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|Image= [[File:Eta_Kappa.jpg|200px]]
|Founded= {{start date and years ago|2007|03|04}}
|College= [httphttps://www.knox.edu/ Knox College]
|Location= Galesburg, IL
|Homepage= [httphttps://chaptersknox.kappakappagammakappa.org/etakappa/ Eta Kappa Homepage]|Media= [httphttps://wiki.kappakappagammakkg.org/index.php?title=Category:Eta_Kappa Media related to Eta Kappa Chapter]}}
'''Knox College established in 1837, Galesburg, Illinois'''
''' 160 181 initiates (as of June 20162018)''' <br>
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'''Convention Awards:'''<br>
'''Additional Outstanding Eta Kappa Alumnae''' <br>
Jordan Nichole Newsom Leadership Consultant 2013-2014 , Standards Content Director 2018-2020 <br>
Molly Anne Stein Chapter Council Adviser and Advisory Board Chairman of Eta Phi Chapter, Elmhurst College 2013-current <br>
Kathleen Mary Podlipni President of Chicago Loop Alumnae Association 2014-2015, Province Director of Chapters Epsilon Central 2015-16 <br>
Traditionally we fund raise for Reading is Fundamental and hold a major RIF event each Winter, which we upheld this year. We also fund raise for the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation each winter with our Kappa Krush fundraiser, which is also described above. We also support St. Jude’s through Tri Delta kickball tournaments and the DHOP event, as well as Pi Phi’s Literacy Organization through Pie a Pi Phi.
==Highlights of 2017==
Eta Kappa began the calendar year with Formal Recruitment, where we were happy to receive seven new members as our sisters, one of whom is a Kappa legacy. Our recruitment theme was The Wizard of Oz, which included the tagline “There’s No Place Like Home.” Our Bid Night theme was “Under the Sea,” subtitled “Darling It’s Better Wearing Our Letters.” Big-Little Reveal was done via matching socks between the pairs and was done before formal pledging on January 22nd. Our formal class was initiated on March 4th, with our chapter adviser and three alumnae in attendance. As it happened, initiation was the same day as our chapter’s 10th anniversary. As part of the celebration, Fraternity President Beth Black surprised us with balloons and cake during a visit at chapter on March 5th. Our academic performance winter term was phenomenal. We boasted an average 3.33 GPA among our members, which was 0.1 points above the all-women average and 0.2 points above the all-sorority average. Six of our members had 4.0s. Our winter semi-formal took place at 156 East in Galesburg, Illinois and had a 1920’s Kappa Kappa Gatsby theme. We were also proud to install a member from Alpha chapter into our own chapter during the winter. Spring term was especially busy for Eta Kappa, as we hosted “Wild for Kappa” informal recruitment events to start the term, and we welcomed four new members. Bid Night was “Under the Sea with KKG” and Big-Little Reveal was done by the pairs finding someone with a matching item, such as big holding cookies and their little holding milk, or a lock and key, etc. Formal pledging for the spring new member class took place on April 19th and they were initiated on May 20th. One alumna was in attendance. As part of our transition into a new Chapter Council, one of our sisters hosted an overnight Kappa Kabin on April 29th to allow the new CC to bond with each other and discuss goals for our chapter and ourselves. Our annual Reading is Key event took place at the Galesburg Public Library on May 20th, where we distributed children’s books to the Galesburg community and hosted craft tables for the kids. Our Academic Excellence banquet took place on May 17th. Professors that had significant positive impact on academics for our members were invited, where we celebrated them as well as the achievements of individuals in our chapter. 2 members were initiated into our campus’ chapter of Order of Omega. Formal was at the Watson Legacy Center in Galesburg, Illinois Unfortunately, we had to say goodbye to our nine graduating seniors with a Senior Send-Off, which featured letters written for and by seniors, and their graduation stoles were presented to them at this time.
