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|Image= [[File:Beta_Omega.jpg|200px]]
|Founded= {{start date and years ago|1913|01|11}}
|College= [httphttps://www.uoregon.edu/ University of Oregon]
|Location= Eugene, OR
|Homepage= [httphttps://wwwuoregon.oregonkkgkappa.comorg/ Beta Omega Homepage]|Media= [httphttps://wiki.kappakappagammakkg.org/index.php?title=Category:Beta_Omega Media related to Beta Omega Chapter]}}
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'''University of Oregon established in 1872, Eugene, Oregon''' '''Founded January 11, 1913''' '''2,563 823 initiates (as of June 20142018)''' ------------------------------- '''Charter Members:''' Neta Bartlett, Clementene Cutler, Oliva Starr Donnell, Carolyn Leach Dunston, Ruth Claire Hardie, Lilla Irvin, Alice Edith Larsen, Loretta Showers, Hazel Emaline Wightman, Frances Packard Young. '''Fraternity Officers:'''Elizabeth Butler Anderson, Leadership Consultant, 2002-2003 '''Fraternity Loyalty Award Recipients:''' '''Fraternity Alumnae Achievement Award Recipients:''' Cathleen Tharldsen Catlin, 1964, Fashion columnist, editor; Louise Siebert Pappas, 1998, writer and pioneer in the field of cooking '''Additional Outstanding Beta Chi Alumnae:''' ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ==The Early Years (Excerpted from The History of Kappa Kappa Gamma Fraternity: 1870-1976)== In 1913, the year of Beta Omega's installation, the University of Oregon was 41 years old, it had a student body of 691, and a faculty of 65. The five girls who had taken the name of Gamma Delta Gamma applied informally for a Kappa charter in 1909. They had been inspired by their house mother, Agnes Leach Dunstan, Omega - Simpson, mother of one of the five, to make Kappa their goal. For four years the group maintained strength on the campus, and a second house mother, Maude Stinson, Beta Eta-Stanford, helped to keep the thought of a Kappa charter before them. In the spring of 1912 a formal petition was approved by Fraternity officials and sent on for chapter vote. On January 11, 1913, Beta Omega was installed by the grand president, Eva Powell, Pi Deuteron-California, assisted by Beta Pi Chapter. By that time four national women's fraternities had been established at Oregon but only one, Gamma Phi Beta, had been installed earlier than the local, Gamma Delta Gamma. Although the group had had the security of a rented house near the campus from 1910 to 1925, the years before and after installation were difficult. Early members of Beta Omega have been described as "vigorous-minded individual girls of active and varied interests," distinguished by "strength and self-reliance." Although the Kappa Alumnae Association in Eugene was small, these 20 members were of great service to the young chapter. There was help with house rent and expenses, assistance to the chapter adviser, and January 11 birthday parties for the group. Portland mothers also stepped in, presenting furniture and rugs. Beta Omega developed in a stimulating atmosphere, inspired by the university president, Prince L. Campbell, a man of many virtues, including a respect for scholarship, and a feeling for beauty. Most of the girls in the early chapter came from Portland and Eugene. They majored in education, journalism, art, or music. Their scholarship, to quote Sally Elliott Allen, Eta-Wisconsin, the 1930 history chronicler for Beta Omega, "has been creditable and often superior, and they have always stood for a sincere and unaffected womanliness." A member of Pi Deuteron Chapter, Irene Hazard Gerlinger, was a regent of the University of Oregon between 1914-1929. She was in charge of the campaign for the women's building which was dedicated in 1920 and name in her honor. She was the only woman on the Board of Regents. The independent spirit of the house was seen in a number of interesting ways. There was no brass nameplate on the door; the telephone was answered by a repetition of the number "204", not "Kappa Kappa Gamma"; every Tuesday "outside girls" were invited for dinner; and many girls who were campus leaders did not wear their keys. One year the chapter was so small that it appeared that only two girls would be back in the fall. Those two came to be known as Beta and Omega. Financial conditions were often poor; but these conditions improved steadily. By the fall of 1925, a new house at 15th and Alder Streets had been built at a cost of about $37,000, for the lot, house, furnishings and landscaping. This original building has been remodeled three times. In 1974, new additions doubled the size of the kitchen, provided any apartment for the housemother, increased the sleeping porch area, and included a sun porch. Fifty-eight