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Barbara Hall Feldon, 1970, TV and film actress and fashion model, most famous for her role as Agent 99 in the TV series Get Smart
'''The Early Years (From The History of Kappa Kappa Gamma 1870–1976)'''
Andrew Carnegie, in an agreement with the city of Pittsburgh, founded Carnegie Technical Schools in 1904 on the edge of a large city park. In 1912, renamed Carnegie Institute of Technology, it included the College of Engineering and Science, the College of Fine Arts, and Margaret Morrison Carnegie College. This was “Tech” when Kappa Phi Delta, the oldest sorority in the women’s college of Margaret Morrison Carnegie, petitioned Kappa.
At this local’s founding in 1929 there was an agreement not to petition a national fraternity for ten years. At the time of the petition, Beta Pi, a sorority in the Fine Arts College, elected to join with Kappa Phi Delta, and together they became Delta Xi Chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma. It was agreed that women from engineering and science were to be included in membership selection although not many were available.
'''Installation'''
The installation February, 1944, coincided with the 25th anniversary of Gamma Epsilon, University of Pittsburgh. Initiation was held February 18 at the Carnegie Student Union and all but one of the Fraternity officers was present as 24 charter members and 11 pledges joined to form Delta Xi Chapter. Gamma Epsilon actives and nearby alumnae and representatives of many other chapters heightened the new group’s awareness of becoming part of an international fraternity.
'''Early Meetings and Housing'''
The active chapter, with scholastic interests varying from secretarial, home economics, and social studies to science, art, music, and architecture, met for its first formal meeting, called in order by first chapter president Helen Robinson Rhodes on February 20, 1944. The place of meeting was the so-called activities room of the Carnegie Student Union, an old mansion with large rooms and spacious closets, which was to be the center of Kappa activities until the new student union “Skibo” was built in 1960. Skibo’s closets were smaller and the storing of archives and supplies became a real problem. The meeting rooms were rather like classrooms and lacked privacy.
In early spring of 1965 Delta Xi drafted an appeal, through Panhellenic, to be presented to the incoming Carnegie Tech president, that each sorority be given a floor assignment in Morewood Gardens, the women’s dorm. Permission was granted and in the summer of 1965 advisers and others interested alumnae and actives furnished the lounge area of 3D Morewood. It was a great feeling to know where to find a Kappa. Now the chapter could plan initiations and other activities more easily . . . Delta Xi had a home.
'''The 1960s—a Decade of Change'''
Unfortunately as the 1960s continued the interest in sorority life and traditional values held appeal for fewer women students and Delta Xi suffered as did the other national Panhellenic groups. In spite of the long-awaited “place of our own” which should have bound the chapter together, unity and cohesiveness were lacking, and after a period of disorganization a graduate counselor was assigned. Rush and other areas improved, but only temporarily.
While Delta Xi was organizing, so was the Carnegie campus. In 1967 this private college was merged with Mellon Institute, a nearby private research facility. The result was Carnegie-Mellon University and, as such, the administration sought to widen the scope of academic disciplines offered. Margaret Morrison Carnegie College first became coeducational, and then was phased out entirely to be replaced by the College of Humanities and Social Studies. The character of student applications changed, too, and now many chapter members are enrolled in the College of Engineering and Science. The Margaret Morrison Carnegie College home economics members with their cooking and sewing abilities are missed, but the engineers are great at booth design and construction for Spring Carnival!
'''Traditions'''
Spring Carnival is an event of long tradition at Carnegie Mellon. The greatest impetus comes from the Greek organizations on campus and for one weekend, the student body plays hard to balance the hard work of the academic year. Greek Sing is another exciting event on the calendar, and Homecoming in the fall allows the chapter to roll out the welcome mat for returning alumnae. At other times during the year Delta Xi displays community awareness and concern by collecting for UNICEF at Halloween and by entertaining underprivileged children at Christmas.