Fall term has been incredibly busy for many individual members, as Eta Kappa is made up of a large number of fall athletes, who participate in soccer, volleyball, tennis, and cross country at Knox College. We are especially proud of our members on the soccer team, who made it to the NCAA Division III Regionals Tournament for the second year in a row! We were fortunate enough to invite two new members to our chapter this term through a continuous open bid process, and while they formally pledged on October 8th, they will join our new member class of winter 2018 for initiation due to conflicts between athletic schedules as well as complications planning initiation through another chapter, who was holding their initiation while finals were taking place at Knox. Eta Kappa attended a workshop for sororities hosted by the campus Greek Life adviser and Title IX Coordinator to discuss sexual assault and how we can effectively intervene when we see incidents where someone might be endangered or vulnerable. Two members were initiated into our campus’ chapter of Order of Omega, bringing our total number of Kappas in Order of Omega up to six. We were proud to host our annual Kappa Kolor Run on October 8th with Alpha chapter, which benefitted the Rose McGill Aid Foundation. We look forward to what the next year will bring to Eta Kappa and the Fraternity." Reading is Key: a community outreach event that seeks to distribute as many books as possible to children in Galesburg in order promote lifelong learning and literacy in accordance with the goals of Reading is Fundamental. Our philanthropies include, Kappa Kolor Run: an annual 5K in the fall, proceeds of which benefit a particular charity or service each year as decided by the chapter. For example, Kolor Run 2017 benefitted hurricane relief through the Rose McGill Aid Foundation due to the devastation of Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico. Kolor Run 2016 benefitted the Alzheimer’s Foundation because two sisters had recently lost a family member to Alzheimer’s. Kappa Krush: sales of Orange Krush soda benefit the Rose McGill Aid Foundation annually. Brunch Buddies: recurring event every academic term where chapter members make something to benefit other organizations. Past examples include writing letters to our representatives or crafting cards for veterans. Pis and Kappacinos: a collaborative philanthropy event with the Beta-Delta chapter of Pi Beta Phi. Occurs occasionally when our schedules work together. In the past, this event has benefitted Nepal’s Earthquake Relief because at the time we had a sister that was Nepali. A charity that we benefit for this event is typically chosen with the Pi Phis.
Eta Kappa meets in our non-residential house for chapter at 320 W. Brooks Street, Galesburg, IL 61401. Pictured below is where we hold chapter, though it does double as a living room where members study and socialize.
==Highlights of 2018==
For the year 2018, Eta Kappa has evolved and grown--continuing a tradition of leadership and starting a new tradition of inclusivity. In January, we held Primary Panhellenic Recruitment. Thanks to the hard work of our Membership Chair and her committee, we met quota. We welcomed 10 new members to Eta Kappa as our Winter Formal class, with the addition of two from the fall term COBs. Our overall theme for recruitment was “Key to Paradise” and recruitment was held over three nights rather than the usual four nights. The new members were welcomed into the house for Bid Night under the theme “How Sweet it is to be a Kappa.” In total, the four sororities saw an increase in potential new members which is exciting for the growth of our chapter. The new class officially pledged on January 28th with our chapter specialist and one alumna present.
February was busy, starting with Academic Excellence. Eta Kappa joined the fraternity to hold Academic Excellence Month and every member in Eta Kappa competed to earn points by sending pictures of themselves studying to their academic liaisons. A lot of members became very involved with AE and it was great PR for Kappa on campus. The hashtags #kkggenius and #kkgscholar could be seen all over Knox via Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. On February 5th, our Big-Little Reveal was held. To match bigs and littles, we put a curtain between pairs of socks and when the curtain dropped, each member found her match. Also during February, we raised funds for the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation through our annual event, Kappa Krush. Students and faculty sent cans of Crush Soda to friends during the week leading up to Valentine’s Day. We raised over $100 for the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation. Semi-Formal dance was also held in February at Galesburg Civic Arts Center with the theme “A Night at the Musuem.”
March came and we initiated our Winter and Fall term pledge classes on the 3rd. We then held elections for Chapter Council before the end of winter term. The weekend after spring break, Eta Kappa was fortunate enough to host “Behind Happy Faces,” a program that brings awareness to mental health issues.
In early April, Eta Kappa held a leadership weekend with the help of our district specialist. The weekend consisted of old and new CC sharing ideas on how to improve our leadership within our Chapter. It was made a priority at this leadership weekend to communicate as often as possible with each other and our respective specialists.
Reading is Fundamental was held on May 3rd at Steele Elementary School. This year, our philanthropy chairman coordinated with the school to have us read with the students during their usual library time. The event was a success! Kids were delighted when they found out they would be able to take a book--donated by Kappa--and a bookmark home. Formal took place on May 17th at the Prairie Players Civic Theatre with the
theme "A Night in Old Hollywood." May 26th we said goodbye to our lovely 10 seniors with our Senior Send-off Brunch.