members can live in the house very comfortably. During World War I, spare time was devoted to Red Cross work. During World War II, blood was donated and scrap metal was collected. A German war orphan was adopted and sent letters and gift boxes. During the 1960s community service in Eugene was considered more relevant and fund drives and parties for underprivileged children were co-sponsored, usually with a men's fraternity. In 1965 the chapter won the Oregon Citizenship Cup given to the organization outstanding in scholarship, leadership, and service to the university, community, state and national government. Some of the chapter's recent community work has been with underprivileged children and working at the senior citizen center. In 1942, five of the six seniors in the house were elected to Phi Beta Kappa. The 3.003 grade average in 1965 was the highest ever achieved by an Oregon group. The chapter was received many scholarship trophies. By the middle 1960s a choice of 48 graduate and undergraduate degrees was offered at Eugene. The medical and related schools were on the Portland campus. Superior students were given the opportunity to take part in the "Honors College," a unique program offering the advantages of a small school, with seminars and research programs. In May, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson and the National Science Foundation awarded a grant of four million dollars to the university. Oregon was the first state university to receive a large federal grant to aid in its development as a top educational center. Some chapter traditions have been lost, such as the joint Founders' Day celebration with Gamma Mu, and the Christmas Serenade with white candles, white collars, and sacred songs. Apple Polishing, a party for favorite teachers; a Kappa-Pi Beta Phi dinner when keys were worn slanted and arrows straight; activity paddles for active freshmen; the blown-out candle to announce an engagement; and the spring awards banquet were continued into the mid-1960s. A revolving Emergency Loan Fund was started by the Eugene alumnae in 1945 in memory of Hazel Prutsman Schwering, Oregon's dean of women, who was a Beta Omega. These alumnae contribute greatly to the house and to the morale of the chapter. The mothers' clubs of Eugene and Portland and the Portland alumnae continue to make utilitarian and decorative contributions. Prominent members have included Louise Allen Holmes, an advertising executive; Nancy Wilson Ross, a novelist; and Dorothy Duniway Ryan, a free lance journalist. Other outstanding Beta Omegas include botanist Lilla Irvin Leach, fashion coordinator Cathleen Tharaldsen Catlin, pediatrician Dr. Margaret Tingle, and educator Hazel Schwering. The stamina which enabled Beta Omega to find boarders and to keep the chapter going when it thought that only two girls would be making up the entire group, and the independence of spirit which has characterized the chapter from the start, can be seen today. ==Highlights of the 1980s==During the 1980’s Beta Omega celebrated milestone anniversaries, continued to bring in outstanding pledge classes, sponsored and participated in a variety of philanthropies and excelled in the various Greek events. Their Rush themes included the likes of: Open House-blue dresses with white sashes, Tours-Kappa Paint Factory, Kamp Kappa Gamma where they embraced a forest theme and Preference generally had a fairy-tale theme with twinkling white lights. On Bid Day, they would welcome their members with a BBQ or other sisterhood activity. Near the end of the ‘80s they consistently had pledge classes over 40 members. Philanthropy events consisted of visiting convalescent homes and working with children at an underprivileged day care. In 1989, they teamed up with Sigma Phi Epsilon at Oregon State to create a bike race from Eugene to Corvallis. It was a huge success and the funds were raised for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Beta Omega celebrated their 75th Anniversary in 1988 and their semi-formal chapter dance was in honor of the anniversary. Also in 1988, the chapter won for the second year in a row “Serenade,” the song and dance competition held during Greek Week. In 1989 the chapter was recognized as the “Most Outstanding Sorority on Campus” and won Greek Days of Giving. The chapter wrapped up the ‘80s with a public relations chapter goal of “Less of Me, More of We, We All Work for KKG.” There were several sisterhood events and activities with other sororities which helped to promote the Kappa name in a positive way. The chapter also embarked on raising Kappas GPA in 1988 and in 1989 their chapter goal was “Save Our Scholarship.” ==Highlights of the 