2,350
edits
Changes
→Highlights of 2020
|College= [http://www.uillinois.edu/ University of Illinois]
|Location= Urbana, IL
|Homepage= [http://www.kappakkgillinois.orgcom/home Beta Lambda Homepage]
|Media= [http://wiki.kappakappagamma.org/index.php?title=Category:Beta_Lambda Media related to Beta Lambda Chapter]
}}
'''3,008 336 initiates (as of June 20122018)'''
----
'''Charter Members:'''
Florence Maria Beck, Georgetta Haven, Cecilia McConnel, Adele Cooper Reed, Lucy Bertha Ely Willcox.
'''Fraternity Council:'''
'''Fraternity Alumnae Achievement Award Recipients:'''
Eleanor Jewett Lundberg, 1958, Art critic for the Chicago Tribune, writer and member of numerous art societies; Polly Knipp Hill, 1962, Etcher and painter; Adlon Dohme Jorgensen(Rector), 1994, Former University of Illinois Greek Adviser; Elizabeth Hausler Strand, 2014, engineering;
'''Additional Outstanding Alumnae:'''
Karen Pszanka Layng, 2008, elected chairman of the litigation group for the law firm Vedder Price P. C. in Chicago. Pszanka Layng served on the firm’s board of directors beginning in 2001 and in 2008 served as chairman of the Compensation Committee.; Lara Meinheit (Miller), Chapter Consultant 1990-1991, Convention Chairman 2012-current
SCHOLARSHIP HONORS EARNED: First place over 27 other chapters on campus; 3.916 on a 5. system … DADS CONTRIBUTE TO UNFURNISHED DINING ROOM … MANY OUTSTANDING GIRLS HONORED IN THE 1950s …
HIGHEST SCHOLARSHIP; Chapter honored at University of Illinois Panhellenic Council dessert (1958) … ONLY LIVING CHARTER MEMBER, LUCY WILLCOX WALLACE, PRESENTS PLAQUE IN M EMORY OF KATHARINE SHARP (1959); The pledge pin of Maude Straight (Carman), first Beta Lambda pledge, had been designed by Miss Sharp and the design adopted by the Fraternity; plaque to be hung in room furnished by chapter in Miss Sharp’s memory)
==The 1960s:==
(From chapter history reports, 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 of 2011==
This past year our chapter continued to grow in the area of recruitment. Last year, we initated 50 girls, this year we increased that number and initiated 54. This group of girls consists of a large number of sophomores, and among them one exchange student from London, England. We also had much success with our fall philanthropy. At our fourth annual Kappasta Spaghetti dinner, along with our 4 on 4 volleyball tournament, we managed to donate $5,200 to Habitat for Humanity.
In addition to donating money to the cause, our chapter participated in its first house build with Habitat for Humanity last spring. This was an incredible experience and a lot of fun, and we plan on making the house build an annual event. For the past two years we have several members volunteer to read to the students of Thomas Paine school as part of our Reading is Fundamental philanthropy. Our social calendar was packed this past year with events such as "Kappa Keys Overseas" themed pledge dance, Barn Dance, Semi-Formal, and Impromptu. Aside from social events we also coordinate many successful sisterhood events within the chapter. These include visiting the apple orchard, making cranes for a sister's hospitalized father, and going ice skating.
'''Campus:''' The University of Illinois has about 43,000 students, 31,540 are undergraduates. -Of the undergraduates, about 21% of the males and females are involved in the greek system. -We have the largest greek system in the country with 36 sororities and 60 fraternities. We also have a large number of academic related fraternities for both male and females. -We have a very diverse campus with students coming from all 50 states and over 100 countries. -There are over 1,000 registered student organizations on campus, including various clubs and activities. Kappas are always very involved in what our great campus has to offer.
'''Chapter:''' -We initiated new members in the fall, which makes the Beta Lambda Chapter a total of 181 active members. -Many of our members are part of the James Scholar Program, on the Dean's List, and members of honorary fraternities such as Alpha Kappa Psi, Phi Eta Sigma, and Delta Sigma Pi. -The Beta Lambda Kappas are also involved in a wide variety of student organizations such as club soccer, ROTC, Illini Cheerleading, the Illini Dance Team, Illinettes, Illini Pride, Business Council, Identity Irish Dance Troupe, Greek Intervarsity, and many more. -Many of our members are also involved in service and volunteer work such as tutoring, and being involved with special needs children and adults in the neighborhood.