Over the summer, our President and Event Chairman represented us at the Convention in Denver, CO. They brought back many ideas that other chapters have used to improve efficiency and accountability within the chapter.
Fall term is always a hectic time for Eta Kappa as our sisters are involved in many different organizations on campus. We had sisters on the women’s soccer team and volleyball team, student teaching and participating in Rep Term. We unfortunately were unable to get new members during fall term and instead focused on strengthening our sisterhood and fostering an appreciation for ritual.
On November 3rd our major philanthropic event Kappa Kolor Run was held. This was our most successful philanthropic event to this date as we raised over a thousand dollars. Our philanthropy chairman worked tirelessly to put on this event and incorporated a silent auction, which was made possible by local businesses in Galesburg. She also changed the route of the color run to make it more of a community event than a Knox event. All proceeds were donated to the multiple sclerosis foundation. Each year Eta Kappa donates to a cause that hits close to home--this year we picked this foundation because our philanthropy chairman’s best friend was recently diagnosed with MS.
We wrapped up our fall term by hosting an LC and attending a sexual assault workshop. Elections were again held for the new Exec Board, as Eta Kappa is moving towards the new pilot structure. Transitions will not happen until mid February.
Our chapter has also been very active within the Greek community. Currently, we are represented in Order of Omega, a National Greek Honor Society in which one of our sisters, Megan Koluch, is the President. Eta Kappa prides itself on being very well represented on Panhellenic Council as well. Sophomore Danny Cerna Nunez served as Vice President of Diversity for the Panhellenic Council during the Spring and Fall terms, and senior Danielle Ellis is taking over the position for the Winter Term of 2019. Six of our sisters were a part of the Women’s Soccer team that went to the NCAA Tournament for the third consecutive year.
As a chapter that prides ourselves on academics, we were happy to see our term GPA at its best in the fall with an average GPA of 3.34. Seven sisters made Dean’s List and three of those sisters had 4.0s. Our average term GPA was 0.16 points better than the all-Greek average.
Due to our growing chapter, Eta Kappa is looking for a new place to hold chapters to accommodate our needs. At the moment, chapter is held at our non-residential house (pictured below) at 320 W. Brooks Street, Galesburg, IL 61401 at 5:00 P.M. on Sundays.
==Highlights of 2018==
For the year 2018, Eta Kappa has evolved and grown--continuing a tradition of leadership and starting a new tradition of inclusivity. In January, we held Primary Panhellenic Recruitment. Thanks to the hard work of our Membership Chair and her committee, we met quota. We welcomed 10 new members to Eta Kappa as our Winter Formal class, with the addition of two from the fall term COBs. Our overall theme for recruitment was “Key to Paradise” and recruitment was held over three nights rather than the usual four nights. The new members were welcomed into the house for Bid Night under the theme “How Sweet it is to be a Kappa.” In total, the four sororities saw an increase in potential new members which is exciting for the growth of our chapter. The new class officially pledged on January 28th with our chapter specialist and one alumna present.
February was busy, starting with Academic Excellence. Eta Kappa joined the fraternity to hold Academic Excellence Month and every member in Eta Kappa competed to earn points by sending pictures of themselves studying to their academic liaisons. A lot of members became very involved with AE and it was great PR for Kappa on campus. The hashtags #kkggenius and #kkgscholar could be seen all over Knox via Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. On February 5th, our Big-Little Reveal was held. To match bigs and littles, we put a curtain between pairs of socks and when the curtain dropped, each member found her match. Also during February, we raised funds for the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation through our annual event, Kappa Krush. Students and faculty sent cans of Crush Soda to friends during the week leading up to Valentine’s Day. We raised over $100 for the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation. Semi-Formal dance was also held in February at Galesburg Civic Arts Center with the theme “A Night at the Musuem.”
March came and we initiated our Winter and Fall term pledge classes on the 3rd. We then held elections for Chapter Council before the end of winter term. The weekend after spring break, Eta Kappa was fortunate enough to host “Behind Happy Faces,” a program that brings awareness to mental health issues.
In early April, Eta Kappa held a leadership weekend with the help of our district specialist. The weekend consisted of old and new CC sharing ideas on how to improve our leadership within our Chapter. It was made a priority at this leadership weekend to communicate as often as possible with each other and our respective specialists.
