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Amanda McCall2025-02-06T17:48:04-05:00

Episode 2

Amanda McCall

Educator, Librarian, Literacy Champion

Episode 2

Amanda McCall

Educator, Librarian, Literacy Champion

Next up on EPIC Carteret, we’re setting our sights on the educational horizon.

Join me as I chat with Amanda McCall, the innovative Morehead City Primary School media coordinator and visionary behind the Title Wave bookmobile. Amanda shares how Carteret County’s residents, organizations, and businesses came together to ensure a brighter future for disadvantaged area students, and we explore how a community of learners can help each other grow.

You helped make a difference!

With your support and the enthusiasm of this engaged community, Winter Hauntings, our inaugural ghost story event in 2024, raised $900 for the Title Wave Book Mobile!

Listen to Episode 2

Catch Episode 2 of EPIC Carteret on September 27, a conversation with Amanda McCall, educator, librarian, and literacy champion

Learn more about the Title Wave, The Bridge Down East, and other topics mentioned in the episode.

Other organizations and programs mentioned in Episode 2

Other organizations and businesses that contributed to the Title Wave

Title Wave sponsors include: Smile Makers at Coastal Carolina Orthodontics, Mary Cheatham King Real Estate, Chick-fil-A in Morehead City, Davis Dentistry, Heritage Cabinet Company & Contracting Company, On the Move Physical Therapy, Robby Oakes Mortgage Company, Arts Council of Carteret County, Crystal Coast Quilters’ Guild and Carteret Writers.

MEZCALITO GRILL

Join Amanda and me at Mezcalito Grill in Beaufort to explore how Carteret County folks come together to support learners as they grow. Amanda picked Mezcalito for its vibrant decor and its fresh, modern menu. We dipped into steak con queso, succulent steak strips in a velvety blend of spicy cheeses. I indulged in my favorite: the Michelada, a hearty Mexican cocktail made with beer, tomato juice, Tajin, lime, and spices. It was a lively setting for an enlightening conversation about working together to improve outcomes for everyone.

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This project is supported by the North Carolina Arts Council, a division of the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, with administration by the Craven Arts Council & Gallery.

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Transcribed by Autumn Ware with the help of Hindenburg Pro

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Epic-Carteret Episode 2:

How to Grow a Community of Learners with Amanda McCall

Transcribed by Autumn Ware with the help of Hindenburg Pro

Intro

[Intro Music with occasional Seagulls squawking]

Autumn (narration): Welcome to EPIC Carteret. I’m your host Autumn Ware, and I washed ashore on the Crystal Coast with my family in December 2020. I arrived worn and weary, but within a year, I found myself converted from an exhausted traveler to an energized participant in this vibrant community. I’m a reformed recluse in a place that knows the secret of transforming strangers into neighbors. Now, I’m on a quest to uncover what makes Carteret County such an extraordinary place to call home.

[music swells and fades]

Autumn (narration): Last time on Epic Carteret, we explored the county’s bustling business ecosystem. Guided by the ever insightful Tom Cai’s, we posed the question, What’s the secret to a thriving business community? And the answer, at least in these parts, was genuine engagement. Business folks around here don’t just coexist. They support one another, which leads to mutual fruitfulness. But business isn’t the only thing booming on the Crystal Coast. From summer enrichment at the bridge down East to life enrichment at the community college. The spirit of self-improvement is alive and well in Carteret County and growing isn’t just for the kids. Children. Adults. The young at heart. I Carteret County, it seems like everybody’s on a voyage of discovery.

[music swells and fades]

Autumn (narration): I met Tom taking his creative writing course at the college. And because paths intertwine in such close knit communities, I was introduced to our next epic guest, Amanda McCall, another lifelong learner, and Decatur County educator. Through a fellow classmate in that same course in episode two, Amanda and I are setting our sights on the educational horizon to consider how a community of learners can make progress together. Could it be that a collective commitment to personal growth is one of the secret ingredients when you’re cultivating an epic community?

