Difference between revisions of "Epsilon Xi"

Latest revision as of 17:18, 20 December 2021

Epsilon Xi
EΞ
Founded	November 16, 1974 (1974-11-16) (49 years ago)
College	California State University, Northridge
Location	Northridge, CA
Homepage	Epsilon Xi Homepage
Media related to Epsilon Xi Chapter

California State University at Northridge, established 1958 in Northridge, California

Epsilon Xi founded November 16, 1974

Charter Members: Carmella Ann Barnese, Cindy Gay Berkus, Theresa Ellen Fearing, Joanne Gale Fleischer, Susan Janet Hill, Ellen Sue Hirsch, Katherine Joan Hoffer, Roseanne Frances Horn, Karen Beth Kuhn, Jerrilyn Alaine Moyer, Kristie Anne Pollock, Kathryn Elizabeth Pritchard, Janet Lynn Roberson, Caron Lynn Rodman, Debra Jean Rubin, Nancy Lea Simon, Bonnie Lue Snoeck, Cindy Lynn Tanaka, Alice Louse Vanderhoef, Linda Ellen Zuckerman.

1,358 initiates (as of June 2018)

The Early Years (Excerpted from The History of Kappa Kappa Gamma Fraternity: 1870-1976)[edit]

During the weekend of November 15, 16, and 17, 1974, Epsilon Xi Chapter came to the San Fernando Valley. Thirty-one actives and 37 alumnae were initiated at the Gamma Xi house at the University of California at Los Angeles. Sixteen pledges exchanged the tiny golden owls that had pledged them to the colony for the blue Sigma within the Delta. Epsilon Xi is the newly installed Kappa Kappa Gamma chapter on the growing campus of the California State University at Northridge, California.

During the eight months following the colonization, members worked with their chapter adviser, Elinor Johnson Groom, Delta- Indiana, and Elizabeth Hawkins Pickett, Delta Tau- Southern California, the Kappa province director of chapters, struggling to assimilate the traditions and policies of their new group. During the hot summer evenings with the temperature at the house hovering in the mid 90s, they agonized learning Kappa songs for rushing and even included one created by Roseanne Horn, president, and Karen Kuhn, membership chairman.

In mid-September the Northridge campus of 24,000 students was deluged by well over twice the number of rushees than ever before. Taking time only for a quick gulp and doubling the punch recipe, the colony plunged into rush, emerging a week later with 15 marvelous pledges including its first Kappa legacy.

Under the capable leadership of the installation marshal, Janey Binda Walker, Gamma Zeta- Arizona, the San Fernando Valley Alumnae Association, and Denise Donmoyer Huddle, Delta Gamma- Michigan State, president of the Valley Alumnae Association, the vents of the installation, the banquet at the Sportsmen's Lodge, and the reception at the University Faculty Center flowed smoothly.

Lending great dignity and solemnity to the occasion were the installing officers, Marian Schroeder Graham, Beta Phi- Montana State, fraternity president; Kay Smith Larson, Beta Pi- University of Washington, director of field representatives; Betsy Molsberry Prior, Beta Nu- Ohio State, director of alumnae; and Elizabeth Hawkins Pickett, Delta Tau- University of Southern California, province director of chapters. The occasion was perhaps all the more meaningful since Marian Graham had been a long-time resident of the Valley and a member of the San Fernando Valley Alumnae Association. She reminisced that about 14 years ago a Kappa alumna, whose daughter had just pledged the local Alpha Omega sorority at Northridge, contacted her to suggest that Kappa might be interested in colonizing; but, Marian explained, Kappa was not expanding in California at that time...maybe later.

One of the most touching moments of the weekend came as Betsy Prior presented Roseanne Horn, Epsilon Xi president, with a particularly unique old president's key which had been salvaged several years ago from a Los Angeles antique shop by an alert Valley alumna. Carefully restored by Betsy's husband, James C. Prior, the lovely old turquoise and seed pearl key seemed to form a tangible link between Kappa's great tradition and her youngest chapter.

As momentous an occasion as was the initiation and installation, there was no time to relax, for the following weekend was Homecoming, and Roseanne Horn was Homecoming Chairman. At the end of the week the Kappas claimed not only first prize for their Homecoming float built with the engineering department, but Homecoming Queen Maureen Moran as well.

As this is written, Epsilon Xi chapter has just concluded its first election of officers. It seems fitting that in an area that once was exclusively orange groves and horse ranches now stands a community of 1,200,000 residents, and within this growing community grows the newest of the Kappa blue flower gardens.

Highlights of the 1980's[edit]

Epsilon Xi was very active on campus and community philanthropies as well as campus social events. Often receiving campus awards for those as well as academic awards. Implemented a committee system that improved the efficiency and participation of the chapter. In 1988 we had the largest pledge class on campus with 46 new members. Also welcomed Travel Consultant, Patsy Levang and also Chapter Consultant, Lisa Krusa. Started the first annual Volleyball Tournament Fundraiser and raised $1,000 for charity. Entered the computer world of finance making the Treasurer’s job easier and more efficient.

Highlights of the 1990's[edit]

Epsilon Xi continued to emphasize scholarship and helping raise awareness of faculty of the Greek’s determination to emphasize scholarship. Received the Most Improved Scholarship Award at Province Convention. Jan. 17, 1994 was the Northridge earthquake effecting girls on campus and the community. Damage to our house was quickly repaired. The saying “making lemonade from lemons” was true as all Greeks on campus have come together to improve the community with Operation Sparkle to help those who had damage from the earthquake. And the Greek system has never been stronger. Philanthropy, Favorite Faculty desserts and the Greek system all worked together to increase recruitment numbers and it benefited all of the chapters with improved numbers. In 1997 we won the Chapter of Excellence Award at the PM which we hosted. We had the highest GPA among Greeks on campus and won the Scholarship Programming Award from the Order of Omega. WE continued to support campus and community philanthropies. In 1998 at the KKG Convention in Scottsdale, we won the Scholarship Award and Honorable Mention in Membership and Greatest Improvement. The six-week New Member Program was adopted for all chapters at this Convention. In 1999 we won the Alphonise Howard Award and we celebrated the Twenty-fifth anniversary of the chapter at Founders Day.