Reading is Fundamental was held on May 3rd at Steele Elementary School. This year, our philanthropy chairman coordinated with the school to have us read with the students during their usual library time. The event was a success! Kids were delighted when they found out they would be able to take a book--donated by Kappa--and a bookmark home. Formal took place on May 17th at the Prairie Players Civic Theatre with the theme "A Night in Old Hollywood." May 26th we said goodbye to our lovely 10 seniors with our Senior Send-off Brunch.
[[File:[[File:Example.jpg]]]]==Highlights of 2019==
In January we held Formal Recruitment with the theme based on the Disney Pixar movie “Up” and were very excited to gain 10 new members. The theme of Bid Night was “Beyoncé” and was full of laughter and chatting and getting to know our soon-to-be-sisters.
February kicked off our Academic Excellence month during which members are encouraged to promote our value of academics by getting together with sisters to study and share photos while doing so with the hashtags “#kkgenius” and “#kkgscholar.” Our new members found out who their Big sisters would be at our Big-Little Reveal on February 2nd. We held our Semi-Formal dance on February 9th at the Visions Venue in Galesburg. Also in February, we diverged from the old Kappa Krush fundraiser and started selling Kappa Kards to raise money for the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation. We handmade the Kards with witty Valentine’s Day sayings and even some with “Galentine’s Day” and other nontraditional Valentine’s Day cards for Knox students to give to their friends and loved ones.
In March we held our first Diversity Dialogue which is very important to our chapter in order to ensure that Kappa is a safe place where everyone should feel welcome and included no matter who they are. We discussed difficult questions about race and socioeconomic status as well as ways for sisters with significant privilege to use that privilege to advocate for others who weren’t born with that same advantage.
Greek Week, a week promoting collaboration and support across all fraternities and sororities on Knox’s campus, took place April 28th-May 4th. At the Greek Week Banquet, Eta Kappa was presented with the awards for Best Philanthropy, Best New Member, and Sorority Member of the Year.
On May 11th we had our Formal dance which had the theme of “Light Up the Night.” On May 17th, we had the Reading is Fundamental event at Steele Elementary in which the students made bookmarks, received books and other school supplies, and read aloud their own short stories that they had written for class. On May 18th, we said goodbye to our lovely seniors through our Senior Send-off Brunch. On May 19th, we conducted a Hygiene Drive in which we had a table outside of Hy-Vee and collected cash and product donations. We raised over $200 in cash and filled two laundry baskets full of hygiene products such as soap, hair products, shaving products, deodorant, menstrual products, and dental products.
On September 12-15th, one of our sisters attended the Leadership Conference in Ohio and brought back lots of insight from what other chapters do and how we can make Eta Kappa more efficient in some ways.
Starting in August we had many athletes arrive on campus early to begin their seasons. We are very proud of all of our sisters who are involved in extracurriculars such as the dance group TERP, Honor Board, Study Abroad (we have one sister who was in Germany for fall term), and research projects.
We kicked off the month of October with Informal Recruitment on the 3rd through the 5th during which we gained 1 new member. We then, through COB, gained another new member and are very happy to have 2 new members who are already contributing so much to Eta Kappa. Also in October, we hosted an incredible Leadership Consultant, Emma Schlenker, who, among other things, helped us get ready to select a new executive board through our newly assembled Nominating Committee. Also in October, at a Chapter meeting near Dia de los Muertos, one sister prepared a highly interesting and informative presentation about the holiday and the history of its celebration to share with all of our members.
On November 2nd, we hosted a Homecoming open house for our Alumnae who returned to campus for Homecoming Weekend. We mingled and listened to their stories of their time in Kappa while at Knox. On November 9th, we held the Kappa Kolor Run through which we raised over $600 for the Hirshberg Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer Research. Two of our sisters have been deeply impacted by pancreatic cancer in their loved ones so this cause was very close to home for our Chapter. Later this month, we had a Diversity event in which sisters took turns sharing about themselves, at whatever level they were comfortable with, using a cord that they rolled up as they spoke in order to give everyone the same amount of time to talk. Lastly, we installed our new officers at the last Formal Chapter meeting of the term and we are all very excited to take our positions and run with them going into 2020.
Throughout 2019, we did “Learn About a Sister” during selected Chapter meetings in which one sister would share for about 5 minutes about herself and her background. We value sisterhood and love learning about each and every member of Eta Kappa."
Over the summer, our President and Event Chairman represented us at the Convention in Denver, CO. They brought back many ideas that other chapters have used to improve efficiency and accountability within the chapter.