Autumn (narration): But before we dive in, I have a confession to make. I have no idea what I’m doing. I’ve never produced a podcast before, and I’m learning as I go. As an educator myself, I know that a big part of learning is screwing up. And I have experienced a few epic fails already. Fortunately, Amanda is the pinnacle of patience and encouragement. If you’re going to really screw up in the service of trying something new. She is the exact person you want sitting across the table from you.

Tom on his arrival in Carteret County

Tom: I got here because I was offered a job as publisher, general manager of a magazine, local magazine company, and commercial printing firm.

I’d always wanted to be a publisher, and they offered me a position here. And I’ve never – I’d never been south of the Mason-Dixon Line before.

Autumn: Oh, wow.

Tom: I didn’t even know that Morehead City, North Carolina. And actually, I was I was only planning on being in here maybe four or five years.

Autumn: Oh, wow.

Tom: And I was going to I was going to move back to Connecticut 17 years later, and here I am. It’s home.

Autumn (narration): What’s kept Tom here all this time? The pristine beaches, the wild horses, those delicious crystal Coast oysters. No doubt they add to the allure, but it’s the community that Tom finds extraordinary.

Autumn screws up

Autumn: girl. I’m so sorry.

Amanda: I have time.

Autumn: I’m so, so sorry.

Amanda: Well, I got a drink, and cheese and chips. It’s okay.

Autumn: All right, All right.

Autumn (narration): That’s me and Amanda, Morehead City Primary School media coordinator and mastermind behind the Title Wave, Carteret County’s new bookmobile, which launched this summer thanks to Amanda’s ability to inspire and motivate the good people of the community.

We’re at Mezcalito Mexican Grill on Front Street in Beaufort. Up until this moment, I was enjoying my michelada and queso dip and basking in how competently I was handling the interview. This is the moment I realized the recorder had stopped recording some time back.

<< Sad trombone >>

Autumn (narration): Not only did Amanda not storm out or make me feel more like an idiot than I already did, she offered this pearl of wisdom:

Wise words from Amanda

Amanda: Now I can say it again, and I might sound even better.

Autumn: That’s not surprising at all coming from Amanda. In her Neighbor to Neighbor piece for Carolina Coastal Online during the early days of the pandemic, she said, “We grow the most when we’re being challenged.”

You love her already, right? You’re not the only one. Amanda had a devoted fan base even before the Title Wave bookmobile started making its rounds this summer.

In May 2022, she was WITN’s Teacher of the Week, nominated by a member of her community for creating an active, stimulating library environment, for incorporating technology in all her lessons, and for teaching 21st century skills and critical thinking. This year, she was one of Morehead City Primary School’s Employees of the Year.  \

But what really stands out to me about Amanda – because I’ve seen it now across so many of her efforts – is her commitment to collaboration and cooperative growth.

[Music swells and fades]

Amanda on collaboration in education

Amanda: So, I feel like part of being in education is you’re not going to educate unless you have kids who want to be at school or at least somewhat invested, and the only way to get them invested is to make that connection somehow. So that cooperative growth piece comes in, in my opinion, when you have to go outside of the 7 to 3 school day and outside of what you’re doing in the classroom every day and really trying to build that connection not only with them but with the parent and try to learn about them as a family, as a student. What kind of sports do they play? That type of thing. And give those opportunities for parents to embrace and become part of the learning team and really act as partners more than just: “I’m a parent. This is my role.” “I’m an educator. This is my role.” It’s kind of like they have to be blended if that makes sense.

Autumn (narration): She hosts after-school events for students and parents. She co-teaches and coordinates instructional and tech support for teachers.

During the pandemic, Amanda introduced “STEM Lit Kits from Home” funded by a Bright Ideas Grant to transform a particularly stressful time for parents and students into a fun team effort among co-learners.