Highlights of 2000's[edit]

Epsilon Xi has had an exciting and accomplished year. Spring brought us our annual golf tournament, Kappa Klassic, where we raised funds for Guide Dogs of America. We also held our annual Kookie Kaper, an event where we invite other fraternities and sororities to join us at the Kappa house for an evening full of sweets and inter-Greek relations. Other spring semester events included sisterhood events, Sapphire Ball, and Favorite Faculty, where we honored some of our favorite professors as well as our accomplished sisters. Our chapter was also proud to earn number one in grades for another semester in a row. This past year was filled with trials and tribulations for our chapter however we are strong and have proven to be one of the best sororities on campus despite our troubles. We started off Spring semester by having recruitment, our first one since 2002. We received 7 wonderful women who were all initiated in April. March was a tragic month where we dealt with the passing of our past president, Corinne McClane. We held a memorial for her on campus and set up a scholarship foundation immediately after. We set up a scholarship in her memory. Despite our loss, we were able to have one of the most successful Kappa Klassics in recent history, raising just under 6,000 dollars for the National Meningitis foundation.

Highlights of 2011[edit]

In the year 2011 the Epsilon Xi chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma was able to continue in growth and mark its 37th year since being founded. The chapter held a myriad of successful philanthropy events in the spring including, Kappa Kookie Gathering, Skate and Donate & Reading is Key. Kappa Kookie Gathering was put on by the Public Relations Officer and was enjoyed by members of various Fraternities and Sororities. The event took place at the Kappa house and in substitution for selling tickets, guests were to bring children s books that we could donate to schools and libraries in need.

Following Kappa Kookie Gathering, the philanthropy chair put on our annual Skate and Donate, where we rose awareness for drunk driving and gave to the Corrine McClain Scholarship in honor of a sister who was killed in a drunk driving accident. Shortly after, the chapter headed to the Boys and Girls Club of Simi Valley for our Reading is Key philanthropy event, where we read books and did arts and crafts with the children. These events not only gave us the opportunity to give back, but furthered our Greek relations with other houses as well.

Fall semester started early with our recruitment retreat held in August, where we rehearsed all of the essentials that we would need in order to be prepared for our big recruitment weekend. All of the hard work that was put into planning the retreat, yielded to be worthwhile when the chapter received a 100% retention rate on day one of rush. At the end of new member period, the chapter was proud to initiate 39 members as new sisters. This year was filled with academic excellence with the house receiving second in grades and inducting over ten sisters to a Greek honor society. We sent 7 girls to province, where we won two awards (one of which is alumni relations or alumni appreciation) and sent one of our active members to leadership academy. The house underwent a remodel, which included an expansion of the chapter room and a backyard makeover where the swimming pool was filled after many years of not being used.

Campus: With the continuously unpredictable economy, budget cuts have greatly affected CSUN students. Classes were difficult to obtain and as a result many students had to look to local community colleges in order to maintain full time student status. In January, the campus and community was able to expand its cultural experience when the Valley Performing Arts Center opened. At the end of the fall, semester panhellenic passed a motion to start the expansion process in hopes of bringing on another house in the upcoming years.

Chapter: During 2011, our chapter continued to grow and expand with our new chapter room being extended to accommodate our rising amount of members. Other changes to the house also included filling the swimming pool and making the backyard beautiful by putting in grass and planting flowers. This would not have been possible without the help from family and friends who attended our Extreme Makeover Kappa Edition work day on one of the hottest days of summer and the generosity of all those who donated. Other changes also included installing a security system with cameras to ensure that the house and it's members remain safe at all times.

At the start of 2011 the house came to the realization that we may be faced with the challenge of being at risk to fall below house total once all seniors went alumni status at the end of the semester. With not enough time to participate in official spring recruitment, the house decided that it would be in the best interest for our fall recruitment if we held a Continuous Open Bid night at the Kappa house. This gave us the opportunity to welcome seven lovely ladies into our sisterhood and put us in an ideal place for fall recruitment. Apart from those planning on claiming alumni status at the end of spring,one of the primary reasons for a sudden drop in house total was a result of apathy in the areas of attendance and accountability. To tackle these issues, the house began to take a different approach and use positive reinforcement for attending events by speaking highly of them as encouragement, as opposed to reprimanding girls for lack of attendance.

Highlights of 2012[edit]

In the year 2012 the Epsilon Xi chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma was able to continue its growth and mark its 38th year since being founded. The chapter held a myriad of successful philanthropy and social events in the spring including, “Kappa Kookie Gathering” and “Reading is Key”. Kappa Kookie Gathering was an event organized by the Public Relations Officer. The event took place at the Kappa house and as an alternative to selling tickets to the event; guests were asked to bring children’s books, which were donated to schools and libraries in need. Members of various Fraternities and Sororities participated and contributed to the event.

Reading is Key was held later in the spring, at the Boys and Girls Club of Simi Valley, where the chapter read books and did arts and crafts with the children to promote children’s literacy.

Epsilon Xi started the fall semester early, because recruitment retreat was held in August. The lovely sisters of the Gamma Xi chapter at UCLA allowed Epsilon Xi to utilize their beautiful house for the weekend. This gave the chapter the opportunity to rehearse all of the essentials needed in order to prepare for recruitment, which was soon approaching. The weekend away gave the chapter the opportunity to bond and learn the true meaning of sisterhood. All of the hard work that was put into planning the retreat was worthwhile when the chapter received one hundred percent retention rate on day one of recruitment. In Epsilon Xi welcomed forty-one new members into its chapter.