We have faced two major challenges the past year. First, we have had trouble making sure we were financially stable. Coming into the year, Beta Lambda faced a financial debt that we struggled to climb out. Many officers were unaware of limits to their budgets. We have fixed this problem by learning to effectively budget and save our money. Also, we faced another challenge in the area of academics. Last year, Kappa was ranked 9th out of 25 sororities and we were above the average GPA of sororities. However, after last fall we have dropped to 13th. This upcoming semester we plan to increase our focus on academic work and, thus, strengthen our GPA.
==Highlights of 2012==
This past year the Beta Lambda chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma continued to grow in the area of philanthropy. In the fall we hosted our annual volleyball tournament and pasta dinner, the proceeds went the Habitat for Humanity Foundation. We also participated in a local house build. This coming spring break 24 members of our chapter are going on a Habitat for Humanity trip and will be building houses in several different states. Many members of the chapter go to Thomas Paine school and read to the students, which is one of the ways we participate in the Reading is Fundamental Philanthropy. The women of the Beta Lambda chapter not only participate in our own philanthropy but in other Fraternity's and Sorority's philanthropies as well! In November of 2012 we initiated 47 wonderful women! We have had several sisterhood events this past year, such as a game night called "Kappa Kookies & Games", we went to the circus, wrote holiday cards to soldiers, made christmas cookies, had a funny photo booth night, and we made valentines for the patients at Carol Hospital. Our chapter has recently added committees to our chapter council. We believe having committees benefits the house as a whole by getting more active members involved!
The University of Illinois has about 43,000 students, 31,540 are undergraduates.
-Of the undergraduates, about 21% of the males and females are involved in the greek system.
-We have the largest greek system in the country with 36 sororities and 60 fraternities. We also have a large number of academic related fraternities for both male and females.
-We have a very diverse campus with students coming from all 50 states and over 100 countries.
-There are over 1,000 registered student organizations on campus, including various clubs and activities. Kappas are always very involved in what our great campus has to offer.
==Highlights of 2013== From January 1st, 2013 through December 31, 2013, our chapter, Beta Lambda, has improved on our academic average GPA. Last Spring 2013 semester, it was 3.4147 but during Fall of 2013 it was 3.4434. The ladies in Beta Lambda Chapter are slowly increasing the average GPA. To keep on increasing the GPA, our academic chair is keeping up with all the 2020s:study files so everyone can share their notes and support each other. Beta Lambda has participated in Kappa Kappa Gamma’s Leadership Academy. For our philanthropy involvement, we are continuing on Kappasta and Kappatat. One of the ladies in our chapter is involved in Panhellenic Council as Recruitment Board. All the ladies are very excited for her and will be supporting her. The goal of our chapter is to get involved in our chapter committee meetings more. For our formal chapter, we started following a new rule to make our chapter more formal by not having cell phone during our chapter. We started having more committees’ meetings after chapter to get everyone’s opinion on our weaknesses and strengths. ==Highlights of 2014==(From This past year our chapter had many accomplishments and exciting news. We initiated 52 women in the fall which was the result of a very successful recruitment. This group of women consisted of not only freshmen, but some sophomores and juniors as well, including an exchange student from England. Our philanthropy was also a huge success in 2014. This was the 7th year that we hosted a Kappasta spaghetti dinner at the chapter house to raise money for the University of Illinois campus chapter of Habitat for Humanity. We also hosted our annual volleyball tournament, Kappatat, in order to also raise money for Habitat for Humanity. In addition to these two events, our women continued on the tradition of monthly school reading visits in order to support Reading is Fundamental at multiple elementary schools. A few women of our chapter also participated on a Greek Serve spring break service trip in New Orleans. Social events were also very successful this past year. Our social calendar consisted of events such as a decades themed Pledge Dance, Barn Dance, Formal, Semi-Formal, and Impromptu. Adding on to these events, we also had sisterhood events such as Salsa dancing lessons, facials, a trip to the local apple orchard, scrapbooking, ice-skating, and a pajama party. More exciting news was that our president, Mallory Miller, won "Outstanding President" award at the university's Greek Oscars. Finally, in the fall we raised our GPA to 3.46, putting us at 8th place out of 