1990s==Beta Omega kicked off the ‘90s by hosting Pi Province meeting in 1991, where they were awarded the Membership Award. They also had success in events such as Sigma Chi Derby Days and Greek Week Air Band competition. The ‘90s also created challenges for the chapter. Budget cuts and increased tuition had a significant impact on membership. Some members were forced to leave school and quota numbers significantly decreased. Beta Omega had fall pledge class sizes ranging from 18–32. They participated in COB during the winter for the first time in chapter history and often participated in spring Initiation. This helped the chapter maintain numbers and weather the storm of decreased enrollment. Chapter leadership continued to have the members focus on scholarship and for a few years included member safety. Their efforts were rewarded with improved chapter GPA that allowed the chapter to have the 2nd highest GPA one term and the new member class had the highest GPA in 1999. In addition to academics and safety, the chapter focused on Greek relations and attendance at Kappa events. They created clever methods to encourage attendance and it paid off. Philanthropy was a major focus of Beta Omega. The bike race to OSU continued for several years and funds were donated to United Way. They also began their Kappa 5K Run which proceeds were donated to Women’s Space, an organization that supported battered women. In addition to these events, the chapter supported a local soup kitchen and annual Halloween activities for children at Pearl Buck. The Beta Omega House Board continued to keep the house updated with improvements to the foyer, chapter room, new furnishings and converting the pit to a study room. Dads’ weekend in the fall consisted of tailgates, breakfasts and skits. Mom’s weekend consisted of brunches, hikes and when needed an auction. Members enjoyed the annual Christmas party and in the mid-nineties, they welcomed a new cook and house director. ==Highlights of the 2000s==The first decade of the new century was filled with lots of new and traditional activities. Moms’ and Dads’ weekends continued to be a tradition for the chapter along with the Christmas party at the end of the fall term. In 2000, the chapter opted to go “Select 2000.” The purpose of this program was to improve living conditions of fraternities. The chapter embraced the program by focusing on classier themes and behavior.Beta Omega continued to do well academically and they experienced more robust numbers during Recruitment. Early in the 2000s, the chapter was still participating in winter COB and spring recruitment, but by the fall of 2008 they pledged 55 new members! The chapter included Reading Is Fundamental in their philanthropy efforts by holding fundraisers and book drives. Pearl Buck and the Kappa 5K Race for Women’s Space continued to be popular philanthropy events and in 2009 they held the Kappa Retro Dodgeball Tournament. They also supported other Greek organizations’ philanthropies and were Sigma Chi Derby Day champs four years in a row! Sisterhood was a focus for the chapter and a highlight was participating in the all-Greek ski trip weekend to Whistler, B.C. Members who went enjoyed the opportunity to get to know their sisters.
==Highlights of 2011==
'''Chapter:''' Within the chapter we are starting to focus on things we can improve on. We have a plan to remodel the kitchen, expanding the dining room in the process. It it set to take place over the summer of 2011 and be done before that Fall term. We also received comcast T.V. in the Krib to allow more girls to watch the shows they want when the television in the living room is taken.
One challenge that we had to face in the Fall term of 2010 was the fact that not everyone could cram into the dining room for chapter. This was due to the increasingly large pledge class sizes. We overcame this challenge by making arrangements with the University of Oregon to use a lecture size classroom a few blocks away. It has worked very well! We now have our own personal space, we can see the officers better, and we don't get overheated and restless. Also due to the large number of girls the kitchen was no longer able to accommodate us for formal dinners. They didn’t have enough space to store all the food in the tiny kitchen. We adjusted and now we have normal dinner before chapter. Another issue was keeping everyone motivated to stay involved. Some girls didn’t feel like showing up to chapter or participating in events. We are starting to overcome this challenge by creating positive incentives to attend things, such as games, candy or other prizes. It has helped immensely and the negativity in the house has subsided.