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The previous information was excerpted from The History of Kappa Kappa Gamma Fraternity, 1870-1976. The information that follows has been gleaned from available resources including Chapter History Reports, chapter meeting minutes, letters and comments from chapter members and alumnae, the Kappa Kappa Gamma Fraternity Archives, and The Key. Each chapter is expected to update its history record annually Contact the Fraternity History Chairman with questions.
'''Highlights of the 1970s '''
In 1975, the Delta Xi sisters won Greek Sing with the help of Phi Kappa Theta. In 1978, Kappa received an Appreciation Award from the March of Dimes for their efforts.
The years of 1975 to 1985 was a huge time of growth for Carnegie Mellon University. The academic fields of software engineering and robotics expanded greatly and CMU made strides towards becoming one of the greatest technologically advanced schools. Our chapter flourished throughout these years and recruited many wonderful women.
During the 1978-1979 School Year, the Delta Xi Chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma moved from their residence in Morewood to a real home in the new Greek Quad. This was a big deal for the sisters. Many were sad to leave Morewood 3D, Kappa's first home, but at the same time, many were excited to have a real house. Having this home helped the sisters to grow closer and everyone made the best of this challenge.
Throughout these years the Greek System at Carngie Mellon was growing rapidly. This resulted in the university building an assortment of houses that would be considered Greek housing. This was very exciting for all students involved in greek life and our chapter responded by moving into one of these houses. The university itself was growing a lot as well. The president of the school at the time, Richard M. Cyert, made many changes in academics and administration that helped make CMU what it is today. He created the Andrew Network and also strategized on how to push Carnegie Mellon forward technology wise.
1975-1976: First Place in Greek Sing with the brothers of Phi Kappa Theta, First Place in Womens Overall Intramurals1976-1977: Second Place in Greek Sing, Second Place in the Booth Competition for Spring Carnival, First Place in Intramural Softball and Volleyball1977-1978: First Place in Greek Sing with the brothers of Alpha Tau Omega, Second Place in Booth Overall1978-1979: First Place in Booth, First Place in the Float Competition with the brothers of Alpha Tau Omega, First Place in Greek Sing with the brothers of Beta Theta Pi, First Place in Intramural Football and Basketball, Appreciation Award from the march of Dimes 1979-1980.
'''Highlights of the 1980s'''
The sisters of Delta Xi were involved in many activates both in and out of the chapter. From 1980-1984, KKG enjoyed events such as Crush Party, Panhellenic events, and sister bonding. The sisters were also involved with intramural sports and the team was known as the KKG Krusaders. The sisters worked on campuswide projects such as booth and had Big Little Sister week, in which new members were welcomed into the Delta Xi chapter. Delta Xi sisters were recognized in “The Key”. During these years, the sisters of the Detla Xi chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma worked together to create an effective chapter.
'''Highlights of the 1990s'''
The Delta Xi’s worked hard to get their name out campus and received the 1997 Golden Key for outstanding acheivement. A popular philanthropy was the Kappa Kappa Gong Show to benefit Children’s Cancer Foundation.
'''Highlights of 2000-2010'''
Classes were canceled on September 11, 2001, the day of the tragic terriost attack on the United States and an outdoor candlelit vigil was held that night. This event was attended by hundreds of people, including a lot of sisters. The next day a gathering was held in the University Center to give faculty, staff and students the opportunity to discuss issues and share feelings. A blood drive was held and so many people responded that people had to be turned away at the door. A number of sisters participated in the drive by acting as volunteers or donating blood. The university's annual United Way Campaign started "The September 11th Fund" to provide members of the university community with an opportunity to contribute to disaster relief efforts. Our chapter started a canned foods and old clothes drive at the house as part of its effort to contribute to disaster relief.
The 2004 calendar year proved to be busy but fulfilling. The highlight of the spring semester was our school's annual Greek Sing competition. In collaboration with the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity we put on and energetic rendition of the Broadway production "Newsies" and had the audience on its feet. Over two months of hard work was rewarded when we won first place for the second year in a row. The spring semester was also marked by our school's Spring carnival and our creative and vibrantly colored booth modelled on "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" earned us the Chairman's Choice Award.