The week after recruitment, the chapter held its first philanthropy event of the fall semester, “Kappa Splash”. Kappa Splash was held at the swimming pool located on campus. Kappa Splash is a competition between IFC fraternities, where they are judged on who had the best belly flop and who donates the most books. All the books collected were donated to Locke High School, where an alumnae sister teaches. Prior to the event, Locke High School did not have a library available to the students.

Shortly after Kappa Splash, “KKGlee” was held for a second time after being founded by Epsilon Xi in 2010. Fraternities and Sororities filled the University Student Union Theater to maximum capacity to watch one another preform various dance and lip sync acts. KKGlee 2012 held a special place in each sister’s heart, because all proceeds were donated to the Lupus LA Foundation, in support of an active sister fighting lupus. To conclude the semester, the chapter was proud to initiate 38 members as new sisters.

With the continuously unpredictable economy, budget cuts have greatly affected California State University Northridge students. Classes were difficult to obtain and as a result many students had to look to local community colleges in order to maintain full time student status.

In January, the campus opened its new Student Recreation Center. The facility is a three-story energy efficient building filled with state of the art equipment, gymnastics courts, indoor track and outdoor swimming pool. This gave the intermural department a chance to hold intermural in the Student Recreation Center encouraging more supporters to come support games and overall increased Greek unity. The California State University Northridge community truly embraced the new recreation center and it quickly became a popular place for students.

In the fall semester California State University Northridge expanded it Greek community by and welcoming Phi Mu onto campus as the seventh Panhellenic sorority. Kappa specifically ensured that the women of Phi Mu felt welcomed and enjoyed an exchange with them at Brandy Melville.

Over summer break 2012, Kappa continued to grow and expand in many ways. During our summer retreat, the chapter was able to bond in such a way that made sisterhood our biggest strength. Members were able to walk away from the weekend with a deeper understanding of one another and move forward with a genuine support system. In addition to retreat, the summer off allowed for house renovations. The two front rooms received new beds, nightstands and lamps. Chapter Council was also able to recover the benches in the chapter room.

The chapter faced challenges in the area of academics. At the end of the spring semester, the chapter struggled to maintain a strong house GPA. To tackle this, the Vice President Academic Excellence held weekly pizza study hours at the house. She also collected the syllabi of girls who requested test reminds. Sisters who received A’s were rewarded with a “Smart Cookie Award” where they received recognition in meeting and a delicious cookie. Implementing all of theses methods together significantly improved the grades of the house and Epsilon Xi received second in grades for the fall semester.

Highlights of 2013[edit]

In the 2013 calendar year, the Epsilon Xi Chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma celebrated its 39th year since being founded on November 16th 1974. Throughout this past year, Epsilon Xi participated in a number of philanthropic events. Our kickoff event started with Kappa Kookie Gathering, which is an event that our Public Relations Chair organizes to promote Reading Is Fundamental. Our chapter hosts an event where we provide baked goods for other fraternities and sororities as well as anyone on campus to enjoy and to learn more about our philanthropy. The event is hosted at our sorority house, all we ask as an entry fee is for each person to bring at least one children’s book. The books we collected were then donated to local schools in need. The second philanthropy event of our Spring semester was Skate and Donate. Skate and Donate is an event that our Philanthropy Chair hosts at Skateland in honor of a sister who was killed in a drunk driving accident. By the money we raise, the Corrine McClain Scholarship is funded. Our last philanthropy event we participated in for spring was Reading is Key. Through Reading is Key; the sisters of our chapter all come together to read to children grades 1st-6th. This event was held at the Boys and Girls Club of Simi Valley.

Fall Semester was underway with our annual sisterhood retreat, held at the UCLA Kappa House. During this weekend in August, our Recruitment Chair hosts a number of rehearsals for our upcoming Fall Recruitment. After we gained 37 new members, we were busy planning “Kappa Splash” event. Kappa Splash is an event hosted and organized by the Public Relations Chair. Kappa’s event includes a tailgate setting with food, baked goods, and a brief gathering before our diving competition starts. Each fraternity enters our diving competition at our campus’s pool, where they compete for best dive, most creative splash, along with others. Again, the entry fee for each fraternity to enter the competition is to bring children’s books. Through Kappa Splash and the help of our peers, we raised over three thousand books from this one event alone. This was the year we set a record for the highest amount of book we have ever collected at one single event. At the end of the new members’ period we were proud to initiate 37 new sisters. 2013 proved to be a great year for Epsilon Xi, and one of our most exciting happenings was the renovation of our front room at the Kappa house. The house chairman was responsible for implementing new design ideas including new paint, crown molding, and new furniture. The new color scheme of our main room goes along with our Kappa colors; light and dark blue.

CSUN’s Greek life continues to thrive. The overall Greek unity on our campus is a great way to network and connect with other students. Fall semester of 2012, our school welcomed with open arms a sorority well known across the U.S. but new to our campus. This sorority was Phi Mu. During the following year, every house made their best effort to show the sisters of Phi Mu support and encouragement during their founding process. This included attending their philanthropy events and gatherings they hosted. Another major change on campus was the installment of our new campus president. Dianna F. Harrison became the head president for California State University, Northridge. She implemented a new system that arranged an agreement between our sports programs and Greek life. With her new system, she partnered sorority and fraternity houses up with sports teams. For example, Kappa is partnered up with Women’s basketball this semester. This means that as a house, we attend and support their team at their games. Dianna F. Harrison is a huge advocate for campus involvement with students. By teaming up Greek life and sports events, students have yet again another great opportunity to get acquainted with other students on campus and becoming more well-rounded individuals.