Amanda on the STEM Lit Kits

Amanda: The STEM Lit Kits, I thought gave a great opportunity or great way to where we could show part of what we do at school. And there’s that literacy component, there’s that STEM, that engineering, that math component, but in a fun way and to where they could be checked out. Any student could do it. It could be checked out at school, sent home. Kids can do it as a family, as a mom and dad.

It really gave not only that time for the kids and parents to do something like a bonding experience, but also for them to become part of that educational piece that helps them see this is what they’re doing in school. They’re some of the things that they’re doing at school, and this is how we can kind of improve and help them.

To see all the pictures come in of the kids engaging, the parents engaging. Oftentimes, just as a society, we associate like moms with education. We just do and to see those dads becoming a part of it. And I know that’s stereotypical, but you see those dads becoming a part of it and building bridges or creating things. It was just a cool thing that I think that the whole family can kind of wrap their head around.

And then kids that are like two or three maybe not be school aged yet, but get to see things and be part of that too, was a neat way just to bring it all around to where everybody’s involved and learning and growing and having fun.

We gave a feedback opportunity to go back and say, you know what did you like? What did you not like? How can we improve it? So kind of gave them that authority to be able to contribute in the future planning of things as well. You know what I mean? Because we hope we’re doing things the right way, but we can always make changes.

[Music swells and fades]

Autumn (Narration): This summer, Amanda brought together businesses, organizations, teachers, students, and parents to launch the whimsically-painted, bean bag-boasting bookmobile.

That makes the Title Wave more than a bus filled with books in my book – it’s a symbol of a community coming together to support its youngest learners and to bridge glaring educational gaps, which even the most epic communities have.

So how did Amanda come up with the idea for giving an old schoolbus a new life?

She noticed that during the long summers, students of all ages lost ground in their reading skills, especially those kids whose parents were working during the day, who had no vehicle, or who otherwise didn’t have access to library resources and reading materials during the summer

The Summer Slide

Amanda: It was one of those things that because I was in the classroom for 15 years before I would see firsthand those kids that left a grade before at a certain level and then come back, and when we tested at the beginning of the school year, you’re like, “Wait a minute, they were here and now they’re here?” And so being that I had that experience in a classroom, when I got to the library, I said, “Well, what can I do to, like, be a part of that?”.

Autumn (narration): Amanda saw a problem in her community, and she started brainstorming ways to address it. You won’t be a bit surprised to learn that inspiration struck while she was mixing and mingling with other lifelong learners while attending national professional conferences.

Title Wave Background

Amanda: I was going to the National Librarian Conference in Utah. It was huge, like bookmobile bus. But I mean, it was like they got this huge grant, like $80,000. And I was like, I can’t. There’s no way I can’t do that, you know? So I kind of got to where I wasn’t sure where to go with it. And then I went to North Carolina School Library Media Association has an annual conference, and there’s was in October this past year. And they had a lady there who was presenting and she talked about how she created this bookmobile, and she did it for $5,000. And we got to see it. It was like, oh my gosh, I can do this. So I left. So I left there thinking, okay, this is my sign. Like, this is where this is. I can do this now.

Autumn (narration): At that conference, surrounded by other professionals engaged with making a real difference in education, Amanda saw a model for how she could support young learners in her own community. But she knew she couldn’t make her bookmobile dream a reality alone.

Amanda makes contacts

Amanda: So from there, I just kind of started making contacts and started kind of figuring out where to start and how to start. And kind of just took off from that point.  

Autumn (narration): Amanda reached out to local business owners, teachers, students – even members of her local workout group Females in Action – to help grow support for her project, and they didn’t let her down.

From local businesses like Heritage Cabinet Company and On the Move Physical Therapy to local non-profits like the Arts Council of Carteret County, the Crystal Coast Quilters’ Guild, and Carteret Writers, the community response was a resounding, “How can we help?”

