are $5 for students, faculty, staff and active duty military members at the University Center Information Desk. For all others, tickets are $15 until April 1 before increasing to $20. Tickets are limited to two tickets per person and are available through www.ticketswest.com.
The event is the fifth part of the UCCS Significant Speakers Series offered by the Office of Student Activities and Residence Life and Housing. Last year, former Facebook executive and author Randi Zuckerberg filled the Gallogly Events Center. Scientists Neal deGrasse Tyson and Bill Nye were the featured speakers in 2013 and 2012 respectively.
Burton, 58, became the host of PBS’s “Reading Rainbow,” a show aimed at teaching young children to read. During it’s run from 1983 – 2009, “Reading Rainbow” won 26 Emmy Awards.
From 1987 – 1994, Burton became a household name while playing as blind chief engineer Lt. Cmdr. Geordi La Forge on “Star Trek: The Next Generation.”
Following the cancelation of “The Next Generation” in 1994, Burton directed several film and TV projects, including the 1998 TV movie “The Tiger Woods Story,” the series “Soul Food,” the dramedy “Reach for Me” and the Star Trek spin-offs “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine,” “Star Trek: Voyager” and “Star Trek: Enterprise.”
In 2011, Burton announced his latest endeavor, RRKidz, a reading and exploration platform aimed at motivating kids to “experience literature via the digital devices they love,” offering hundreds of books through a subscription service. The following year saw the launch of a free “Reading Rainbow” app, designed specifically for the iPad and for children ages 3-9.
“Reading will never go out of style, but the tools used for learning are changing,” Burton said in a statement. “I am excited to bring Reading Rainbow back so that parents who watched the show can now share that same feel-good experience with their own children, but on platform that resonates with today’s digital kids.”
In 2013, RRKidz announced that 10 million books and video field trips had been utilized through the app.
For more information about RRKidz, visit www.readingrainbow.com.
Correction: Reading Rainbow has won many more Emmy awards than 5. It won 10 Emmy Awards for Outstanding Children’s Series and many more in other categories.
Thank you for the correction, the article has been updated.