==Highlights of 2012==
Beta Omega is a chapter of incredible women who continue to set the standard of what it means to be a sorority woman. Our chapter is filled with bright, compassionate, and caring women who all contribute something unique to our chapter and make it the best sorority on campus.
==Highlights of 2014==
In 2014, the Beta Omega chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma at the University of Oregon grew together as a whole. Beta Omega improved in areas such as Leadership, Philanthropy, Recruitment, and Philanthropic Involvement among others.
During Fall Formal Recruitment, our chapter surpassed our quota and welcomed 66 New Members into our chapter 12 of which are legacies. Throughout recruitment the ladies of Beta Omega worked hard to find the best pledge class possible and we feel that these women are more than capable to uphold Kappa's ideals. Our Bid Day theme this year was a Kappa Circus which included a lot of fun decorations, a balloon arch with a painted popcorn box at either end, a DJ, and a photobooth. This welcoming of our New Members was a great way to see all of our long hours and dedication pay off.
The Beta Omega chapter of Kappa Kappa Kappa excelled in the area of philanthropy in 2014. Our chapter held our annual Dodge Ball tournament which was the highest attended philanthropic event at the University of Oregon in 2014. We had over 700 people play in the tournament and raised over 7,000 dollars. We gave about 6,000 of the money we raised to our local philanthropy Early Childhood CARES while also providing the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation with 1,000. This event was an extreme successes. Additionally, Beta Omega held our reading is Key event in the week leading up to Mom's weekend in which we held an all-campus book drive at our chapter house. That week we volunteered with the local Boys and Girls Club and made arts and crafts as well as group reading activities. Approximately 300 people attended and contributed to this event and 100 books were collected for Reading is Fundamental. Beta Omega also raised $407 for Reading is Fundamental through a social media competition for the app Blend.
Our chapter puts a great importance on philanthropic involvement. In 2014 Beta Omega participated in each of the philanthropy events that chapters within our community held. We placed second in Kappa Sigma's Boot Camp, Second place in Lambda Chi Alpha's Pumpkin Smash, first place in Sigma Chi's Derby Days dance, and first place in Sigma Pi's Pig Skin Classic among others. The Greek Life community at the University also held several greek-wide events. Our chapter was partnered with the gentlemen of Beta Theta Pi during Greek Week, a week long competition between all greek houses, and we placed first overall. Greek Life also planned an event called Greek Games where all chapters were partnered up and competed in a series of sporting events. We were partnered with Kappa Sigma and Alpha Epsilon Pi in which we also earned first place. 2014 was a great year for our chapter regarding philanthropic involvement.
Our chapter also enjoys giving back to our community. In 2014 we participated in several events of service. In February we had a group of girls volunteer at the Special Olympics which was said to be a truly humbling experience. Our chapter also went to one of the local retirement homes in Eugene to play Bunco with the elderly on multiple occasions and volunteered at the Boys and Girls club as well. Additionally, Each individual member took upon the responsibility of completing their community service hours by attending several different events.
In 2014, our chapter dedicated efforts to improving our grades and maintaining a strong risk management program. Beta Omega also put a great importance on holding sisterhood events to improve the bonds between pledge classes. Overall, Beta Omega grew together as a chapter and improved the bonds between themselves and other chapters. Beta Omega is a chapter of amazing women who continue to set the standard for what it means to be a sorority woman.
We hold chapter in the dining room of our house. Our chapter owns a beautiful home right next to campus. We are privileged enough to have a home with a capacity of 55 women. We have maintained a high demand for members who want to live in. This has been our same home since Beta Omega was founded.