Amanda on community support

Amanda: It’s a great example of what – when people come together – what can happen, you know. Between the number of businesses that have contributed. That’s just a start: Mary Cheatham King, Chick Fil A, Robbie Oakes Mortgage, Davis Dentistry. There’s a number that contributed financially, so there’s that.

And then on top of that…you have people like the town of Beaufort who have reached out, “Can you come to Art in the Park?” and “Can you come to this?” Or the curbside market in Morehead City who’s like, “I would love for you to come out to that.”

So that’s that community growing thing where people are literally saying, “This is what I’m trying to achieve. This is where we’re at. Would you have any suggestions?”

And then obviously the collaboration with the kids as far as a helping with the creation of the project, them spreading the word. I would go into a neighborhood and say, “Hey! Are there any other kids who live here? Can you get them?”  Because some of them, they might not know where we are, you know?

[Music swells and fades]

Autumn (narration): Let’s talk about the kids for a minute because there’s one aspect of this project that particularly thrills me as an educator. Amanda didn’t rely 100% on the adults of Carteret County to accomplish her vision; she created an opportunity for young learners to take on leadership roles, too.

Students in Michael Litaker’s construction class at West Carteret High School designed the new bus layout, adding flooring and shelves for books. Under the direction of art instructor Amber Swanger, West Carteret’s National Honor Society art students designed and painted the aquatic graphics throughout the donated school bus. Amanda ran into one of those students while driving the bus this summer.

Amanda on student involvement

Autumn: You were telling me about a young lady who worked on it from the carpentry side. Tell me about her response when she saw the finished product.

Amanda: So we were at a Newport stop about halfway through the summer, and she got on the bus. I did not know who she was when she got on. She was high school age, and she had a younger sibling, cousin, something. So she comes on, they look, they do their thing. They’re getting ready to get off, and she said, “I just love what you’ve done with this.” She said, “I actually painted that bookcase.” And I was like, “Wait a minute, what?”  Because I’d seen a lot of the National Art Honor Society, so I knew a lot of them, but I did not recognize this young lady. She was like, “Yeah, I was in the carpentry class.” I said, “Oh, what’s your name?” She told me her name. She said, “It’s just really cool to be able – because I saw it in pieces, right? So it’s really amazing to see kind of how this came together as a school project. And I’m just excited to be a part of it.”

Autumn: I love that. I love that. I mean, that is nice that they get to see. And that was one of the question. So tell me how that experience, for those kids taking on leadership roles in this project, you kind of allowed them to be entrepreneurs in a way, how that helped them to grow as learners?

Amanda: I mean, I hope it was a couple of different ways. I hope that they learned how, from a business standpoint, even though earlier I said I’m not very business minded, I hope from a business standpoint they learned how to interact with a client. So essentially, I was kind of a client, and I said, “This is what I’m thinking, but I’m not an art kid. I’m not a carpenter. This is what I’m thinking. What can you do?”

I hope that they learn how to, as far as response, back and forth: how to time a response? how to communicate why I like this, but I like this. And how do do that responsibly and effectively and professionally, but also how to, on the labor side of things, how to be responsible when it comes to that. We’re on a deadline. We wanted it done by this day, and so I could not build the shelves and build the bench and paint the entire thing on the outside. So I was relying on them to come through in a timely manner. And that’s hard for high school. And so the fact that.

Autumn: It’s hard for a lot of adults.

Amanda: Yes. So the fact that some of them are able to come out on weekends or stay after school. There was a girl who was on my daughter’s soccer team who I did not know was on the carpentry class. We went to my daughter’s end of year soccer banquet or whatever, and she was there and said, “Miss Amanda, I love the bus. And I was like, “Wait, wait, wait, what do you know about it?” And she was starting to talk about it. And I said, “I didn’t know you were in that class!”

And so to be able to see them be able to see that final product, see kind of what came out of it was special. I mean, it was special to be able to see them kind of really understand and see what it how it turns out. I hope that they learned that things can happen like that.