Our Kappa House facility has gone under some major renovations this past calendar year. The front room, our main attraction was newly furnished, including a fresh coat of paint with colors such as baby blue and white. Along with the new paint, one of the more exciting pieces of furniture is our new bookshelf. Decorated with our lovely wooden letters and our admired symbols, fluer de lis and keys, it is definitely an attention grabber. Many of the issues of “The Key” are also displayed on our bookshelf. These new changes created a more charming environment for our sisters, as well as others who visit our house for philanthropy events. Another great thing about these new changes is that it creates a lovely setting when we invite new members’ parents for Kappa Kappa Gamma Presents.

Highlights of 2014[edit]

In the 2014 calendar year, the Epsilon Xi Chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma celebrated its 40th year since being founded on November 16th, 1974. In honor of this, the Epsilon Xi chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma held a huge celebration at the Northridge Center located on CSUN’s campus where Alumni were invited to come back to celebrate and reminisce on all the wonderful memories they once shared in this beautiful chapter. During this year Kappa also managed to put together several fundraising events, including Kappa Splash where 6,000 books were raised to donate to Susan G. Coleman Foundation, along with putting together KKGlee to support and to donate to MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving), to give and show our support for this charity. With this we also had the honor of sending one of our Kappa’s, Meghan McCarty, to a weekend Leadership Academy in Springfield Ohio, where she learned the skills needed to become a leader and got to experience other Kappas from other chapters where she was happy to report that all the girls were a joy to be around.

Kappa celebrated its sisterhood with an event where we all bonded while doing yoga on the beach. Kicking off our spring semester we held philanthropy events; Kappa Kookie Gathering, Reading is Key, and Kappa Kickball. At our Kappa Kookie Gathering event, fraternities, sororities and guests were invited to the Kappa House to munch on treats and meet each other at the cost of donating one children's book. Reading is Key gathered members of Epsilon Xi to the Boys and Girls Club of Simi Valley to read and play with the children. Lastly, Kappa's invited family to have a family day at a park where they picnicked and went to the field to play a game of Kickball with Kappa's and their families. Kappas of Epsilon Xi bonded on a Sisterhood Retreat over the summer to the UCLA Kappa Kappa Gamma House and prepared for Fall '14 recruitment . We also had the pleasure of bringing in 13 new members into our chapter during Spring ’14.

Once fall came around recruitment was our number one priority and a lot of time and effort was put into practicing the recruitment process. During this time we initiated a total of 42 new members to add to our sisterhood, starting off our fall semester on a good note. Our first philanthropy event held in the fall was Kappa Splash where we had a huge turnout of fraternities and sororities showing their support thanks to the planning and help of our Public Relation Chair, and doubling the amount of books raised from 3,000 to 6,000 children’s books donated. Following this event we also held KKGlee where we had yet another successful turn out of fraternities coming to participate and support for a great cause. This year for Kappa has set new records for us to try and surpass and strive to be our best for the following years to come. Along with this our lovely home received a fresh coat of paint, crown molding, and brand new furniture.

CSUN’s Greek life had some setbacks due to negative social media attention that reflected poorly on Greek Life but Kappa managed to uphold our standards and bylaws and remain up to par with our standards of academic excellence by providing help for sisters in need by creating links for girls to access providing them with members who have already taken similar courses to help with anything needed. Kappa also continues to reserve study rooms every week for girls in need of a quiet place to study and get homework done. With this Kappa Kappa Gamma also managed to come in first with grades with a chapter overall of a 3.01 GPA.

Highlights of 2015[edit]

In the 2015 calendar year, the Epsilon Xi chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma celebrated its 41st year since being founded on November 16th, 1974. Throughout this past school year, Epsilon Xi has been a part of and thrown many philanthropic events. To kick off the Spring 2015 semester, we held our annual Kappa Kookie Gathering on April 13th, which is an event our House Chair organizes to promote Reading is Fundamental. We host this event at the Kappa house and invite fraternities, sororities, friends and family to come and support our cause. We asked each guest to bring one children’s book for admission and then they are welcome to eat delicious baked goods and mingle. The second philanthropy event held in the spring semester was Skate and Donate. Skate and Donate is an event our philanthropy chair hosts at a local skating rink, which raised money for the Corrine McClain Scholarship. In early February 2015, Reading is Key gathered members from Epsilon Xi to The Boys and Girls Club of Simi Valley to read and play games with the children, to stress the importance of reading. We kicked off Fall 2015 with Kappa Splash on September 26th where we invited fraternities to participate in a fun diving contest and we raised over 7,000 books. Later in the semester, we invited all sororities and fraternities to participate in KKGlee, a fun talent show. $3,000 from ticket sales was donated to the American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association (AARDA). As a chapter, we decided to donate to AARDA to raise money and support sisters who are living with autoimmune diseases. With this we also had the honor of sending one of our Kappa’s, Emma Feitshans, to Leadership Academy to represent our chapter.

Epsilon Xi celebrated its sisterhood with fun and exciting events during the spring and fall semesters. As a chapter, we went laser tagging and had a blast with our sisters. As well as going to the Escape Room, where sisters got into groups and had to “break out” of a room by solving puzzles and riddles. Blue on Blue dinner was held the night before recruitment began where the chapter gathered together, dressed head to toe in blue and enjoyed tacos all together in our backyard. This fall during I-Week, as we began to prepare for initiation we had another sisterhood event. We all tie-dyed Kappa shirts in the backyard of the Kappa house and had a blast.