==Highlights of 2015==
In 2015, the Beta Omega chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma had much strength. Beta Omega was able to improve on its chapter goals of academia, with an improved overall grade point average, and ritual, with the implementation of a Founders Day celebration. Beta Omega was also able to excel in some of its previous areas of strength such as philanthropy, community involvement, and recruitment.
At the start of 2015 Beta Omega’s philanthropy even planning was in full swing. As proven successful in the past, our philanthropy chair planned our annual Kappa Dodgeball event. The theme was Kappa Gameday, which helped create a competitive and energetic atmosphere. The event took place on February 21 at a venue on campus. This year we doubled our participant attendance from the years past, with over 700 participants from both Greek affiliations and non-affiliated groups. This became the most widely attended event within the Greek community on University of Oregon’s campus in 2015. In the end, Beta Omega raised 10,500 dollars, making it the most successful philanthropy event in Beta Omega’s history. Beta Omega was able to donate 8,000 dollars to our local philanthropy, Early Childhood Cares, which is a learning center in Eugene for children under the age of five with developmental disabilities. One thousand dollars from our total was donated to Reading is Fundamental with the remaining 1,500 donated to the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation. Beta Omega is humbled by the support we have received from the University of Oregon student body that has allowed us to provide such donations to charities that are special to our chapter.
In the preceding months Beta Omega continued to grow as a chapter. In March we had our Spring Formal dance and finished off the school year with moms weekend in May. At this event our Moms Club was able to raise 25,000 dollars for renovations for our chapter house. Over the summer our study lounge, blue room, and living room all received improvements. Our members were excited to see these renovations and were even more grateful for these changes with recruitment in the immediate future.
With nearly 1,000 signups for fall formal recruitment, Beta Omega undertook recruitment headstrong. By the end of the week our chapter welcomed 69 new members. Our Bid Day theme was Kappa Adventure with a tagline of “Your Kappa Adventure Awaits”. Our lawn was covered with smiling faces and tears of joy as the newest members of Beta Omega made their way to their new home. We are proud to have initiated these members this fall, which has brought our total number of active members above 200.
On October 13th, Beta Omega celebrated Founders Day with a large celebration dinner. This dinner included a catered meal with an accompanying video made by our registrar that featured our members telling their favorite stories about Kappa and why they joined this fantastic group of women. This event helped our chapter finish off the year with memory sharing and nostalgia.
Overall, in 2015 Beta Omega proved to be a chapter of amazing women who continue to set the standard for what it means to be a Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority woman.
==Highlights of 2016==
2016 was another banner year for the Beta Omega chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma. This year we improved in areas of overall grade point average and rank, and also our awareness of college campus issues such as substance abuse and sexual assault prevention. It continued to be a strong year for philanthropy, sisterhood, and recruitment.
At the beginning of 2016, Beta Omega once again held our winter philanthropy event, Kappa Dodgeball. We are fortunate to have this event increase every year and continue to be the most attended Greek event on campus. This year raising over 10,000 dollars, Beta Omega was able to donate a full playground to our local philanthropy, Early Childhood Cares, which helps children under the age of five with developmental disabilities. Our most successful aspect of philanthropy this year was creating groups within Kappa to attend other Greek life philanthropic events. This created a huge increase in our Greek community involvement and gave more support to all Greek life philanthropic organizations.
In the spring we held our Barn Dance, Spring Fling, and Mom’s Weekend. This year our mom’s club helped raise even money to renovate our living room to be beautiful and recruitment ready!
In the fall we had another successful recruitment gaining 62 wonderful new members into the chapter. Our Bid Day Theme was “Go Kappa Went Kappa” and decorations and food of all shades of blue and blue filled our house as the new members ran to their new home.
On October 13th, we held a Founder’s Day with a dessert celebration and time capsule activity. The members of Beta Omega wrote down their favorite memories and blessing that Kappa has given them, to be opened by the new freshmen on their senior Founder’s Day. It was a sweet idea that gave the graduating seniors time to think of all they have gained from Beta Omega, while the new members were excited to experience Kappa Kappa Gamma for the next few years.