That’s what my kids tell me. You know, they say we do these things because we see you figure out your way through this. So hopefully other kids see that, too, you know, And if they have an idea realize they can work through that.

Autumn (narration): Amanda and her helpers met their deadlines, and the Title Wave launched this past June at a community celebration that involved food trucks and crafts, and of course, a tour of the converted bus.

Her quirky bookmobile immediately stirred excitement at outposts across this expansive county, from Harlowe Creek to Harker’s Island. On her first limited run, Amanda was greeted by 35 kids. On her last run, 188.

While many of her bookmobile clients are elementary school kids, the bus serves the whole community. Local middle school students and even a few high schoolers dropped by to pick up books, too.

Amanda on Title Wave impact

Amanda: I work at a primary school, so my primary concern is those K-3s. But at the same time, I have two high schoolers. Then I have friends who teach at middle school, right? And so, you know, that doesn’t mean that you don’t want the best for them, too. So it’s not just about my kids, but about everybody, which is why we went down East, which is why we went to Bogue Sound.

When I pull into an area and there are people out there waiting and they cheer when I come in.

Autumn: Oh my gosh.

Amanda: Like I get teary eyed every time. It’s my favorite. It’s like, I don’t have any candy, I don’t have any ice cream.

They were literally like jumping up and down, cheering. That was pretty awesome. I just see them excited about being there.

While I don’t think it’s impacting every single kid we see, hopefully it’s impacting some of them, possibly the majority, and bringing them a step closer to learning to love learning, reading, whatever.

Autumn (narration): Amanda is being modest. Not only is her project inspiring kids to read during the summer, it’s inspiring them to think about how they can support other readers.

The little girl who brought books

Autumn: Tell me about the young lady who brought books back, who was a user of the Title Wave bookmobile.

Amanda: We have a student who was a third grader at our school last year. She’s going to fourth grade this year. And so I saw her two or three times this year. We went to a daycare, and she was there. Then we saw her another time or two. The younger brother, he would come on as well. And sometimes if she wasn’t there, we would pick out books for her, that type of thing.

So yesterday on our final route, they came. Mom is an educator in the county, too, but she came, and the girl had this box full of 10, 15 books.

She went to her shelf, and she wanted to bring she wanted to bring you all these. I don’t know what kind of condition they’re in, but she wanted to. The little girl was like, “Ms. McCall, they’re going to love these.” And they were! They were graphic novels, which I always run out of because the kids love them. Just super excited to be not only a receiver of books…

But then to also be able to provide books that like literally the last stop we were out of Baby-Sitters Club, let’s say, and she would be bringing me those. Oh my gosh, they’ve been wanting these, you know?

So for her to feel like she’s contributing to others and being able to kind of give that back was kind of a neat full circle moment and got me thinking about like what a cool opportunity classes could embark on in this school year if they want to do a community service-type project, you know, but without spending any money.

I mean, it’s a cool way for them to realize, like invest in your community without and see how that feels without having to pay for anything. You know what I mean?

Autumn: Like, well, it’s like she sees the value and she wants to participate.

Amanda: Yes, and was okay to do it, you know, because not all kids are. And I get it with books or certain books that I might, you know, like, this is mine. I’ll keep it.

So for her to just so willingly be able to give those and then it was just neat because I didn’t expect it, and it was a sweet thing to see, especially on that last route and my last stop on the last route. And for her to see come up with that big box. It just made my day.

Autumn (narration): And just to bring it back around to mutual fruitfulness and cooperative growth, during its inaugural season, Amanda’s Title Wave bookmobile was able to also lend support to important local youth organizations.

