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Changes
→2012
From chapter’s History Report: Scholarship, group honors/awards, traditions, special events, changes on campus or within chapter, overall nature of the chapter, chapter goals, challenges and how they were overcome, etc.:
==Highlights 2012==
2012 was yet another very positive year for the Theta Chapter at the University of Missouri. Our wonderful house director Linda Orman did an outstanding job with not only keeping up the house but with the 88 women living under the same roof. President Hannah Bartfield along with the other newly elected officers of chapter council kept the momentum going with fulfilling the roles and responsibilities given to them. Theta Chapter as a whole benefited tremendously from the work these lovely women devoted to our chapter.
Here at Kappa you will find a wonderful friendship that doesn’t end in four years, it lasts a lifetime. Within these walls something special is found, it is a bond that cannot be broken. It is a bond that brings us all together though our personalities are so different. Though our personalities may vary the relationship we have with each other does not. We are so close and always there to lend a helping hand or a shoulder for other sisters to lean on. If someone were to describe our chapter in a few words the description would be, Kappa is a house full of smart, caring, outgoing girls that will always be there for you. The women of Theta chapter never turn their backs on each other.
==Highlights==
'''January 2013'''
2013 was another productive year for Theta Chapter here at the University of Missouri. Our great house director Linda Orman did an exceptional job with keeping up the house and caring for the 86 women living in our wonderful home. President Kenzie Rauch along with the other newly elected officers of chapter council came into office with a vibrant energy, excited to take on the roles and responsibilities given to them. Theta Chapter benefited greatly from the work these dedicated women did for our chapter.
'''February 2013'''
Similar to last February and many years before, on the 23rd Kappa participated in one of the University of Missouri’s largest philanthropies known as RAMS. RAMS, which stands for Rockin’ Against Multiple Sclerosis, offers multiple events over a course of different days. There is a t-shirt sale competition, Cup Night sales, Jail ‘n Bail, comedy night and many other activities. Our very own Lilli R. was one of the three Tri-Directors for the RAMS philanthropy this year. Another fun activity put on by RAMS was the skit and dance competition. The kappa dancers along with a few others participated in this event. One of our members even showed off her talent for baton twirling! Our theme for the skit and dance was Cirque de Kappa.
''March 2013'''
During March, Theta Chapter was very busy. On the 15th our annual Prohibition social was held. All the lovely members and their dates got to dress up in 1920’s attire as flappers and gangsters. Many fun pictures prove that Prohibition was an enjoyable success.
Kappa also held the annual Signature Event. This event is put on for Kappa’s national philanthropy RIF (Reading is Fundamental). We continued the tradition of our theme being Dr. Seuss since it was such a success in the past years. Kelsey H., Kappa’s Beneficiary Chairman, did a fabulous job planning various activities for the kids to participate in, such as an arts and crafts project as well as performing a skit from parts of various Dr. Seuss books. At the end of our Signature Event, held at Grant Elementary School this year, all of the children in the class, student taught by one of our members Shelby Harper, got 2 books as a present and hopefully an inspiration to continue to read. On the weekend of March 2th, Kappa also welcomed their mothers to Columbia, Missouri from all over the country to celebrate Mom’s Weekend. Payton M. and Sarah H. did an excellent job planning Mom’s weekend.
Friday night started out with a night full of socializing and dancing for the mothers and daughters that was held at the classy Upper Crust venue. The next day mothers and daughters spent their days relaxing and unwinding from the dancing done the night before. Most went shopping and out to lunch, then at night, everyone was offered the opportunity to go to a discounted showing of Safe Haven, a classic romantic film, at Forum 8. On Sunday, our awesome chefs made a delightful brunch was served at Kappa followed by a few boutiques set up with many fun things to buy such as jewelry, scarves, and various other accessories. It was such a nice weekend enjoyed with the ladies we love and adore. Finally, in the middle of this month Kappa’s were finally allotted the opportunity to volunteer at our local philanthropy Cedar Creek Therapeutic Riding Center.
