Newburyport Literary Assocation, Inc.

The Newburyport Literary Association, Inc. is a non-profit organization founded in 2005.  Its mission is to encourage the reading and examination of literary fiction, poetry, children’s literature, and nonfiction and to advance and promote literacy in our community.  The Association currently sponsors the Newburyport Literary Festival, the Newburyport Lifelong Learning Lyceum and The Big Read.

The Literary Festival, the primary focus to date, will celebrate its third year.  The festival has brought over 60 writers and 50 events to our small city.  Approximately 3,000 people enjoyed the two-day fest.  While the Association is the primary sponsor of the Festival, its partners include: Newburyport Public Library, Newburyport Adult & Community Education, Greater Newburyport Chamber of Commerce, Newburyport Art Association, Custom House/Maritime Museum, Newbury Historical Society, and local schools, newspapers and bookstores.

National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Dana Gioia says in the NEA’s most recent study on the decline of readers:  “Reading develops a capacity for focused attention and imaginative growth that enriches both private and public life.  The decline in reading among every segment of the adult population reflects a general collapse in advanced literacy.  To lose this human capacity—and the diverse benefits it fosters—impoverishes both cultural and civic life.”

Newburyport Literary Association, Inc. creates programs that reach diverse audiences and partners well with other organizations and individuals to maximize resources.  It is proud to include The Big Read, an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts, as an important resource to fulfill its mission.

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