The fundraising drive held leading up to the inauguration of Book as Elon's ninth president in October 2018 will fund the purchase of 1,000 books for the local school system.
President Connie Ledoux Book on Friday presented a copy of "The Giving Tree" by Shel Silverstein to students at Elon Elementary, just one of the many new books for Alamance Burlington School System made possible by last year's fundraising drive held in honor of her inauguration.
After reading the classic children's book to the students of Tia Wilson's second-grade class, Book also presented a check for $10,000 to ABSS Superintendent Bruce Benson. The donation represented the generosity of nearly 1,000 donors who contributed to the Honor President Book Drive that led up to Book's installation as Elon's ninth president.
"I'm very proud of the Elon community for raising $10,000 to make more books available to Alamance Burlington School System," Book said.
Talking to the students as she made her way through "The Giving Tree," Book explained the importance of reading, noting that "If you can read, you can learn anything."
Book explained to the students that as a child, she spent hours and hours in the local library, seeking out books about "people who do exciting things," such as Amelia Earhart.
"Reading is magical," she said.
The drive was just one of the many partnerships between the university and local schools. Elon students in the School of Education work with local students as part of their coursework and student teaching assignments, and programs such as the Elon Academy and The Village Project provide resources to help local students succeed in K-12 as well as in higher education.