Unfortunately, Epsilon Xi was unable to recruit new members in Spring 2015 but we made the best of the situation and prepared for fall as much as we could. As recruitment and the school year approached, our Membership Chair, put on a 3-day retreat from August 21-23 at the UCLA Kappa Kappa Gamma house. During this retreat weekend we spent time bonding, laughing and preparing for recruitment. Fall recruitment was held from September 12-16, 2015 and when Bid Day finally came, we were so excited to welcome 46 beautiful new members into our chapter.

CSUN’s Greek life experienced some setbacks and hardships due to continued poor decision making and negative social media attention that reflected poorly on our campus Greek life. But Kappa managed to uphold our standards and follow our bylaws to remain up to par with our standards and academic excellence. Kappa continued to reserve study rooms in the library each week for girls in need of a quiet place to study and get work done. As well as fun activities during chapter meeting such as the No Skippy Jar, where girls put there names into a jar if they didn’t skip any class that week and a name was randomly chosen to win a great prize. Also, the Geeks of the Week, where any member who received and A on an exam or quiz, texted the Vice President of Academic Excellence a picture of their score and their names were read in meeting and were automatically entered into a monthly giveaway. With this, Epsilon Xi managed to come first in grades during the spring 2015 semester with a chapter overall GPA of a 2.975

Highlights of 2016[edit]

Epsilon Xi experienced an eventful year filled with sisterly bonding, events, and lifelong memories. We hosted successful philanthropy events that brought us closer together as sisters. This year we have really focused on building strong relationships with one another. We have done so by having philanthropy events and sisterhood events. To start off our semester on February 19th, we had our annual philanthropy event, Reading is Key that was hosted at a local elementary school! We were able to read to children, enjoy fun crafts that were designed to be grade specific, play games, and bond with the children. This event is special to our chapter because we are able to interact with children and see where our proceeds are going to. Shortly after Reading is Key on February 29th, we had our philanthropy event called Kappa Kookie Gathering, that the house chairman puts on to promote Reading is Fundamental. We host this event at the Kappa house and invite fraternities, sororities, friends and family to come and support our cause. We ask each guest to bring one children’s book for admission and then they are welcome to eat delicious baked goods and mingle. To end our spring semester, our philanthropy chairman planned an awesome event called Kappa Kappa Gameday. For this event, we invited fraternities to come and participate in a flag football tournament. All of the proceeds, went to the Corinne McClane Scholarship. This scholarship was awarded to our president, Lexi Wilson. To start off the fall semester with a splash, on October 8th, we hosted another philanthropy event, Kappa Splash, that was definitely one for the books! Kappa Splash is a diving competition between fraternity men that were judged by their Biggest Splash, Best Belly Flop, and Most Creative Dive that had us all laughing. This event we raised over 25,000 children books, triple the amount raised last year, that were donated to different schools around our community. Our last philanthropy event of the semester was called Kappa Con Queso which is nacho average philanthropy. On November 16th, We were able to celebrate our 42nd year philanthropy event called Kappa Con Queso, around all of the people that we love. This event only cost $5 to eat endless nachos and got the chance to dance and have fun with our sisters. The proceeds from Kappa Con Queso went to the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation.

As a chapter we also got to have fun, exciting sisterhood events that were planned for us by our Standards Committee. These sisterhood events really make us grow closer together and this is very important in making our sisterhood continue for many more years. On March 28th, we had our first sisterhood event that entailed renting out a movie theater and enjoying a special screening of “How to be Single.” Not only did we get to enjoy popcorn and candy but we also got to enjoy spending time with our sisters. On April 12th, Instead of having our regular Monday night meeting we had a paper meeting and instead we had another sisterhood event at a bowling alley. This sisterhood event, we got to see some of our sister’s bowling skills and shared lots of laughs. On October 24th, our standards committee put on a Halloween themed sisterhood event where we all cuddled up in the chapter room to watch Hocus Pocus. We also had lots of fun playing games and enjoyed treats like cotton candy and popcorn. November 9th was our last sisterhood event of the semester and it was also the week of initiation. It was lots of fun because our standards committee put on an event with In-n-Out, a bouncy house and puppies!

Over the summer, Our President, the Vice President of Standards, and our lovely advisors traveled to San Diego for the Kappa Kappa Gamma’s 71st Biennial Convention. They connected with sisters from all over the world to share our kappa knowledge and gain new information on ways to help our chapter thrive. We also got the chance to send one of our sisters, Anela Kremicki, to Leadership Academy in Ohio to represent our chapter.

In the spring semester, we did not have recruitment because we already had enough women to fulfill house total. This gave us extra time to get prepared for recruitment in the fall. On August 19th through the 21st, our membership chairman, Deanna Saab hosted our retreat at the kappa house at UCLA. At our retreat, we got to spend lots of time bonding with our sisters, making memories that will last a life time and also prepared for fall recruitment. On September 9th, our chairman hosted our Blue on Blue Dinner, where the chapter got together and got to eat and prepare for recruitment that was soon to come. On September 10th through the 12th, fall recruitment was held and on September 13th we welcomed 35 women into our chapter. On November 12th, 32 women got to be initiated into our chapter.

Epsilon Xi, has shown resiliency to keep our chapter strong. We upheld our bylaws and standing rules bylaws to remain up to par with our standards and academic excellence. Several of our sisters got inducted into the Honors Society of Gamma Sigma Alpha. Our VPAE chairman continues to book study rooms each week so our sisters always have a place to study with our sisters. The VPAE chairman also continues to pass around the No Skippy Jar, which is where sisters put their name in if they didn’t skip class that week and a name is pulled and they get a prize. We also have the Geeks of the Week, where the VPAE chairman reads off names of the women who got A’s on any test, quiz, or paper. Each week, sisters send in their A’s to our VPAE chairman and she reads them to the chapter. This boost moral and also keeps sisters motivated to keep studying and do well in school. Epsilon Xi held our GPA at 2.89.

