A new sustainability and literacy movement took root on campus during the week of May 8, as the student council members successfully launched their inaugural Book Share event. The initiative, designed to help incoming students get a free book for their school year.
The event was coordinated by sophomore student council member Heidi Brew, who took on the lead leadership role. Brew conceived the idea after reflecting on her own household habits regarding previous class assignments.
“I was thinking, well, if I’m not using mine, then maybe I should donate them and reuse them,” Brew said, noting that the thought first occurred to her when asking her sister for a book previously used in English class.
After brainstorming with fellow student council members, Brew and sophomore Madelyn Zhang, along with the rest of the StuCo team took action by distributing collection boxes to English teachers across campus. The system allowed instructors to collect previously read books to pass along to other students. The event was promoted through a combination of social media campaigns, school flyers and viral word-of-mouth.
The book share promotion found a powerful ally in English department chair and English 2 Honors teacher Jeff Montgomery. Montgomery took charge of spreading the word to the rest of the English faculty, providing clear instructions on how and where to begin collecting donations.
“I sent it out to all of our teachers, I sent them a flyer that she created, and then it rolled from there,” Montgomery said.
The peer-to-peer marketing strategy paid off rapidly. Over seven different classes actively participated in bringing in books, creating a noticeable boost to the drive efforts.
“Mr. Montgomery’s class has definitely participated the most,” Brew noted, highlighting the massive impact of the faculty-backed word-of-mouth push. Their books have contributed to the 75 books raised so far. Organizers hope the momentum from this week’s event will pave the way for permanent sustainability and reading initiatives on campus.