26 sororities. Academics are always something that we work to improve on, so this was very exciting as we will continue to try to advance even further in the next year. Our campus had a fall enrollment of 32,281 undergraduate students. About 23% of the undergraduate students on our campus are involved in Greek life. The most recent of changes to our chapter in 2014 would be the initiation of the fall pledge class consisting of 52 women, making our chapter total to be 193 members. Many women in our chapter this past year were a part of the James Scholar Honors Program, on the Dean's List, and members of honorary fraternities. The women of Beta Lambda are also involved in many clubs and activities on campus, including the Illinettes and Business Council. This past year our women have also taken pride in volunteering for local hospitals and as tutors. Our chapter holds chapter meetings at our chapter history reportshouse located in Urbana, Illinois. Our house is an owned facility that is actually a National Historic Landmark. The women of Kappa Kappa Gamma have resided in our current house since 1928. Each sister is required to live in the house for at least a year which gives members the opportunity to live together and share an even greater bond. Our house has a maximum capacity of 62 women. In the past, scholarshipwe have also owned a house also in Urbana, Illinois. ==Highlights of 2015==This past year our chapter had many accomplishments and exciting news. We initiated 50 women in the fall which was the result of a very successful recruitment. This group honors/awardsof women consisted of not only freshmen, but some sophomores as well. Our philanthropy was also a huge success in 2014. This was the 8th year that we hosted a Kappasta spaghetti dinner at the chapter house to raise money for the University of Illinois campus chapter of Habitat for Humanity. We also hosted our annual volleyball tournament, Kappatat, in order to also raise money for Habitat for Humanity. In addition to these two events, our women continued on the tradition of monthly school reading visits in order to support Reading is Fundamental at multiple elementary schools. A few women of our chapter also participated on a Greek Serve spring break service trip in New Orleans. Social events were also very successful this past year. Our social calendar consisted of events such as a themed Pledge Dance, Barn Dance, Formal, Semi-Formal, traditionsand Impromptu. Adding on to these events, special we also had sisterhood eventssuch as a dinner swap with Alpha Gamma Delta, a trip to the local apple orchard, pumpkin carving, ice-skating, and a movie night. Finally, in the fall we raised our GPA to 3.487. Academics are always something that we work to improve on, so this was very exciting, as we will continue to try to advance even further in the next year. Our campus had a fall enrollment of 32, 878 undergraduate students. About 23% of the undergraduate students on our campus are involved in Greek life. The most recent of changes to our chapter in 2015 would be the initiation of the fall pledge class consisting of 50 women, making our chapter total to be 190 members. Many women in our chapter this past year were a part of the James Scholar Honors Program, on the Dean's List, and members of honorary fraternities. The women of Beta Lambda are also involved in many clubs and activities on campus , including the Illinettes and Business Council. This past year our women have also taken pride in volunteering for local hospitals and as tutors. Chapter Philanthropy: What organization(s) has your chapter historically/traditionally raised money for, or within donated hours to, in your community? Habitat for Humanity (in addition to Reading is Fundamental) Why did your chapter choose this organization(s) to support? We support Habitat for Humanity because we understand the impact of homelessness and Habitat for Humanity is a world leading in fighting it. This organization also allows us to make a difference right here in the Champaign community. ==Highlights of 2016== 2016 was a very productive year for Beta Lambda, and it was also a very interesting and eventful year on campus and throughout the country. Beta Lambda was on a Warning of Probation letter from Fraternity Headquarters, and the new chapter council implemented many strategic changes and plans in order to get our chapter back on track. Some of our chapter’s goals for this year were to enforce stricter risk management policies, put more emphasis on academic excellence, and to improve communication with our advisers and directors. We also worked on perfecting the recruitment and initiation processes. Beta Lambda also participated in many fun social and service events. In the winter, we held our traditional Kappa Krush dance, where many girls dressed up and celebrated Valentine’s Day with a date or with friends. We also participated in Continuous Open Bidding to welcome 5 new girls to our chapter, and they were initiated on April 16th. On April 23rd, along with Alpha Gamma Delta, our chapter hosted a blood drive to support the local blood bank in Champaign. On