Highlights of 2017[edit]

2017 was an eventful year for Epsilon Xi and all the fun started with our Sapphire Ball on February 24th. On March 10th we held our annual philanthropy, Reading is Key, and made crafts and read to the kindergarteners and first graders at Sunny Brae Elementary School. On March 13th the first lavaliering ceremony of the year was held for Meghan McCarty who’s boyfriend, a member of ΣΧ, lavaliered her on their two year anniversary. On March 29th, six of our sisters, Emilie, Andie, Hailey, Katy, Farren, and Mara were inducted into Gamma Sigma Alpha which is a Greek Honor Society. Greek students with a cumulative GPA of 3.5 and above in their upper division courses are invited to join. Along with this, our chapter was also awarded for being above the sorority average GPA. The very next day we held KKGLEE which is a talent show and the proceeds went to the Pulmonary Hypertension Association and the Animal Hope & Wellness Foundation. The Pulmonary Hypertension Association was chosen as one of the foundations because it was a cause close to one of our sister’s hearts. Alyssa Hoekstra’s mom was diagnosed with Pulmonary Hypertension and our chapter knew that this was one way we could help and support our sister.

On April 6th we held another annual fundraiser called Kappa Kookie Gathering and the theme for this year was “Finding Kappa”, the entrance fee was one children's book and endless desserts were provided to our guests. On April 8th, we won 1st place in ZBT's Powderpuff Philanthropy and were awarded a huge football trophy now proudly on display in the Kappa House. Favorite Faculty was held on April 11th in the Northridge Center and we had the best attendance in years! Another win for Epsilon Xi was made on April 15th at Sigma Chi’s dodgeball philanthropy. On April 19th we won SigEp’s philanthropy, Queen of Hearts. On May 5th Melissa Acuna was lavaliered by her boyfriend at the AEPi formal in San Diego and our second lavaliering ceremony of the year was held. And even another dodgeball win for us at ZBT’s philanthropy on May 11th. On May 27th Anela Kremecki was named Sigma Chi sweetheart.

Our preparation for fall recruitment started with our yearly retreat held at the UCLA Kappa House and we were there chanting and clapping from Aug 18th to the 20th. On September 8th, Blue on Blue Dinner was held to get everyone pumped for the upcoming fall recruitment and the delicious tacos were a fan-favorite. California State University Northridge held their formal fall recruitment for panhellenic sororities from September 9th through September 11th and Epsilon Xi extended bids to 41 members. The best day of the year in my opinion, Bid Day appropriately themed Kappa-ly Ever After, was September 12th and our new members were graciously welcomed home with a shaved ice truck and tons and tons of glitter! Continuous open bidding was conducted at the kappa house and 5 more bids were extended, helping our chapter grow. Leadership Academy was September 14th through the 17th and Cathleen Flores was selected and flown out to Ohio to attend. She had a great time and had this to say about her experience, “I met a bunch of other kappas from all around the U.S., even Canada, and we all got the opportunity to experience and learn about leadership by doing various activities in the woods, conversations in our small groups, and just reflecting on ourselves and realizing we’re all leaders and all the skills I learned there I now use in my daily life”.

On Oct 14th Presents were held in our backyard and all the New Members were able to introduce their new big sisters to the rest of their families. Formal was directly after Presents, and everyone had a blast dancing the night away. At the next formal meeting an extra special lavaliering ceremony was held for our sister Makenzie Thornsberry because she was proposed to right after our fall formal! On October 22th we had our other annual philanthropy, Kappa Splash where a record breaking 40,000 books were raised for Hurricane victims and their local libraries. On October 24, Hannah Balleza, Mara Farrand, Katy Lewis, Cheyenne Stokes, and Kaitlin Windfelder were recognized for having a GPA of 4.o and Riley DeZavala, Emma Feitshans, Lauren Fox, Balpreet Gill, and Krissy Rivard were inducted into Gamma Sigma Alpha. On November 11th, we held Initiation, where 39 amazing women were formally initiated and welcomed into Kappa Kappa Gamma Epsilon Xi Chapter. On November 30th we had an amazing bussed exchange with the gentlemen of Tao Omega Rho, where we sang our hearts out at a Karaoke restaurant. On December 9th our sister Quetzal was named SAE’s newest Violet. This was an amazing year for Kappa Kappa Gamma, Epsilon Xi Chapter.

Highlights of 2018[edit]

2018 has proven to be a memorable year for Epsilon Xi chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma. Our year started off with a lavaliering ceremony for Nicolina Redmond and her little Hillary Winston, who both got engaged over Winter Break! The next week we had another lavaliering ceremony for Lesley Reyes, who was lavaliered by her boyfriend in December at the Sigma Phi Epsilon Formal in San Diego. In February, we had our sports themed date party in which we all drafted dates for the night. On the twenty-third, we visited Tulsa Elementary school for our Reading Is Key philanthropy event, where we spent the day reading with kids. Each child was given a book and goodie bag at the end of our visit. Just the next week, we bonded at our sisterhood event, where we all got our popcorn ready as we rented out a theater to ourselves. We began the month of March by winning first in Sigma Alpha Epsilon’s Patty Murphy philanthropy. We then held our annual KKGlee philanthropy event, in which the fraternities competed in a talent show raising money for Cystic Fibrosis in honor of a fellow member of our Greek community, Sammy Cassidy, who sadly passed away. We also gave proceeds to Route 91 Strong, a foundation that is dear to our Kappa sister, Amanda Bell, after her experience at the Las Vegas shooting. We also participated in multiple fraternity philanthropies including Zeta Beta Tau’s powderpuff and Sigma Phi Epsilon’s Sigep Salute. Our sisters Gioia D’Andrea, Nashra De Leon, Rebecca Grinberg, Sara Johnston, Kayla Kirkpatrick, Jennifer Putterflam, Kaeli Shaw, and Hillary Winston were inducted into the Greek honor society Gamma Sigma Alpha. In addition, Kayla Kirkpatrick, Kaeli Shaw, and Hillary Winston were also inducted into Order of Omega.

