TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - A University of Alabama student honors organization is fighting illiteracy with The Great Alabama Reading Race March 29 at 9 a.m., beginning outside the Gorgas Library on the UA campus. Proceeds generated from the 5K race will be used to purchase summer reading books for students at Tuscaloosa’s Westlawn Middle School.

The UA chapter of The National Society of Collegiate Scholars is joining with other NSCS chapters nationwide for the common goal of improving literacy throughout the United States with a project titled Ready, Set, Read! Each NSCS chapter selected a literacy cause pertinent to the needs of its local community.

There is a $10 per person entry fee for the 5K race, as well as an $8 per person rate for groups of 10 or more people. Participants will be given t-shirts, and door prizes will be awarded.

Registration begins at 8 a.m. on the day of the race, and pre-registration is available at tables in the UA Ferguson Center from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. today through March 28.

Co-sponsors of the race include Mercedes Benz, Sam’s Club, Wal-Mart, University Printing, Cold Stone Creamery, and Kervin and Son Trucking.