Former Iowa State basketball stand-outs Fred Hoiberg and Marcus Fizer are headlining a statewide campaign to boost literacy. First Lady Christie Vilsack recruited the two Chicago Bulls players to participate in her “Iowa Stories 2000” program. The two athletes will be in Des Moines next month to take pictures for a poster.Fizer and Hoiberg will also appear at two events in Iowa, designed to tout reading. In addition, the First Lady’s “Iowa Stories” program has expanded. Thirty-one new communities have signed up to do literacy projects.The 31 new communities are Anita, Carlisle, Cedar Rapids, Centerville, Clarinda, Clive, Decorah, Denison, Dubuque, Elgin, Fort Dodge, Greene, Grundy Center, Iowa City/Coralville/North Liberty, Lake City, Madrid, Manchester, Mondamin, Monroe, Mt. Pleasant, Oelwein, Sioux Center, Sioux City, Slater, Van Horne, Villisca, Vinton, Waverly and West Branch.Sixty librarians from those 31 communities are in Des Moines today for training. Seven communities started their literacy projects last year. Those cities are Algona, Ames, Bayard, Belle Plaine, Cherokee, Independence and Oskaloosa.
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