April was a busy month, starting off with inviting our favorite faculty and staff to an event celebrating their influence on our sisters. Our Sapphire Ball took place on April 6th, where we Oh Patted our seniors goodbye. We had another sisterhood event in which we all went bowling together. On April 16th, we held our Candyland themed Kappa Kookie Gathering philanthropy event at the Kappa house. The entrance fee was one children's book or toy, and guests were provided with unlimited desserts and a fun time. The items collected were donated to My Stuff Bags Foundation. Our sporty sisters won first in CSUN’s intramural volleyball championships. Also in the month of April, we decorated our house with new outdoor furniture- blue of course. And on the 30th, we held an exchange with Phi Mu, our sister sorority of the semester. We had an amazing time enjoying the plethora of food and listening to our sisters’ sing karaoke. We spent the 5th of May with the brothers of Sigma Alpha Epsilon, delighting in various water games to keep us cool from the heat. Over the summer, our sisters spent time with their families, traveled around the world, and attended various music festivals. Our favorite part, however, was winning the Most Improved Academic Excellence Award at Kappa’s 72nd Biennial Convention in June.

We had our annual retreat at the UCLA Kappa house on August 17th through the 19th. For three days, accompanied by our Leadership Consultant, we had numerous informative presentations, several recruitment practices, and plenty of bonding games. We left the Gamma Xi house feeling closer than ever and much more prepared for the fall recruitment ahead of us. Kelsey Fonseca attended Kappa’s Leadership Academy on September 13th through the 16th, and learned a lot about herself not only in Kappa, but in life. She stated “It was a fun weekend of fun outdoor adventures and bonding with Kappa sisters from all over.” Our Blue on Blue dinner was September 14th, in which we had one last night to bond and stuff ourselves with food before the long weekend of recruitment came. On September 18th, we ushered in our new pledge class of Fall ‘18. Our retro ‘90s themed Bid day was a blast, and needless to say, those forty women were definitely “saved by the bid.” Not long after, we held our first philanthropy event of the semester, Kappa Splash. We watched fraternity boys prance around in wigs and wardrobe as they competed in a diving competition, all the while raising 15,347 books. In October, our house was painted a lovely dark blue hue that proved to be very popular with the chapter. On the 12th, we had our “Kappa Kouples” date party, in which we all dressed as our favorite tv twosome. We also won first in Tau Omega Rho’s philanthropy for breast cancer awareness on the same night we won volleyball championships yet again.. Presents was held at the Kappa house on October 27th. Our new members’ parents were invited for brunch as they learned all that Kappa is about and got to meet their daughters’ big sisters.

Both our front and backyard were redone in the month of November. In addition, our new members bonded during their retreat on the 3rd, where they played mini golf and participated in team building exercises. The week after, we had a great time at our masquerade themed fall formal. We held yet another sisterhood event, only this time we raced around and crashed into each other on a go-karting track. Even more of our sisters- Balpreet Gill and Karen Ramos- were inducted into Gamma Sigma Alpha. Along with Morgan Anderson and Ally Medina, who were inducted into Order of Omega. On the 17th, we initiated our pledge class, officially welcoming them into our chapter and finally having the pleasure of calling them our sisters. On Monday, November 26th, we received another visit from a Leadership Consultant, who stayed with us throughout the week and gave us constructive advice for our Leadership Training Day. She even got to take part in our exchange with Sigma Phi Epsilon. We all dressed up in ugly holiday sweaters and spent the night decorating ornaments and gingerbread houses. Our last meeting of the semester took place on the third of December, in which we installed our new officers and prepared for winter break with our families. Overall, this year has been one for the BOOKS (Get it? We raise books!). 2018 has brought Epsilon Xi endless friendships, an abundance of opportunities, and everlasting memories.

Highlights of 2020[edit]

With the year coming to a close, Epsilon Xi would like to take time to summarize our year of 2020. Epsilon Xi maintained a fantastic year full of fun, hard work, and sisterhood. Though we moved to a virtual setting, we were still able to maintain our weekly Chapter Council meetings, Standards meetings, Chapter meetings, Senior meetings, New Member meetings, school work, and daily life. With some new adjustments, we were able to keep our chapter optimistic. This has definitely been a memorable year!

It all started with our first meeting on January 27th when everyone returned to California State University, Northridge for the Spring semester. It was great to see everyone and get back into the swing of things!

In February, we were able to hold four chapter meetings as well as chapter council meetings. We enjoyed a sisterhood event on the day of February 13th, where we participated in a Murder Mystery - Clue themed event at Epsilon Xi’s chapter house. There, our members were able to dress up in formal dresses, and were given clues to find out who was guilty of the crime amongst our sisters. We were able to bond fully during the month of February and were extremely excited for what was to come.

March began with a chapter meeting, followed by an EME Trainer, who taught us about Harm Prevention. We were happy to schedule one more chapter meeting before our Spring Break would begin, but had to cancel our date party on March 12th, in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic. Our chapter remained connected and supportive as we learned more from the University. With us eventually finding out that the remainder of the semester would be held in a virtual capacity. Throughout this month, our President - Ella Rhodes, remained transparent and helpful as the Chapter Council came together to re-work the rest of the year’s scheduling. We commenced with our first virtual meeting on March 23rd.

We began our Senior Recognitions within our virtual chapter meetings in April, with our Public Relations Chairwoman - Rachel Chang, highlighting each senior on our social media page. Though it was a transition, we were excited to be with one another once more.

