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→Highlights of 2021
Brett Chody, our New Member Chair did an amazing job welcoming all of our new members into the Delta Tau chapter throughout the year with a Rowdeo themed bid day and fun events to help the newest members get to know each other. After having to suddenly return home due to Covid-19, Madison Dinsmore, our Marshal was able to still have an initiation ceremony for our new members via zoom. Together as a chapter we were able to partake in wonderful education nights where we discussed a range of topics from mental health to how to nail an interview! Madison House, our education chair not only did an amazing job bringing in great speakers but also going above and beyond to highlight all of our amazing seniors throughout the year.
==Highlights of 2021==
As a chapter, we decided to support the local community through a Trick-or-Read event
where we passed out books and candy in our front yard on Halloween. We also collected
supplies for WaterDrop LA to bring toiletry items to the local homeless community here in
Los Angeles. Additionally, the Delta Tau Chapter hosted a variety of fundraisers including a
flower drive and pop-up shops with a percent of the proceeds going to Trojan Shelter ($300),
USC’s own homeless shelter. In October we donated $300 to the African American Breast
Cancer Alliance and $600 to RAINN.
This year, the Delta Tau Chapter held its second annual Kites and Keys Carwash to support
Kappa’s national philanthropy. Our chapter worked alongside the Theta chapter here at USC
to hold a university wide carwash. We were able to collectively raise over $8,000 for the JED
foundation, raised $700 with a pop-up, and another $3,115. We also made donations to the
Founder’s Day Kappa Challenge ($100) and to the Kappa Foundation ($500).
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
The Delta Tau Chapter made strong and progressive initiatives towards diversity, equity, and
inclusion over the past year of 2021-2022. As a whole, we are extremely proud of our
progress and for the future of our chapter. We elected two DEI officers to our chapter
council. These two women established affinity groups who met regularly, incorporated DEI
information into every chapter meeting, led discussions that were important to DEI and the
chapter as a whole bringing awareness to internal issues, and worked closely with our
Philanthropy chair as well as the Public Relations chair. The projects with our Philanthropy
Chair included providing support for the Innocence Project, Trojan Shelter, and WaterDrop LA.
Also collaborated with the Panhellenic community to intentionally select philanthropy efforts
to serve community through selection of Alma Backyard Farms as nonprofit fundraising
recipient for the next year. They also worked alongside Public Relations chairman to address
social media posts more generally — ranging from the sort of content we share about our
members as well as drafting all of our statements pertaining to social issues in our
community. Additionally, Kappa hosted its first ever Row Wide event for LGBTQ+ folks and
allies to create a space for like minded communities to feel seen, visible and given a safe
space in the Greek community. Overall, the addition of DEI chairs had a significant positive
impact on the Delta Tau chapter and we are excited to continue progressing in our openness
and understanding of all.
Operating in a Pandemic
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, the Delta Tau Chapter quickly switched to Zoom for all
chapter business which included informal and formal chapter, initiation, education nights,
and committee nights. The exec board still met for their weekly meetings and used Zoom as
well. All of recruitment for the Panhellenic Community at the University of Southern
California also became virtual using Zoom and relied heavily on Slack as a primary
communication platform. To maintain sisterhood bonds, our VPS organized many virtual
events via Zoom and when we were allowed to have in person events, she found a safe and
healthy way to meet in person outside. Additionally, we were able to organize a COVID safe
environment for the Spring 2021 Pledge Class to have a modified initiation ceremony and bid
day.
Our Treasurer, Camilla Holmsen had the difficult task of handling finances and returning dues after the pandemic, she was able to work with the board to create the best strategy in order to do so. It was a confusing process, but Camilla was able to adapt and work quickly to get to a proper solution! Katherine Klausner, the Vice President of Standards did a great job creating fun sisterhood events for our chapter throughout the year. From something as small as sister shout outs at the beginning of chapter or as big as tie-dye events involving the whole chapter, Kate did not fail to foster a warm and sisterly environment! Our attendance did see improvements over the 2020 year and our Secretary, Gurnoor Gill, was able to implement a new QR code attendance system, making attendance tracking far more efficient.
During the end of our academic year in May, the Black Lives Matter movement took over America after the killing of George Floyd. This movement was a massive wake up call for the entire Greek life community. Our chapter took a deeper dive to see what changes we needed to make both internally and externally in order to make changes to the systematic racism that has been deeply rooted in the Greek system since its existence. Our chapter had serious and emotional conversations where sisters discussed areas in which we need to make massive changes in this chapter. Collectively as a chapter we worked into the summer to create an action plan to follow in order to create lasting change in the Delta Tau chapter and across USC’s Greek row. We created a new position on chapter council, the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) chair which will be led by Katherine Price and Sophia Ceniza. We are so excited to see what strategies they will implement in order to foster a more inclusive environment in the Delta Tau Chapter as well as how we as a chapter can help foster change in the real world.
The 2020 year for the Delta Tau chapter is a year we should be very proud of. A year unlike most, brought us closer together than ever before and has helped us reflect on who we are as a chapter. We always strive to improve as a chapter, and it is clear to see that we are making massive steps towards creating an even better future for the Delta Tau chapter. This year hasn’t been the easiest, but the work that every single member has put into this chapter will help to make us stronger than ever before. We can’t wait to see the lasting effects the 2020 year will have on the Delta Tau Chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma! ---------------------- '''Note to Chapter Registrar:'''Please refer to your chapter archives including chapter meeting minutes and back issues of The Key to fill in any gaps in the above historical highlights. If your chapter archives are not complete, please research your university library, campus newspaper and yearbook archives for newsworthy information about your chapter. Please double check your work for accuracy. Contact chapter Advisory or House Board members, local Alumnae Association members, or your Province Director of Chapters for assistance. Your efforts will ensure a complete and accurate history of your chapter for future generations to enjoy!