'''April 2013'''
April was a very exciting month around kappa. The most exciting news around the house was winning Greek Week overall, for the second year in a row! This year we were paired with the men of Lambda Chi Alpha and Sigma Pi. We were fierce competitors in sports such as soccer, basketball, volleyball, and flag football. Unfortunately, the surprise event this year, steal the bacon, was cancelled due to terrible weather conditions. Despite the unfavorable weather, those who didn’t participate in the games were cheering loudly from the sidelines with painted fleur-de-lis on their faces, rocking signature KKG sunglasses and sprit gear. Jody P., a spunky freshman, even came up with the idea of having a 4 girl cheerleading squad at every sports competition; they even had their own cheers and everything! The fans continued to show their support even in the freezing rain. Our efforts together brought us to the top yet again!
'''May 2013'''
During the Spring 2012 semester, Kappa Kappa Gammas at Mizzou were recognized for various campus honors such as, Mortar Board and being tapped into various honor societies. Congratulations to Hannah B. for being chosen for Mizzou Mortar Board! Mortar Board is an American national honors society of elite seniors at the University of Missouri who have consistently upheld the values that Mizzou represents. In addition, they have been extremely involved on campus, through service work and maintained dedication to their schoolwork. Mizzou 39 is a very similar secret society like Mortar Board that Cara W. was tapped into. Congratulations to Caroline T. for being tapped into the honor society, Omicron Delta Kappa! ODK is a secret and highly selective national honor society that chooses its members based upon rigorous involvement in collegiate areas such as, scholarship, athletics, campus involvement and various other academic-based sectors. Also, Congratulations to Kelsey H. for being tapped into the honor society, QEBH. QEBH is the oldest of the six secret honors societies on Mizzou's campus. While the actual name and inner workings of QEBH are kept secret, we do know that they keep the Victory Bell, a trophy that has gone home with the winner of the Missouri-Nebraska football game since 1927. Finally, congratulations to all of our wonderful seniors that left us this year!
'''Summer 2013'''
Though it was the end of the school year at the University of Missouri Kappa’s were keeping busy. A total of eight Kappas were Pi Chi’s for this year’s formal recruitment! The highest number of Kappa Pi Chi’s yet. Some Kappa’s also remained involved with campus activities over the summer break by being Summer Welcome Leaders helping incoming freshman get prepared for their first year at Mizzou. This year PHA also decided to adopt their own philanthropy called Circle of Sisterhood. Two Kappa’s were on the PHA Executive Board for 2013 but one, Paola R. and 2 other Kappa’s got the special opportunity to go to Africa with Circle of Sisterhood to help build a school house for a community that could not afford it otherwise. The school was built solely by sorority women from all over the country. Several other Kappas traveled the world over summer break whether on vacations with their families, internships, or study abroad trips. Their destinations ranged from China to New Zealand to England and even to Brazil. There is no doubt that the summer of 2013 was a very busy one for the members of Theta chapter!
'''August 2013'''
After reuniting with old friends, Mizzou Kappa’s dove into “Work Week” to prepare for Recruitment. After a summer of preparation, Megan Beykirch and Page Dodam led the chapter in putting on an outstanding recruitment. Work Week had a few themed days in which the girls had a lot of fun with such as “Decades,” “USA,” and a day where each pledge class competes to have the best theme. All of the hard work put into Work Week paid off during recruitment week. Some of the highlights of recruitment week included our amazing skit performed on Sisterhood Day that is consistently hilarious every year. This year’s theme was the Kappa Kappa Gamma pageant. Who would be Miss Kappa Kappa Gamma? On Philanthropy day, the house was transformed into a high class golf course to illustrate our infamous Kappa Klassic Philanthropy. This was the first year we changed the theme from our usual “Dr. Seuss” theme that illustrated our national philanthropy RIF. The change was a big one, but it was quite successful! Finally, on Bid Day, a beautiful banner sporting the phrase “KKG Under the Sea,” as that was our theme, was hanging from the columns of the house. All of the actives were eagerly anticipating the 83 new members’ arrival. When they arrived, new members were showered with gifts and hugs and enjoyed a Bid Day at a swim park where everyone enjoyed some delicious barbecue and some fun in the sun.