Amanda on collaborating with local youth organizations

Amanda: That was one of the things we learned, another one of those growth opportunities. We were like, okay, yes, I can go to neighborhoods, and I did. But there are also all these, a lot of times during the day, especially, kids are at Parks and Rec or Boys and Girls Club or wherever. And so we kind of got smart about realizing maybe I can hit this place. Like, Hey, can we come here? And everybody was super cooperative. Parks and Rec, Boys and Girls Club, My School Daycare, the Bridge Down East. And they were all very cooperative with letting us come. And I mean, it kind of was like, “We don’t have to pay you anything?” No, no, they just get to come in here, pick out books. So they were super nice in letting us kind of come in and bless them.

[Music swells and fades]

Autumn (narration): So let’s say you, like Amanda, see some unmet need in your community. Let’s say you’re someone who isn’t afraid of a challenge, someone who doesn’t mind learning new things if it means you can help someone else. What can you learn from Amanda’s experience?

Amanda offers advice on learning how to help

Amanda: I could have an idea, but I don’t know all the answers, you know? So figuring out not to be afraid to ask for help or suggestions from other people, and lots of people, not just kind of pigeonhole myself into one area or become too egotistical in thinking that I have all the answers because that that would be a detriment to the whole project.

Conclusion

Autumn (narration): We started this episode asking: How can a community of learners make progress together? The Title Wave bookmobile project is a powerful model. Because she’s actively engaged in her workspace, Amanda saw a gap and envisioned a bridge. She gathered wisdom from her wider professional circles and harnessed the strength of her local community to turn that vision into reality. By mobilizing leaders young and old, she not only achieved her goal but inspired countless others along the way.

And Amanda’s passion is not an anomaly in Carteret County. A broader commitment to mutual growth and community advancement is endemic. Staff and volunteers at organizations like the Bridge Down East and the Carteret County Literacy Council tirelessly work to offer resources to learners in the community. CCC’s Life Enrichment program offers opportunities for growth at every age and stage of life, and local organizations like the Arts Council of Carteret County, the Beaufort Historic Society, and Carteret Writers cultivate creative growth and preserve the county’s rich cultural heritage through arts and folk craft workshops.

All these initiatives demonstrate a shared ethos of the region: to thrive together, to learn together, and to grow together.

Also, visit Epic-Carter.com to read essays and articles by local writers that offer more insights into all the things that make Cartwright County epic. To learn more about Floyds 1921, including their ties to his incredible Escoffier program and to find links to all the organizations and programs mentioned in this episode.

[Music swells and fades]

Autumn (narration): In our next episode of EPIC Carteret, we consider how celebrating good times together brings a community closer. From taking a New Year’s dip in the Atlantic to ringing in the weekend at Tapping the Admiral in Beaufort, Carteret County knows how to celebrate life’s moments, both big and small.

How do these collective celebrations foster stronger community ties and welcome more people into the local fold? Join me in October as I chat with Emily Carter, the Beaufort writer renowned for her holiday celebrations. She’s also the person who introduced me to Amanda. Together, Emily and I will explore how shared festivities in Carteret County help to cultivate a community where every story finds its place.

Also, visit epic-carteret.com to read essays and articles by Emily and other local writers. You’ll find insights into all the things that make Carteret County epic, you’ll learn more about the Title Wave project, and you’ll find links to all the organizations and programs mentioned in this episode.

If you’d like to support the Title Wave, visit the Title Wave Book Mobile Google Site. There’s a link on the show notes page.

[Outro music swells]

Before we wrap up, I’d like to take a moment to extend my heartfelt thanks to those who made this episode possible:

  • Amanda: For bearing with my learner’s mistakes and for generously sharing her insights, experiences, and advice on cooperative growth in a community of learners.
  • And to everyone at Mezcalito who welcomed us for the interview.
  • Thank you, Jack, my EPIC sound engineer: who is my study buddy for life.
  • Listeners: Last but by no means least a big thank you to you epic listeners. Your support and eagerness to learn and grow with me make all of this worthwhile.

Stay tuned for more epic Carteret. And remember, if you’re curious to know what it takes to create an epic community, the answer? Maybe you.

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