Sorority helps illiterate adults

Tim Orendorff/Senior Photographer FUN FOR A GOOD CAUSE: Megan Durr, a sophomore in the Schools of Engineering and the president of Phi Eta Sigma, presents the winning trophy to Leah Maxwell and Nishant Verma, juniors in the Schools of Engineering, at the Sixth Annual Academic Super Bowl on Sunday.

By Yuri Victor
Staff Writer

Amid a room of cheering, Phi Eta Sigma hosted The Sixth Annual Academic Super Bowl.

The competition took place Sunday in Lilly Hall of Life Sciences. The goal was to raise money for adult illiteracy, said Megan Durr, president of Phi Eta Sigma and a sophomore in the Schools of Engineering.

"It went really well. We were able to raise 650 dollars to donate to the cause," said Durr.

All proceeds went to The Lafayette Adult Resource Academy, a local teaching center that helps to combat illiteracy by helping more than 1,000 adults each year.

Brenda Wilson, the in-take coordinator at the academy, said the academy helps people from all different backgrounds. They also assist individuals who wish to obtain jobs, do G.E.D. preparation and have a conversation group to improve speaking abilities.

The competition yielded 23 different teams from a wide array of fraternities and sororities, student organizations, clubs and more. The teams were quizzed in nine different categories including English literature, physics, movie trivia, sports, Purdue trivia, art and music and biology.

Magdalene Sikora, a sophomore in the School of Liberal Arts, said, "It is really great to see students take time out of their busy schedules and work for a good cause."

The Society of Women Engineers, led by Leah Maxwell and Nishant Verma, won the tournament. For their performance, the team members each received the grand prize, a $100 gift certificate to Follett's Book Store. The team will also receive an engraving on the Academic Super Bowl trophy with the names of the previous competition winners.

Maxwell, a junior in the Schools of Engineering, said she didn't expect to win but wanted to support the fight against illiteracy nonetheless.

"Lafayette Adult Resource Academy needs all the support they can get. So why not help them out and have fun while doing it?" said Verma, a junior in the Schools of Engineering.

To increase awareness of adult illiteracy JoAnn Vorst from the Lafayette Adult Resource Academy spoke at the event.

"It was a great speech," said Sikora. "She passed out a book of poetry that inmates had produced. It was amazing to see what extended education could do."

This competition is consistent with Phi Eta Sigma's goal of helping the community. Magdalene Sikora said, "We are a national honor society open to all freshman with a GPA above 3.5. We help the community with a tutoring program and help the elderly, among other things."

Verma said, "The competition was great. Everyone was energetic and had a good time."

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