Overall, 2016 proved to be another year of growth for the Beta Omega women, who consistently strive to be good examples of women and sisterhood, and who wear their letters proud.
==Highlights of 2017==
There have not been that many changes to the campus in the past year. The big one is that they have focused on risk management and event planning safety tips. Our chapter has adopted these new changes and have bettered our risk management and event planning.Our
Our chapter has been giving to and supporting the following philanthropies:
Early Childhood Cares (Local Philanthropy)
Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation (National Philanthropy)
Reading is Fundamental (National Philanthropy)
We continue to give to Early Childhood Cares because we felt it carried the values that Kappa Kappa Gamma has as a national organization. It also plays a big roll on the University of Oregon campus.
2017, again, proved to be another year of growth for the Beta Omega women, who consistently strive to be good examples of women and sisterhood, and who wear their letters proud.
'''
==Highlights of 2018=='''
This year while making the chapter calendar, our goal was to provide ample time for our members to be aware of upcoming events. That means holding chapter councils members accountable of updating and communicating any important dates and times, and especially any changes in the schedule. Though our Key Reports does not properly reflect our calendar, we do have all of the correct dates on Key Reports.
At our goal planning meeting, we decided that as a new chapter council we wanted to strengthen our leadership, and commitment within the chapter by improving involvement, and accountability. We also noticed that our academic ranking in our Panhellenic community had the potential to stay in the top 5 GPA’s, so we wanted to improve our academic procedures to capitalize on this previously observed trend.
In this past year, Chapter Council has been able to restructure protocols and complete goals that we have set. For example, are chapter council worked to get our chapter off of our Focus Letter. The Pi District’s Content Specialists felt that our chapter needed to focus on strengthening our sisterhood and improving risk management. As stated above, we strategized our goals with the purpose of improving our chapter. We hoped that creating these goals would increase our chances of being taken off of our focus letter upon review from the District Director.
After ending last year in some trouble from our semi formal, we started off 2018 with a plan to rethink our rules and regulations for events. The event chair and president along with the rest of chapter council implemented more efficient check in procedures, risk team policies (including upping the number of members on risk team per event) and pre-event etiquette preparation. Since we started doing these things, all of our events since last January have gone very smoothly. We’ve had a mix of formals, date socials and then barn dance, leaving each without making any trouble. We are very proud of our members as they have been willing to shift towards some of these stricter and more structured policies to better the beta omega chapter. We are excited to see what events 2019 brings.
The Beta Omega chapter has had quite the year here at the University of Oregon! We’ve enjoyed many sisterhoods, formals, and living out our rituals. Kappa has strong support for other chapters on our campus. Our members have attended various philanthropy and community events.
Juniors Meredith Kinnaman and Maddy Petitt had the amazing opportunity to attend the Kappa Convention in Denver over the summer and gained new skills and ideas to make our chapter better.
''''''Chapter Philanthropy''''''
The Beta Omega chapter at the University of Oregon supports three different organizations through our philanthropy events. Our local philanthropy is called Early Childhood CARES. Located close to campus, this organization was created to provide early intervention and early special education to infants, toddlers and pre-school aged children in the area. It provides numerous services to the children it serves and their families including parent consultation, specialized pre-school and speech, physical or occupational therapy. EC CARES serves over 1600 children with developmental delays or disabilities each year.
The Beta Omega chapter is involved with this organization in a variety of ways. We support them through our annual philanthropy, Kappa Dodgeball. This event is a day long dodgeball tournament attended by both Greek and non-Greek members of the university community. Over 70 teams compete throughout the day and this event raises over $10,000 each year. EC CARES is also supported by our members as volunteers. In the past, our donations to EC CARES have gone to building an inclusive playground for their students and buying iPads for classes. Our history with EC CARES has been a long one, supporting them for more than a decade and our relationship with them has grown and developed though the years.
''''''Chapter Facility''''''
Our Chapter meets in Lawrence 177, a classroom at the University of Oregon every Monday