That same 2004 Spring Carnival we made history by becoming the first all-women's organization to participate in the annual Buggy competition, a pushcar competition.We spent months improving an old buggy we purchased from an organization that had been participating in this event for a number of years. We did remarkably well for our first year and received the Buggy Chairman's Choice Award in recognition of our achievement.
The sixtieth anniversary of the founding of the Delta Xi Chapter was in March of Spring 2004 and to mark this momentous occaision we held an anniversary banquet at a hotel in downtown Pittsburgh and a number of alumni attended.
Among the chapter’s philanthropic events for the semester was a day we spent at an old people's home which proved to be a very rewarding experience. The beginning of the fall semester was as usual marked by formal membership recruitment, a very busy and hectic time for all. Our hard work paid off and recruitment proved to be very successful. The members welcomed twenty-five new sisters into our chapter.
Soon after we started fund raising for our major philanthropy, Quarter Mile of Quarters in collaboration with the Kappa Delta Rho fraternity. We raised in excess of $5,000 for the Children's Institute of Pittsburgh. We also participated in a non- Greek philanthropy, Dance Marathon, and as part of the team that raised the most money for the second year in a row, many of our sisters stayed up all night. We also held our annual holiday dinner to which we invited underpriveleged underprivileged children and gave them the Christmas present they had dreamed of but never thought they would actually possess. Despite the fact that we participated in so many activities we upheld our high standards of academic excellence achieving a chapter QPA of more than 3.4 in both the spring and the fall. Our achievements as a chapter were recognized by the university and we were named the Outstanding Sorority for the year 2004.
In 2004, Carnegie Mellon University has a student body that consists of more than 8,000 graduate and undergraduate students. The university prides itself on its diversity reflected in the fact that 20% of the student body consists of international students. The university consists of seven schools and colleges - for engineering, science,business,fine arts,computer science,humanities and social sciences and public policy and management. Though the Greek population is under 15% of the student body, it is very active both on campus and in the community. The Greek population consists of 13 national fraternities, 4 national sororities and one private sorority.
The chapter has 63 members and it prides itself on being one of the most well regarded organizations on campus, and it strives to uphold this reputation. The members make a concerted effort to participate in philanthropies and other events of all the other Greek organizations as well as in non Greek events. Outside of their involvement in Kappa, the sisters are highly involved in many aspects of campus life. There are a number of varsity athletes, sexual assault advisors, resident advisors, orientation counsellors and teaching assistants and as well as members of varied organizations such as the Society of Women Engineers, Alpha Phi Omega (community service) and Order of Omega (academic excellence).
There are sisters holding prominent positions on the Student Senate. The chapter members recognize the importance of scholarship and pride themselves on the fact that our chapter QPA is well above the campus all-women's average as well as the all-sorority average. For spring 2004, our chapter QPA was 3.44 and for fall 2004 its was 3.43.
In the fall, ten our sisters attained 4.0 QPAs. The members are aware of the fact that the faculty play a prominent role in helping us maintain our high academic standards and we recognize a different member of the faculty each week by naming a "Professor of the Week". The chapter hosts a professor tea and professors are invited to the house to provide an opportunity for interaction between the sisters and faculty on a more casual basis than would be possible in the classroom. We have a number of events to provide sisters an opportunity to get together for both work and relaxation. These include study hours, movie nights, sleepovers and unity dinners.
In 2004, the chapter continued two of its old goals - to have a chapter QPA of 3.35 and have an attendance of at least 80% at all mandatory events. We were successful in attaining our desired QPA. The chapter QPA for spring 2004 was 3.44 and that for the fall was 3.43. We tried to facilitate the attainment of this goal by holding weekly study hours, recognizing sisters who excelled in academics and encouraging attendance at classes by passing around a "no skippy" jar.
We were also fairly successful in achieving our second goal and attendance at most mandatory events was over 80%. We tried to encourage attendance by rewarding those with perfect attendance at our meetings.
