More than a Month Celebration
This month’s chapter spotlight donated $43,595.80 to the Foundation for East Baton Rouge Parish Public School System, providing classroom resources for teachers and increasing hands-on, one-on-one learning time with students.
For members of Louisiana Beta, Read > Lead > Achieve® is more than a month celebration, it’s a way for chapter members to grow, discover new friendships and identify what it means to serve others within our sisterhood. Vice President Community Relations Macari Palliser shares how her chapter is committed to living the value of Philanthropic Service to Others in the classrooms and communities they serve.
What does Read > Lead > Achieve mean to Louisiana Beta?
Read > Lead > Achieve means more to Louisiana Beta than simply reading to students and passing out books. It means connecting through sisterhood and community while inspiring one another to live out the value of Philanthropic Service to Others. Through Champions are Readers® (CAR), our members not only build relationships with each other, but they also have the opportunity to build relationships with the students who have learned our names and are eager for us to visit their classrooms each week of the program.
How does your chapter serve the local community?
While our fundraising efforts for literacy initiatives are something we are extremely proud of, we are also fortunate to provide hands-on community service. We plan and facilitate an award-winning, inter-council service event in collaboration with the Phi Mu Chapter at Louisiana State University. This event allows us to collect books to donate to a local hospital. It’s incredibly rewarding to see the children’s faces light up when given a new book, and it’s something we plan to continue doing in the future.
Tell us about the organization Louisiana Beta nominated for a Local Impact Grant.
Louisiana Beta supports Melrose Elementary through the Foundation for East Baton Rouge Parish Public School System. We have been fortunate to nominate them for a Local Impact Grant from Pi Beta Phi Foundation for the last several years. For a school that has undergone mergers, closure and other unforeseen changes in the last three years due to budget and funding constraints, it’s such a blessing to see the renewed excitement from the teachers and administrative team. Through our fundraising efforts and the 25% matching grant from Pi Beta Phi Foundation, teachers have more resources in the classroom and there’s more opportunity for hands-on, one-one-one learning for the students. Seeing the positive changes at the school, from its physical space to the renewed boost in morale, is one of the many reasons our chapter is so grateful to work with Melrose Elementary.
How else does your chapter support literacy year-round?
We have been involved in an after-school educational program with Westdale Heights Academic Magnet School since 2025, which we kicked off with a donation of a Little Free Library® for the school’s outdoor reading garden. It’s amazing to see the students so eager to read the books on the shelves. Since we’ve started this partnership, we have noticed an increase in member involvement as well since it offers a different time for sisters to volunteer than our CAR program. With our members’ busy schedules, work and campus involvement, we love having multiple opportunities for Louisiana Beta to give back to the community throughout the year.