P. E. O. Sisterhood

P. E. O. SISTERHOOD - Women helping women reach for the stars.   P.E.O. was founded on January 21, 1869, by seven students at Iowa Wesleyan College in Mount Pleasant, Iowa.  This circle of kindred spirits – bonded by their enthusiasm for women's opportunities – eventually expanded to include women off campus, as well. Today, P.E.O. has grown from that tiny membership of seven to nearly a quarter of a million members in chapters throughout the U.S. and Canada, with headquarters in Des Moines, Iowa.

Friendship is the cornerstone of P.E.O. – it is the legacy left by our Founders and it thrives in our unique Sisterhood.  P.E.O. exists to be a source of encouragement and support for women to realize their potential in whatever worthwhile endeavor they choose.

True to the mission of promoting educational opportunities for women, education continues to be the primary philanthropy of the P.E.O. Sisterhood. In fact, the P.E.O. Sisterhood proudly sponsors no less than six international philanthropies, or projects, designed to assist women with their educational goals.

As a result, P.E.O. is clearly making a difference in the lives of women all over the world.  Almost 99,000 women have benefited from our organization's educational grants, loans, awards, special projects and stewardship of Cottey College.  To date, P.E.O. has awarded Educational Loan Fund dollars totaling more than $172 million, International Peace Scholarships are more than $34 million, Program for Continuing Education grants are more than $49 million, Scholar Awards are more than $21 million and P.E.O. STAR Scholarships are more than $5 million. In addition, 8,875 women have graduated from Cottey College.

Grant, loan, and award recipients – as well as Cottey College students – need not be members of P.E.O. With the exception of international students who receive International Peace Scholarships, each recipient is sponsored by a P.E.O. chapter. This allows the chapter members to be a meaningful part of "their" student's life.

For much of its history, the meaning of "P.E.O." in the organization's name was a closely guarded secret, never made public.  In 2005, the Sisterhood unveiled a new logo and an “It’s OK to Talk About P.E.O.” campaign, seeking to raise the public profile of the organization while maintaining its traditions of secrecy.   Before then, the organization's avoidance of publicity, and the secrecy of their name, caused it to be considered it a "secret society'.

In 2008, the Sisterhood revised its website to indicate that "P.E.O." now publicly stands for "Philanthropic Educational Organization".  However, the Sisterhood acknowledges that "P.E.O." originally had a different meaning that continues to be "reserved for members only", and so the public meaning is not the only one.