May 2nd, we held Kappaccino, selling coffee and baked goods on the Quad to raise money for the Panhellenic philanthropy, Circle of Sisterhood. After fall recruitment, we welcomed a large new member class of 59 girls, who were later initiated on October 29th. On October 8th we held our annual volleyball philanthropy, Kappatat, to raise money to support Habitat for Humanity. Shortly after, we hosted our annual pasta dinner, Kappasta with Theta Xi at their chapter house, and between the two events, we raised over $10,000 for Habitat for Humanity. On October 21st, we hosted a Barn Dance at Farm Lake, and many Kappa’s enjoyed their favorite event of the semester while dancing the night away with their friends, dates, and sisters.In the United States this year, we had a very memorable Presidential campaign and election, with Donald Trump winning a tight race against Hillary Clinton. Also in November, many Kappas from the Chicago area also enjoyed watching the Chicago Cubs beat the Cleveland Indians to win the World Series for the first time since 1908. This fall, Phi Mu was colonized on our campus, and Beta Lambda is making it a goal for the upcoming semesters to plan sisterhood events with them to make them feel welcome at U of I. Also on campus in 2016, one major event was that former Chicago Bears coach, Lovie Smith, was hired as the new football coach to bring the Fighting Illini to victory come football season. In 2016, our chapter was very involved in the campus community, with many members participating in clubs and organizations, while maintaining their grades and working to improve our chapter's overall nature GPA. Our main philanthropies are Habitat for Humanity, Reading is Fundamental, and Circle of Sisterhoo. We support these organizations because our chapter has continuously raised money for them for the past several years. With Habitat for Humanity, we have seen first-hand the impact our efforts make by going on "house-builds" where we actually participate in building homes for people that are struggling to make ends meet in our community. Reading is Fundamental has also been one of the organizations we participate in because when we donate books and read to children here in Champaign- Urbana, we get to see the reactions of the children and understand why our help is so important. ==Highlights of the 2017:==Throughout the year of 2017, the members of Beta Lambda have continued to improve and strengthen our chapter. Beta Lambda was placed on a Warning of Probation for the year of 2017 by Fraternity Headquarters. During the second year of the Warning of Probation, the new chapter council members carried on the progress made by the last chapter goalscouncil, while steadily advancing Beta Lambda through major improvements throughout the year. For example, we implemented using the Gin System throughout the whole chapter, began using parliamentary procedure during chapter meetings, and sustained open communication with advisers. We also improved our chapter GPA to 3.453 which is above the all sorority GPA of 3.446. During the year, Beta Lambda also partook in various social and philanthropic events across campus. On February 11th, we indulged in one of our favorite Kappa events, Kappa Krush. The Beta Lambda members invited their dates and friends to dance and have an unforgettable night. On April 24th, we hosted our annual Kappaccino event where we sold coffee and pastries on the Quad. All the profits raised throughout the event were donated to the Circle of Sisterhood. Beta Lambda then congratulated all of its graduating seniors on May 13th as they moved on to the next chapter in their lives. We then kicked off the 2017 school year with work week the week of August 21st in order to prepare for formal recruitment. Once recruitment was complete, we welcomed home our 53 new members on September 18th with our theme of New Bids on the Block. On October 8th we held our annual Kappasta dinner at the Beta Lambda chapter house where we fed delicious pasta to people from all across campus. On October 15th, we held our volleyball tournament, Kappatat, where fraternities on campus participated in our philanthropy. All proceeds raised from both Kappasta and Kappatat were used in order to support our chapter’s philanthropy, Habitat for Humanity. In total we raised a whopping $7,754 to donate to help build homes in the Champaign-Urbana community for families in need. On October 4th, we initiated 53 women to become our new member class of Kappa Kappa Gamma. Throughout the year our chapter collects books from our members to donate to students in need. This supports our national philanthropy, Reading is Fundamental. On November 1st, one of our members, Ashely Lenzini, read and donated the books we had collected to her first grade class at a school located in Danville, challenges Illinois. All the kids loved the books Beta Lambda donated and how were so thankful for the new stories they were overcomeable to bring home. We then rounded out the year with a new tradition at the Beta Lambda chapter with our first ever Sapphire Ball on December 7th. Friends and dates joined the Kappas for