We also introduced two new goals. The first of these was to improve alumnae relations. In order to do this we created a new position, the alumnae chairman, who is in charge of keeping alumnae up-to-date of the activities of our chapter. The second goal was to have a sisterhood sleepover once a semester to promote unity. We held a sleepover in the fall after FMR which was primarily aimed at making our new members feel integrated into the chapter. This event was very well attended.
The Delta Xi chapter has had a very memorable year. During the spring of 2007, Kappa Kappa Gamma participated in Carnegie Mellon's carnival tradition by building booth. The carnival theme was "Small Things Made Big" and KKG created a gumball machine booth. The booth was very successful and allowed the Pittsburgh community to play the games inside and participate in the fun. KKG also participated in Greek Sing. This past year, KKG paired up with AEPi and performed "Guys and Dolls". The girls had so much fun and had the chance to interact with new people. Sapphire Ball was held in May and was an excellent way to end the school year. In the fall of 2007, Mystery Date Dinner was held at Wyndham Hotel. For a philanthropy event, KKG paired up with Kappa Alpha Theta for a Kite and Key Dodgeball event to raise money for the Strong Women Strong Girls foundation. In addition, an Alumnae Reception was held. Fifty-year Kappas were presented with gifts and it was a very touching experience.
The Delta Xi chapter also did something new this past calendar year. A family reception was held and parents of the sisters were invited to the house to learn a bit more about Kappa and meet the girls that are in the same sorority as their daughter. Fall formal recruitment was particularly important for the chapter this year because about half the house graduated in the spring. Thirty seniors left and the house numbers seemed small. The membership chairman at the time did a really great job motivating the sisters and stressing the importance of FMR for the future of our house. As a result, 19 new members joined and they were all very eager to take part in Kappa activities.
The Carnegie Mellon University campus is very diverse and most of the students at the school are very involved on campus in academics as well as extracurricular activities. The school has an overall focused attitude and it is very evident that the students are driven and set goals.
Kappa Kappa Gamma has grown in several ways in 2007. Thirty seniors graduated so the number of girls in the house was cut in half. FMR was particularly important for the chapter in the fall and it was extremely successful. A great new group of girls that exemplify KKG joined and have been very active in all the activities.
There were challenges with academics and accountability this past calendar year. For academics, the chapter's overall grade point average was dropping. In order to help the situation, the VPAE initiated several activities such as a scholarship garden, enforced study hours at the house, fixed up the scholarship closet, and tried to boost the overall morale in the house. As for accountability, standards tried a few different methods to make sure that sisters attend mandatory events and stressed the importance of dedication.
In the spring semester of 2008, the Chapter Council attended the LEAD workshop at the University of Pittsburgh KKG house. They had the opportunity to meet Kappas from many other schools in the area and participate in leadership development activities. The Crush Party was held at Union Grill this year and Standards Retreat was held at the Schenley Park Ice Skating Rink. Greek Sing was a success this year. The sisters paired up with SAE and put together a show titled "Armagannie". The show was very funny and received compliments as well as a standing ovation from the audience. The chapter participated in many aspects of Carnival in the spring. The overall theme of Carnival was "Extra! Extra! Read all about it!" and KKG decided to build a booth based on a Wizard of Oz theme. The sisters were extremely proud of the booth built in the spring because it was the first two story booth we had built in quite some time. It was named "Kappa's not in Kansas Anymore" and took visitors through a journey from Munchkin Land all the way to Emerald City. During Carnival, a very successful alumni reception was also held at the house. Sapphire Ball was held at the Four Points Sheraton Hotel the weekend after Carnival. Fall 2008 also was packed with so many activities. Kappa participated in AEPi's WingAThon and won a Wii as well as some games to go along with it. FMR allowed the house to gain 21 additional members. The Standards Retreat was held at the Pittsburgh Zoo and Mystery Date was held at Mitchell's.
Kappa Kappa Gamma is one of the five Panhellenic Organizations one of eight total sororities sponsored by the University. Though Greek life at Carnegie Mellon University accounts for less than 20% of the student body, Greeks are quite active in all aspects of campus life. The Student Life Office sponsors many leadership development activities for the Greek community in addition to the numerous activities available for all students. The Greek Life Advisory Committee and "Healthy Greeks" encourage those parts of the Greek community to lead healthy lifestyles.
