Kara Beal

I returned yesterday from Fort Kent, Maine, which is almost as far north as you can go and still be in Maine.  Estcourt Station is actually the farthest.  The reason for my trip and my stay in Fort Kent was an Author’s Conference.  It would be difficult to adequately express how meaningful this event was to me, and how impressed I was, not only with the conference, but with Fort Kent itself.

The event was staged by a teacher at Fort Kent Elementary/Valley River Middle School, a teacher who won the awe and adulation of all the authors present.  We had a romance novelist whose works are translated in 22 languages, a writer of young adult fiction, a humorist, an author of occupational therapy text books, and me–in other words, a wide diversity.  Kara Beal was somehow able to coax authors to travel great distances to be part of the conference, the purpose of which was to inspire young writers.

Authors were divided into separate classrooms where each held two sessions.  Students ranging in age from 12-18 were invited to sign up.  They were not required to be there.  When I walked into the first session, I’m sure my mouth fell open.  The huge classroom–more the size of a small amphitheater–was filled.  Row up row of students who didn’t have to be there, but wanted to be.

In Fort Kent, there is an extraordinary “academic row” close to the the heart of town.  It begins with Fort Kent Elementary/Valley River Middle School.   Next door, only a short walk away, is the high school.  Next to that is the University of Maine at Fort Kent.  Instead of separating schools and age groups as is so commonly done elsewhere, students of all ages are in close proximity to one other.  They are not only physically close, but some academic events, like the Author’s Conference, are shared events.

For younger students who constantly get to see those who have gone before them, students who are now at higher grade levels, it may have the effect of smoothing the transition when their time comes.  Fears are diffused.  High school is not some distant reality surrounded by mystique and apprehension.  And, in turn, neither is college.

There’s something going on in Fort Kent, Maine, and I know that all of the authors noticed it.  The throng of students who attended the conference were interested, inquisitive, alert and responsive.  There was a long and productive Q & A following the program, and then some kids lingered afterward for small talk.

Though it may exist invisibly, I saw none of the lethargy, none of the inertia, none of the slumped, bored, disconnectedness which is so often written about and discussed in other places.  I saw its opposite.  And next, is something America needs to pay attention to:  Some of the authors, at the close of the conference, remarked to each other that childhood obesity, that epidemic so rampant across the country, was virtually nonexistent in Fort Kent, Maine.  I, for one, saw none, and that was the first time in a very long time.

So…a town and a school system at the very top of New England captured the interest and attention of all the authors in attendance.   The teacher with the vision, energy, and determination to have made this idea a reality is Kara Beal, hero of the 1st Annual Fort Kent Author’s Conference.