Panhellenic Raises Record-Breaking Number of Children's Books for Elementary Schools in Need

Valentina Hall

Katherine Ford, Panhellenic vice president of scholarship and dducational programming, led the month-long initiative and organized a record-breaking children's book drive for the Panhellenic Council.

The Arkansas Panhellenic Council joined the National Panhellenic Conference sororities and other college Panhellenics to celebrate Month of the Scholar during February. Month of the Scholar honors the core value of scholarship that exists in every NPC member organization and College Panhellenic.

Throughout the month of February, our Panhellenic Council celebrated this month with the theme of "Keep Going, Keep Growing." The month began with a social media campaign, where each chapter shared how their involvement within Panhellenic helped them grow academically, personally and socially. This social media campaign was shared through videos, photos and banners hung from every house.

From there, chapters collaborated and visited several local daycare centers in Northwest Arkansas. While there, they were able to read and interact with classrooms and share the importance of literacy. Panhellenic went on to celebrate Black History Month through an educational program with Chancellor Charles Robinson. There they learned about the historical context and creation of such an important month and the way it has evolved over the years. The month was concluded with an honors banquet that acknowledged four women from each sorority and a professor. These women were selected specifically based on their academic achievements and involvement.

Katherine Ford, Panhellenic vice president of scholarship and educational programming, led this month of impactful initiatives and outreach. Ford said, "It was truly amazing to highlight something that our chapters value year-round, such as the importance of scholarship. Academic success and community engagement is something we pride ourselves on and look forward to furthering these efforts on both the campus and within the local community. Of all the impactful things we did throughout the month, it was the record-breaking book drive that I'm most proud of."

Collectively chapters raised a record-breaking 12,298 children's books for various elementary schools within Arkansas. Books will be distributed to several schools through the month of March.

Panhellenic President Sydney Kincaid said, "I am so proud of our Panhellenic Council and outstanding participation in this book drive. With February being Scholarship Month, our goal was to not only celebrate academic achievements, but also give back to our community in areas that are in need. Our book drive will have a far reach within our community, and we are thrilled to have the opportunity to give back in this way."