The sisters of the Delta Xi chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma are leaders in many facets of the Carnegie Mellon community, and the chapter maintains a positive reputation on campus. Not only do our sisters participate in Greek events to support other fraternities and sororities philanthropic charities, but other campus-wide organizations as well. Delta Xi sisters are recognized around campus as varsity athletes, intramural athletes, sexual assault advisors, Resident Assistants, Orientation Counselors, and many other leadership positions.
Some of the chapter challenges include attendance at both in-house and out-of-house activities. This includes sisters not attending meetings, out-of-house activities, and various other Greek events. This challenge is still being dealt with in the spring 2009 semester, but stricter policies on attendance were enforced. Another challenge that we had last year was maintaining a high, stable average GPA. Because of study hours that were held at the house and various other academic activities, our sisters were able to achieve a high GPA for the fall 2008 semester. Another challenge that our chapter had last year was participation (within and outside of our house) and overall success of philanthropic events. Through more in-house spirit and better advertisement of our events, we were able to get more of a turn-out by the end of the year.
For the spring 2009 semester the Delta Xi chapter was busy with booth and Greek Sing. Teaming up with Phi Kappa Theta, the Delta Xi chapter placed second in Carnegie Mellon's 2008 Greek Sing competition. Performing "West Side Story" the sisters had a great time while also raising money for charity.
Carnegie Mellon's annual Spring Carnival theme for this year was "Epic Adventures". Kappa Kappa Gamma built a two story booth entitled "James and the KKGiant Peach" placing first in our division. We held our annual Sapphire Ball at the Concordia, and early in the semester held Crush Party at Union Grill. For the fall 2009 semester the Delta Xi chapter completed an FMR retreat and FMR where we gained a pledge class of 32 enthusiastic sisters. Following FMR our standards committee conducted a standards retreat, which included fun role plays and a series of relay events.
Kappa Kappa Gamma is one of the five Panhellenic Organizations sponsored by Carnegie Mellon and one of eight total sororities sponsored by the University. Though Greek life at Carnegie Mellon University accounts for less than 20% of the student body, Greeks are quite active in all aspects of campus life. The Student Life Office sponsors many leadership development activities for the Greek community in addition to the numerous activities available for all students. The Greek Life Advisory Committee and "Healthy Greeks" encourage those parts of the Greek community to lead healthy lifestyles. Events such as Greek Week promote these efforts, as well as Panhellenic spirit.
The sisters of the Delta Xi chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma are leaders in many facets of the Carnegie Mellon community, and the chapter maintains a positive reputation on campus. We strive to live up to our motto of Tradition of Leadership. Not only do our sisters participate in Greek events to support other fraternities' and sororities' philanthropic charities, but other campus-wide organizations as well. Delta Xi sisters are recognized around campus as varsity athletes, intramural athletes, sexual assault advisors, Resident Assistants, Orientation Counselors, and many other leadership positions. Additionally, we are a diverse chapter not only ethnically and racially, but also in thought, background, and talents.
Chapter challenges2009 challenges in 2009 included attendance, maintaining our bonds of sisterhood under a two events per week policy, and dealing with our sanctions. Attendance continues to be a problem from the previous year. We continue to try to combat this challenge, by holding each other accountable and maintaining a strict attendance policy. Throughout the Fall Semester of 2009 the Delta Xi chapter faced a number of challenges centered around the sanctions placed on our chapter. The biggest impact felt by Delta Xi because of these sanction has to do with our sisterly bonding. As sisters we had to focus on things such as risk management and leadership skills, and bonding was pushed aside. However, towards the end of the Fall Semester, the election of a new Chapter Council has helped to move our chapter beyond these sanctions. Our focus for the next semester is to build our bonds of sisterhood, while maintaining Kappa Kappa Gamma standard of two events per week.
