Zeta Tau Omega and Sigma Tau Delta collaborated to host a book sale Monday, March 23 in the Kanter Student Center Atrium and Tuesday, March 24 in the Conn Library.
Zeta Tau Omega is a general sorority on campus, and Sigma Tau Delta is an English honors society. The book sale takes place every semester, and it first began in the spring of 2023. At first, the book sale was put on by Zeta Tau Omega alone. Zeta Tau Omega and Sigma Tau Delta member Morgan Kruger was the one who helped bring the collaboration to life.
“I wanted to buy books,” Kruger said. “We were sitting at one of the [Sigma Tau Delta] meetings, and we were talking about different fundraising ideas. And I was like, this is a big book loving club. Why don’t we just… [include Sigma Tau Delta] if they need fundraising, and it would help us.”
Since then, the organizations have provided cheap books for casual and academic reading. Zeta Tau Omega members can buy books, Sigma Tau Delta members can spread literature to campus, and each group can raise money.
“Sigma Delta are book lovers, and we were happy to help out by donating some of our overflow stash,” Sigma Tau Delta president Karley Schieffer said. “We’ve worked and called for donations with the English department, and a lot of teachers have donated books. So, [Zeta] started it off and graciously let us hop on the bandwagon, and we help out with a few more workers and help supply some of the books for the sale.”
A glance at their table presented a treat for the avid reader’s eyes. From Shakespeare to Dr. Suess, there was a book for almost every genre. Many of the books were priced at around $5. There were even some books for younger children, perfect for any upcoming elementary teacher, and some nonfiction books for science fans.
The organizations’ leaders said the book sale was a great way to make literature more accessible for students and raise money for two excellent institutions on campus.
“I think there is a competition mindset between groups to get people’s attention,” Schieffer said. “But really, you can be involved in lots of groups, and they can have a lot of good interactions. [The book sale] shows that we can work together, even though we are separate groups.”