one last final hoorah before finals began on December 15th. == Highlights of 2018 == 2018 was a phenomenal year for the Beta Lambda chapter. The chapter was removed from Warning of Probation, but the Chapter Council committed themselves to uphold the progress the chapter has made thus far and continue to work on improving ritual as was as other aspects of our fraternity. Members were very involved in many philanthropic events. We were proud to raise our all-house GPA to reach a 3.553 in the Spring 2018 semester. During the fall semester, we hosted our annual Kappatat Volleyball Tournament and Kappasta dinner where we raised money for our philanthropy, etcHabitat for Humanity.)Along with donating money, members donated their time to our philanthropy. For the first time in years, members helped to actually build a house for a family in need. The chapter collected and donated books to donate to schools in the surrounding areas. Some of the members brought the books to children and read to them. We also participated in IlliniThon Dance Marathon where we raised $4,505 for St. Judes Children's Hospital. These members danced throughout the night to help raise money for the kids. In the spring, we held Kappacino on the quad. This Circle of Sisterhood fundraiser helps to raise money by selling coffee and small pastries to other students on the campuses quad. The Chapter was super excited to send some of our members to Illinois State University on December 1st. We initiated the brand new charter chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma. It was a great opportunity to see the installation of the Theta Beta Chapter at ISU. Our chapter along with Illinois Wesleyan helped to successfully perform the installation initiation. The University of Illinois Women's Volleyball team reaches the NCAA Final Four. Two famous restaurants on campus closed down, the Clysbourne and Firehaus. President Obama gave a speech on campus regarding the state of our democracy. T-Pain performed the Spring Jam's free concert on the quad. The Chapter was able to indulge in some of our favorite events including the Kappa Krush dance, Semi-Formal dance, and Barn Dances. For this first time, our chapter created a family tree event. This sisterhood event invited all pledge-families to create a scrapbook showcasing their whole family. Hopefully future classes will keep the tradition going and continue to add to their family tree book. We held a glass painting event for Mom's weekend and a tailgate cookout for the fathers on dad's weekend. We had a wonderful recruitment and bid day with a Kappa Kamouflage / army theme. ==Highlights of 2019==
The chapter was a part of the pilot officer structure trial where we were one of the first chapters trying it out, along with the rest of the Epsilon District. For our philanthropy, we hosted Kappatat & Kappasta (Habitat for Humanity - $6,000), Kappa Kisses (RIF & Illini Service Dogs - $1,300), Kappachinno (Circle of Sisterhood - $755), and participated in Illinithon (St. Jude's - $9,000). In total, our chapter raised $17,055 to benefit various organizations and charities. Our chapter won Month of the Scholar and the Panhellenic Book Drive. Alumnae came back to the house to celebrate their 50t h anniversary with a pinning ceremony.
Describe the recent changes on campus and describe the chapter’s overall nature.
The Illini football team won enough games to be eligible for a bowl game! Lil Yachty performed at the Spring Jam's free concert on the quad.
Chapter Philanthropy
Our chapter supports Habitat for Humanity, because Beta Lambda chapter believes that Habitat for Humanity does incredible charity work by providing for families in need. We hosted our annual volleyball tournament, Kappatat, to raise money for the organization.
For Founders Day, our chapter did the Founders Day ceremony at chapter that talks about each of the founders. We also ordered a huge cake at dinner to celebrate.
Our chapter got to see the Minnie Stewart van to kick off the celebrations of our 150th anniversary. In addition, we plan to send members to convention next year.
==Highlights of 2020==
"Chapter Summary
This year started out great for the Beta Lambda chapter. We worked with one of your philanthropy organizations (Habitat For Humanity) to help build a house in campaign. We attended study parties at the house, and participated in other sisterhood events ice skating and bachelor watch parties at the chapter house. 2 new members joined our chapter. Sadly, our semester got cut short due to COVID 19 and we had to finish our last 8 weeks of classes online. During those last 8 weeks, we were able to initiate our 2 new members during Kappa’s first ever zoom initiation. We returned to school in the fall due to COVID, but our semester looked a little different. We held recruitment over zoom and were able to initiate 43 new member over zoom. Bid day looked very different as well but we made sure everyone was staying safe with masks and social distancing! We were not able experience this semester like our others, but we were able to have one sisterhood event outdoors at Curtis Apple Orchard.