In the spring semester of 2010, the Standards retreat was held at a bowling alley. For Greek Sing the sisters paired up with Sig Ep and performed “Fame”. The sisters had a great time learning the dance and embodying the 80’s vibe. The chapter had a successful Carnival. The overall theme of Carnival was “History with a Twist” and the KKG’s built a themed booth of “Kappa Kappa Glacier: If the Ice Age Never Ended”. The sisters were awarded second place for the Sororities Division. KKG hosted lecturer Rick Barnes who gave a presentation entitled “Drink Think: A Personal Approach to Alcohol”. Delta Xi Formal, Sapphire Ball, was held at The Renaissance Hotel.
Kappa Kappa Gamma is one of the five Panhellenic Organizations. KKG is also one of eight total sororities sponsored by the University. The sorority community amounts to 15% of the student body, while Greek Life as a whole amounts to less than 20%. Greeks are very active on the Carnegie Mellon campus including raising a record of over $38,000 for St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital. The Greek Life organization makes suggestions to the Greek organizations to create a better and more effective community.
Some of the chapter challenges included being placed on probation, maintaining a GPA consistent with Kappa Kappa Gamma standards, and a philanthropy event each semester. The sisters viewed being placed on probation as a challenge to create a better chapter. The sisters have been fulfilling the probation requirements through such things as holding informative meetings, increasing volunteer hours, and creating stricter housing rules. Another challenge was maintaining a high average GPA. The sisters worked to improve their GPA through showing special attention to girls who were having trouble in school, providing academic resources providing incentives to do well in school. The sisters set goals at the beginning of the semester and worked hard throughout the semester to achieve these goals. They were supported by the efforts from the academic committee and were provided with the resources they needed to succeed. Philanthropy has been a struggle for the Delta Xi’s as well. Because of scheduling conflicts and changing circumstances, creating a consistent and successful philanthropy event has been difficult to achieve. The sisters are working to focus on philanthropy by brainstorming new ideas and working closely with the Philanthropy chair to do so.
Housing: In 2009, Delta Xi moved into their current house on the Greek House. With double the girls living in the house, the KKG Kappas became more prevalent on campus and the size of the Greek Community began growing exponentially. '''Highlights of 2011-2019'''
The Delta Xi chapter had a very eventful year in 2011. In the spring we performed "The Wedding Singer" with the brothers of Delta Tau Delta for Carnegie Mellon's annual Greek Sing competition. We won second place and had a wonderful time. For CMU's Spring Carnvial our chapter built a booth called Kappa Kosmic Galaxy, as the carnival's theme was "When I Was Your Age…". As for philanthropy we hosted Pasta Pasta Sauca in the spring and in the fall many of us attended a variety of philanthropic activies, including Greek Service Day. Each sister completed at least ten hours of service.
Carnegie Mellon welcomed a freshman class of about 1,600 students and many girls in the freshman class decided to go through FMR. CMU is growing as a school and has one of the best academic programs in the nation. As a University they value interdisciplinary studies in the arts, humanties, sciences, and engineering. We are becoming more well known and respected as a university. This fall Bill Dietrich donated a large sum of money to CMU. The College of Humanities and Social Sciences was renamed the Mariana Brown Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences after Bill's mother. This was a very exciting time for the entire student body along with all employees, faculty, and alumni. As for the panhellenic community, there are four other sororities on campus: Delta Gamma, Kappa Alpha Theta, Delta Delta Delta, and Alpha Chi Omega.
During IMR in the Spring the chapter recruited and initiated four girls. It had a very successful fall recruitment with a pledge class of 34 girls. Our newest pledge class includes freshman, sophomore, and junior sisters. We have a great group of girls and we have done a fantastic job of growing close and meaningful relationships.
In 2011 the chapter struggled with risk management skills so it went through a lot of programming and education about risk and Kappa in general. The sisters' understanding of the New Member Program and its Risk Management Policies have greatly improved. Areas in which the chapter could improve were philanthropy and alumna involvement. The members have many new ideas for philanthropy in 2012 and hope to succeed in all that we do.
'''Highlights of 2020s'''