ROCHELLE — The 10th Annual Rotary Reading Challenge earned $1,000 in new books for the Rochelle Township High School library-media center from the Rochelle Rotary Club. 

Forty-two reading teams of 209 students and 45 staff members at RTHS and Focus House exceeded the 275,000 page reading goal with a whopping 475,016.

Dozens of team and individual prizes were awarded during the three weeks of the challenge, with the top awards going to:

The Reading Rainbows (captain Tara Leininger, Katherine Bakken, Mauricio Fulgencio, Jasmine Rissman, Abby Wagner, Emma Wooten and Mrs. Bergeson) who won a stack of new books from the LMC and a pizza party from Arbor Management on Feb. 20 during sixth period because their reading stats had the greatest page increase from Week 1 to Week 3.

Individual Top Page Count winners will receive Barnes & Noble gift cards from Rochelle Rotary Club.

First place: Jasmine Hennessee

Second place: Gabriella Walker

Third place: Michael Story

“We are grateful to the Rochelle Rotary Club and Arbor Management for supporting reading at RTHS,” librarian Ann Marie Jinkins said.