May concluded our Spring semester. Epsilon Xi spent summer relaxing and quarantining with roommates and family members.

Highlights of 2021[edit]

For the spring semester of 2021, the chapter voted to support Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services which has provided free mental health, substance use disorder and suicide prevention services since 1942. We chose to support this organization because the message really resonated with one of our sisters. The organization our chapter voted to support for the fall semester of 2021 The JED Foundation and The Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation. After the trials and tribulations of the Covid-19 pandemic, mental health became a highly discussed topic amongst the women of our chapter. The mental health and wellbeing of not only the women of Kappa Kappa Gamma but everyone around us became our top priority, thus leading us to make the decision to support The JED Foundation. For our spring 2021 philanthropy, we supported the Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services by hosting a virtual version of KappaWorld. This is a competition between Greek-lettered organizations recorded themselves singing and dancing to various songs. We also held a fundraiser at a local restaurant on April 30th to help raise money for the organization. The gentlemen of Lambda Chi Alpha won our spring philanthropy. During fall semester of 2021, we supported The JED Foundation by hosting our first in-person philanthropy post-covid, Kamp Kappa. 11 Greek-letter organizations participated in summer camp styled games including a water balloon toss, potato sack race, and even an inflatable obstacle course. Our winning team were once again the gentlemen of Lambda Chi Alpha. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion How did your chapter include diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in your programming this year? (e.g., adding a DEI officer, philanthropy events, social media awareness campaign, chapter training, etc.). The Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion chair continued to grow and flourish throughout the year. She shared multiple presentations on the importance of inclusivity throughout the recruitment process to ensure a diverse and welcoming chapter. She also wanted to ensure we display our chapters diversity through our posts shared on Instagram.

Sisterhood

Operating in a Pandemic Our year started online due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We hosted online COB events where girls interested in joining Kappa Kappa Gamma got the chance to meet with some of our sisters through zoom. After that, we initiated the lovely ladies of the Spring ’21 pledge class. Given that it had to be conducted online over zoom, our typical 3-day initiation was condensed into 2 days. We held a virtual de-pinning ceremony followed by a combination ceremony of WR and RR. Our meetings, sisterhood events, Sapphire Ball, Chapter Council meetings, philanthropy, and more were all held over zoom. Throughout the summer, we prepared for our first semester in-person since March of 2020. For the fall semester, we offered a monthly virtual option where sisters were able to submit a form if they would like to attend virtually for the month. Those attending in-person had to follow CSUN’s COVID-19 guidelines and wear a mask while inside a building, complete health screenings prior to events, maintain social distancing, etc. Despite transitioning from online to being back in-person, we did have to host a fully virtual recruitment. Hosting a virtual recruitment lowered the number of women who signed up, thus leading to a smaller pledge class than expected.

In July, Chapter Council began their meetings with a wonderful virtual retreat. We were able to discuss our leadership skills, plans for the year, and how to keep up morale during a pandemic. Afterwards, we were able to fit in some fun bonding time!

The Kappas joined back up for retreat in August to get recruitment ready. From the 14th to the 16th, everyone met on Zoom for our annual retreat. At retreat, we practiced songs, went over recruitment procedures, and really got to know our sisters in our spare time. We were ready for the new school year! On August 31st, we were excited to host our first Chapter meeting of the school year!

September began a new era for Epsilon Xi. September 11th was our spirited Blue on Blue dinner where members met up on Zoom and were dressed head to toe in BLUE! This was ‘recruitment eve’ where we celebrated all of our hard work preparing for recruitment and had a night of fun before the busy weekend began, our VPS - Lex Daffern, made the event even more special by including different activities, such as jeopardy, for us to bond over. Saturday September 12th marked the first day of recruitment. We were thrilled to meet so many women, and were especially exhilarated for Bid Day, which was themed “Kappa Disco”! Each member was decorated in their best disco outfits! During the event, we were thrilled to have a Zoom background contest, participate in a jeopardy game, and move into breakout rooms to personally introduce ourselves to the new members. Throughout the rest of the month, we held COB events, eventually enabling us to welcome 33 new members to our chapter! We were ecstatic to hold our Formal Pledging ceremony, virtually. Recruitment was incredibly successful; we were so happy to have welcomed these special women into our chapter.

October was all about the New Members! We were given Kappa Krews as well as Owl Pals to assist each member with getting to know our new members on a personal level. Kappa Kappa Gamma celebrated its 150th year, and Epsilon Xi celebrated by attending a virtual ceremony, where we were able to take a moment to appreciate all that is Kappa. On the 24th, the active members surprised their littles with big and little reveal disguised as a sisterhood event on Zoom. We were dedicated to making sure the new members got the best out of their new member experience, and were delighted to see that they were extremely happy with it! On October 30th, we were excited to release our virtual ‘Presents’ informational event to each parent of our wonderful new members.

November was an exciting time for Kappa Kappa Gamma. On November 2nd, we started our inspirational period. Leading up to Initiation, we had another sisterhood event where we created funny PowerPoints with sisters to bring everyone together. We laughed the whole night away! That weekend we conducted Initiation and welcomed 31 amazing women into our sisterhood! The entire week was about relishing in what Kappa means to us and sharing and creating memories with our sisters. After a full month and an election for who would be in the next Chapter Council, it was time for a break. Our last meeting on November 30th was bittersweet as the new officers were installed. We’re excited to see what they do with their new positions! With lots of time spent with our friends and family during Thanksgiving break, we spent time making memories with our sister as well.

December came around and it was time to hit the books for finals. The Kappas spent time studying and enjoying quality time with family. Kappa Kappa Gamma is looking forward to many more years of sisterhood. Happy New Year!

Sisterhood