BLACK HISTORY MONTH BOOK DONATION FEATURES BLACK AUTHORS 
STAFF AND STUDENTS RAISE FUNDS FOR RILEY HOSPITAL FOR CHILDREN 

The Sickle Cell Story Club at Riley Hospital for Children received a $1,250 donation from the students at Victory College Prep (VCP) during a brief informal presentation at the hospital on Friday, February 25. 

The donated amount could purchase as many as 225 new books for the Story Club, which is enough to sustain the program for up to four months, according to its founder, Riley psychologist Dr. Julia LaMotte. 

The funds were raised by VCP Kindergarten thru Grade 12 students as a part of the school’s month-long Black History Month activities, which included an opportunity to donate a dollar each week in February to dress out of uniform and wear a Black History Month color. 

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“Being able to give back to the community means so much, and it’s an important part of what we do every day at Victory College Prep,” said Brande Lewis, the VCP Family Coordinator who help lead the school’s Black History Month activities. “With Black History Month specifically, being able to give the works of black authors to such a beautiful cause is an important lesson of how we can apply what we are talking about in our classrooms.”

Lewis says the VCP community was committed to providing books by black authors with black and brown characters so that Riley Hospital’s sickle cell patients can see themselves on the pages and in the stories.  

Lewis believes that representation encourages a deeper connection with the material, which is important because Dr. LaMotte’s research has found that higher literacy proficiency drives better health outcomes for young patients. 

Some of the titles purchased with the VCP donation include Change Sings, The 1619 Projects: Born on the Water, and Bud Not Buddy.