In the thick of midterm season, throwing out books is not usually on a Penn student’s to-do list. However, that is precisely what organizers at Education by Inclusion encouraged for their week-long book drive.
Since Monday, Philadelphia-based nonprofit Education by Inclusion, in partnership with community service fraternity Alpha Phi Omega, has been hosting a campus-wide book drive to raise funds for a Breakthrough of Greater Philadelphia scholarship.
According to College junior Nitya Kanuri, head of university relationships for Education by Inclusion, Breakthrough Philadelphia is a six-year academic program that helps underprivileged middle-school students from the Philadelphia region attain post-secondary education. Education by Inclusion’s goal, Kanuri said, is to “bridge the gap between high school and college” by funding an eligible Breakthrough high-school senior’s Penn education.
Education by Inclusion will sell all the collected books, and 10 percent of the proceeds will go toward funding the scholarship.
Many students had not heard of the event.
College junior Tyler Woods, who claimed that he would “absolutely” donate his unwanted books, said that he was not aware of the book drive that has been going on.
Organizers acknowledged that the timing of the drive has not been ideal for results.
“This is our tester drive,” explained Myra Siddiqui, a College junior and Alpha Phi Omega’s vice president of service. She noted that it is an opportunity for the organizers to work out “kinks” such as timing and advertising.
Kanuri said that in addition to the boxes currently set up in the Quadrangle and the dining halls, the next book drive — most likely to be hosted at the end of December or May — will have more drop-off locations, more publicity and more partners.
Education by Inclusion is already collaborating with the Penn Library system.
“When we heard that the money would go to a scholarship fund, we bought into it immediately,” said Jon Shaw, head of research, training and quality management in the University of Pennsylvania Libraries.
This year, the Library promised Education by Inclusion 1,000 books, and it will “funnel all the [proceeds] back into the city and Penn,” Shaw confirmed.
Over the next few years, Kanuri anticipates expansion into other institutions such as Columbia, Drexel, Temple and Georgetown Universities with the help of established organizations such as Big Brothers Big Sisters.
