| Epsilon Psi | |
|---|---|
| EΨ | |
 | |
| Founded | October 14, 1978 |
| College | University of California, Santa Barbara |
| Location | Goleta, CA |
| Homepage | http://www.kappa.org |
| Media related to Epsilon Psi Chapter | |
1,298 initiates (as of June 2013)
Highlights of 2012
2012 brought much excitement and success to the women of Epsilon Psi at University of California, Santa Barbara. We held our annual philanthropy, Kappa Dash, a 5K walk/run around both the campus and Isla Vista, the surrounding college town. We rose around $8,500 to benefit breast and ovarian cancer research- specifically, all proceeds went to the following charities: Susan G. Komen Foundation, the Strong as Steele Foundation, and the Ovarian Cancer Circle (in memory of Robin Babbini, a beloved member of Epsilon Psi who passed away due to ovarian canter in 2006).
With around 250 participants, our chapter is proud of how large our philanthropy has grown and how much money we were able to raise for charity. In addition, in February we did our annual Valentine Grams sale to benefit Reading is Fundamental, our national philanthropy. An individual can send a flower, note, and chocolate to his or her valentine for only $3 dollars, and our philanthropy committee will hand deliver them anywhere on the campus or around Isla Vista.
Aside from our philanthropic involvement, members of our chapter uphold high standards of academic achievement- we ended the 2011-2012 school year with the 3rd highest GPA of all Panhellenic sororities on our campus.
One of the highlights of 2012 for our chapter was being asked to help colonize the newest chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma- Eta Rho at the California Polytechnic Institute. All of our members were so excited and honored to be given such an opportunity because we realize that it is something that not many Kappa chapters can say that they have done!
While it is unfortunate that our chapter went on a focus letter this year, it has made our chapter much more aware of the way that we function as a house by bringing to attention all the areas we could improve on. All of our members, chapter leaders in particular, are striving to make the changes necessary and make us a better, more successful chapter in general! It is our goal, as a chapter, is to fix the issues detailed in the letter in order to be the best that we can be, and we hope to get off of the letter as soon as possible!
One of the most important changes at our campus is the shift to becoming more environmentally friendly ("green"). In the year 2012, "TGIF," the University's green initiative fund, sponsored several projects to help make UCSB a green school; for example, they funded the installation of several "hydration stations" around campus so that students could fill up their reusable water bottles with filtered water for free! Our chapter has moved in the same direction as the campus at large- we have been working to make our house more environmentally friendly by reducing paper cup waste and speaking during meeting about the importance of using the glass and plastic cups rather than paper.
Another huge change in our chapter has been the introduction of our newest house mom, Barbara. House moms have a huge influence on the chapter, and we are proud to have such a positive figure in our house. She is very involved in the house, always suprising us with things such as treats during our stressful finals week and elaborate decorations for Christmas and Chanukah!
Highlights of 2013
During the year of 2013 the Epsilon Psi Chapter achieved much academically and philanthropically. It was an exciting year! Some highlights are:
Kappa Dash: Our yearly philanthropy. During Kappa Dash Epsilon Psi managed to raise $8,500, and approximately 250 people took part. A lot of friends and family came to show their support.
Valentine’s Grams: Every year we get together to sell grams for Valentine’s Day. The girls who participate always have lots of fun sending out the grams, and all the money gained goes to the charity Reading is Fundamental. We sold about 65 grams, bringing in approximately $195.
Academic Standing: Our chapter is constantly ranked in the top 4 among sororities at UCSB, and for the end of the academic year we managed to rank at number 3! This ranking is calculated from each sororities’ average GPA.
Colonization: During 2012, a few of Epsilon Psi chapter members went down to Cal Poly San Louis Obispo to colonize a new chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma. In 2013, we initiated the girls of Cal Poly. The girls involved said it felt amazing to be spreading the Kappa love to another campus, and the girls at Cal Poly could not have been more thrilled to be initiated by our members. We could not be more honored to have been a part of such a monumental experience. Congratulations to Eta Rho chapter!
As always, one of our goals was to maintain Kappa’s image on campus. We achieved this by having sisterhoods with other sororities, by promoting a positive image through social media, and by (of course) staying Kappa classy.
UCSB is making a constant effort to become greener and greener, and this was emphasized during the 2013 academic year. For instance, there is an environmental floor in one of the freshman dorms that doesn’t supply paper towels in the bathroom; instead, each resident is supplied a hand-towel to use for the year. If you look around our campus you see recycling bins everywhere, including each in room on campus. Kappa tries to be a part of this by volunteering to help pick up trash on the streets of Isla Vista – there is a program that runs every Thursday, and each week girls go out to try and make a difference. We also cut down the amount of paper used in the house by limiting the printer paper supplies.
Epsilon Psi always makes an effort to be as green as the campus we belong to. We strive to give back to the community, volunteering countless hours at a multitude of place. The girls of Kappa are kind and loyal and always there for each other.