'''September 2013'''
Thursday, September 26th, was a very exciting day to be a KKG at Mizzou! The sophomore pledge class was thrilled to become Pledge Moms and the New Members were even more excited to become someone's Pledge Daughter at the Pledge Family Reveal! And as far as the juniors and seniors go, let's just say they were very excited to welcome someone new into their pledge family...but not so much about being called someone's "Pledge Grandma" or "Pledge Great-Grandma"! Sophomores were in charge of making shirts for their pledge family and all of them turned out adorable! After the Reveal, each Pledge Family went out to enjoy a nice dinner.
The Kappa Klassic was also held this month and it consisted of two weekends full of fraternity men and klassy fathers playing their best rounds of golf. This year a record number of funds were raised by the Kappa Klassic. $44,500 was split three ways and benefited the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation, Cedar Creek Therapeutic Riding Center, and RIF. Needless to say Kelsey H. and Devin W. did a phenomenal job at organizing and hosting the largest philanthropy in Greek town. This is not the only phenomenal job that Kappa’s did this month however; Sarah H. and Payton M. hosted an amazing Dad’s Weekend which consisted of a bonfire party on Friday night followed by a fun tailgate before a great Mizzou football game on Saturday. Other achievements include Kathleen K. becoming the lead Coordinator for the newly established Truman’s Closet on campus. Truman’s Closet is a non-profit organization that rents out professional attire for those in the Columbia community that have important job interviews but not enough money to buy nice business attire. They also offer services such as mock job interviews and resume building classes. And finally, numerous Kappa’s decided to get deeply involved in the University of Missouri’s largest campus philanthropy, Dance Marathon, by either becoming Steering Committee members or Dance Moral Captains. What can’t our members do?!
'''October 2013'''
With homecoming coming up Kappa could not be more proud of our sister Sarah Barr for being nominated for Mizzou's Top 30 Homecoming Royalty. On October 4th, also in the spirit of Homecoming, we held our denim themed marriage party to our wonderful Homecoming pairings, Theta Chi and Farmhouse. This was Theta Chi’s first year participating in Homecoming. Also, in October, one of our members, Lindsey Pierce, founded a new organization on campus called Executive Women International Collegiate. The organization’s goal is to introduce its members to professional mentors in the working fields of their interest and to help prepare them for the task of being women in the real world of business. Multiple Kappas applied to be in this new organization and Lindsey plans to do big things through EWIC on campus. Kappa also renewed an old tradition of celebrating Halloween with Chi Omega by throwing an “Owl”-oween social. It was truly a blast getting to spend such a fun holiday with a fellow sisterhood.
'''November 2013'''
November was yet another busy month around Kappa. The women of Kappa and the men of Theta Chi and Farmhouse took on Mizzou's 102nd Annual Homecoming Celebration with the theme of "Washington D.C."! Overall, we took home 2nd place! The other categories, we placed as follows: 1st place House Decs, 1st place Banner, 1st place Merchandise, 1st place Service, 4th place Blood, and Best Supporting Actress in Talent. November 2nd and 3rd, we welcomed 80 New Members into our wonderful sisterhood! During I-week, members showed their spirit by wearing different colors each day. In addition, there were fun activities planned to build the bond of Kappa's sisterhood. Tuesday, there was a movie night in the New Member room at the Kappa house. For dinner on Thursday, the new members were invited to a special Blue and Blue dinner cooked by our creative chefs! Friday was the beginning of a fun-filled and very successful Initiation!
Thank you to our Marshal, Lindsey P., her assistants, Chapter Council, and all the alumnae who put in so much hard work throughout the week/weekend and made this Initiation smooth and very successful. Kaddy Shack is a social in honor of the two golf teams who win the Kappa Klassic (Kappa’s philanthropy). The men of Alpha Gamma Sigma and the men of Sigma Pi won the fraternity portion of the Kappa Klassic and Kaddy Shack was held of the 22nd. Once again, Kappa and Pi Beta Phi celebrated the founding of our sororities at the same college, Monmouth on the weekend of the 16th! The first night was a bonfire and hayride and the following night was a venue social. On the Sunday following Initiation, the Columns Ballroom at the University Club was filled with over 250 actives and alumni. The Kappa ladies ate a lunch of Dijon chicken while they listened to the wonderful keynote speaker, Leigh Neier, talk about what it means to truly call someone your “sister”. Representatives from each pledge class spoke beautifully about their experiences in Kappa, and we were honored to give out a 50-year pin to Cynthia Miller Mustard and a 65-year pin to Helen Wells Wilson. Everyone enjoyed listening to the Kappa Pickers sing “Drifter” and junior, Lindsay P., sing her original song “The Beautiful and Good”.
