Denise Pendleton, director of the Born to Read program, joined the Council staff in 1995 to coordinate the oral history initiative The Century Project. In 1996, she founded the Council’s Born to Read program to help Maine’s youngest children experience the power and pleasure of language used creatively and meaningfully, through books, storytelling, and conversation. Previous positions held at the Portland Public Library, Maine Arts, Little Brown Publishers, and as a teacher of writing and ESL reflect her love for books, writing, and the arts. Denise has degrees from Washington College and Washington University and is a published poet. Her enthusiasms include enjoying the great outdoors with her husband and two young children.