Pledge Class Speakers:
Freshmen: Kate W.
Sophomore: Ryan D.
Junior: Amy M.
Senior: Kenzie M.
Most Outstanding Member of Each Pledge Class:
Freshmen: Lauren G.
Sophomore: Allison D.
Junior: Maddie T.
Senior: Lilli R.
Gracious Liver Award: Kelci D.
Most Active Senior Award: Page D.
Behind the Scenes Award: Brooke H.
Martha Stevens Toller Award: Kenzie R.
'''December 2013'''
In December, the ladies danced the night away at the last social of the year, Semi-Formal. With finals approaching and stress levels high, Kappa’s were ready for the holiday season. This year Kappa won the award of “Dedication to Member Academic Excellence” at the Greek Life Honors Night. Upon return from Thanksgiving break, elections for the new Chapter Council were also held. The new officers are as follows:
President: Maddie Taylor
VPS: Alyssa Fancher
VPO: Hallie Herrmann
VPAE: Taylor Luetkemeyer
Recording Secretary: MJ Rodgers
Corresponding Secretary: Sarah White
Treasurer: Caroline Sechler
Registrar: Kara Klemp
Marshal: Maddie Poletis
Education: Jody Peterson
House: Rayanna Becker
Recruitment: Suzanna Thorne
Membership: Natalie Fischer
Philanthropy external: Claire Fischer
Philanthropy internal: Laura Sickman
New Member: Allison Doerr
Public Relations: Haley McDill
Events external: Bekah Bade
Events internal: Elissa Arnold
Risk Management: Allison (Bobbie) Roberts
Panhellenic Delegate: Jamie Ras
Campus Description: University of Missouri-Columbia
Enrollment (Fall 2013)
Total: 34,658
In-State: 24,743
Out-of-state 9,915
Undergraduate: 26,965
Graduate: 6,439
International: 2,236
Greek Life (Fall 2013)
Total # of Greeks 7,442
Total # of Greek Men 3,107
Total # of Greek Women 4,335
Total # of PHA Women 4,319
% Of Greek Students 27%
% Of Greek Men 11%
% Of Greek Women 16%
Annual Undergraduate Cost, 2013-14
Missouri resident total: $22,943
Non-resident total: $37,292
Tuition and fees: $9,415 (resident); $23,764 (non-resident)
Room and board:$9,286
Books and supplies: $946
Personal and transportation: $3,296
Costs assume 14-hour enrollment each semester
'''Changes On Campus:'''
Due to our switch to the SEC, our campus has been doing a lot of construction to better our athletic sporting centers such as renovations to Faurot Field, the volleyball courts, and Wolpers dorm. Another big highlight on our campus this year was our very successful football season. The Mizzou Tigers worked their way all the way to the Cotton Bowl and the head football Coach, Gary Pinkel, beat Faurot this year with the largest number of wins as head Coach. However, our football team was not the only successful Mizzou sports team; our girls’ volleyball team was undefeated for majority of their season up until the tail end. So congratulations, to all of the Mizzou Tiger sports teams for such a successful second year in the SEC.
'''Overall Nature of Theta Chapter'''
The feeling that you get when you walk into the Theta Chapter Kappa house is almost indescribable. The best way that I can describe the feeling is immediately comfortable and homey. The women in this house make it a home. These women are the most genuine, successful, noble, true and good young people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. I could go on forever but I would rather just say that the true nature of the Theta Chapter is that it is a home away from home. You will always find love and acceptance among these women. I have become a better person from knowing these Theta Chapter women and it is because this sisterhood is so strong. You will always find a home here at Theta Chapter.
==Highlights of 2020s:==