Fall term is always a hectic time for Eta Kappa as our sisters are involved in many different organizations on campus. We had sisters on the women’s soccer team and volleyball team, student teaching and participating in Rep Term. We unfortunately were unable to get new members during fall term and instead focused on strengthening our sisterhood and fostering an appreciation for ritual.
On November 3rd our major philanthropic event Kappa Kolor Run was held. This was our most successful philanthropic event to this date as we raised over a thousand dollars. Our philanthropy chairman worked tirelessly to put on this event and incorporated a silent auction, which was made possible by local businesses in Galesburg. She also changed the route of the color run to make it more of a community event than a Knox event. All proceeds were donated to the multiple sclerosis foundation. Each year Eta Kappa donates to a cause that hits close to home--this year we picked this foundation because our philanthropy chairman’s best friend was recently diagnosed with MS.
We wrapped up our fall term by hosting an LC and attending a sexual assault workshop. Elections were again held for the new Exec Board, as Eta Kappa is moving towards the new pilot structure. Transitions will not happen until mid February.
Our chapter has also been very active within the Greek community. Currently, we are represented in Order of Omega, a National Greek Honor Society in which one of our sisters, Megan Koluch, is the President. Eta Kappa prides itself on being very well represented on Panhellenic Council as well. Senior Dani Ellis is the Vice President of Panhellenic Council Diversity. Six of our sisters were a part of the Women’s Soccer team that went to the NCAA Tournament for the third consecutive year.
As a chapter that prides ourselves on academics, we were happy to see our term GPA at its best in the fall with an average GPA of 3.34. Seven sisters made Dean’s List and three of those sisters had 4.0s. Our average term GPA was 0.16 points better than the all-Greek average.
Two of our sisters have immediate family members who have been affected by pancreatic cancer. One sister actually had to leave campus for over a week during this term in order to go be with her mother as she was going through treatment, therefore we support the Hirshberg Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer Research.
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We were not able to celebrate Founders Day this year. We had plans to join with the Alpha Deuteron chapter at Monmouth College to celebrate, however our schedule became too busy and we decided it was in our best interest as a chapter to simply recognize Founders Day but abstain from any celebratory events until next term when we plan to celebrate both Founders Day & Kappa’s 150th anniversary."
Due to our growing chapter, Eta Kappa is looking for a new place to hold chapters to accommodate our needs. At the moment, chapter is held at our non-residential house at 320 W. Brooks Street, Galesburg, IL 61401 at 5:00 P.M. on Sundays. On October 14th, we were lucky enough to be the second stop for the Minnie Stewart Van after starting in Monmouth the day before. We got to enjoy the VR activities and learned so much from going through the van and speaking with the “Vanbassadors.” In 2020, we plan to take a field trip to Monmouth College to take a tour of the Stewart House, see the stained glass window in the chapel, and visit the founders’ graves in the cemetery.
Eta Kappa’s overall nature is an energetic and optimistic one. We are small in numbers but excited for Formal Recruitment in January 2020 to bring in new members who can help us reach our goals and surpass expectations of what a small chapter can accomplish.
==Highlights of 2020==
In January we held Formal Recruitment with the theme based on flowers and were very excited to gain 7 new members. Throughout recruitment we did lots of events in order to strengthen our relationships with the PNM’s going through recruitment. One event that stuck out was decorating book bags in order to give it to the children we go and read books to for our event for Reading is Fundamental. The theme of Bid Night was “ Kappa Coachella” and was full of laughter and chatting and getting to know our soon-to-be-sisters.
February kicked off our Academic Excellence month during which members are encouraged to promote our value of academics by getting together with sisters to study and share photos while doing so with the hashtags “#kkgenius” and “#kkgscholar.” Our new members found out who their Big sisters would be at our Big-Little Reveal on February 2nd. We held our Semi-Formal dance on February 21st at the restaurant Charred 57 in Galesburg. Rather than a dance, like we usually have, this was a sit down dinner. It was a very fun opportunity to really get to know our sisters on a deeper level and to have fun and get dressed up.
In March, we diverged from our normal tradition of doing Kappa cards and Kappa Krush and decided to do a bigger event for the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation. We put together the idea to do Mac and Keys. During this event we sold Mac and cheese, both regular and vegan options. We held this event on campus and it ended up being extremely successful. We had a topping bar with lots of different toppings that students and faculty could put on their mac and cheese.
Due to COVID-19 our last official event in person was Mac and Keys. Due to COVID we were also not able to participate in our normal event supporting Reading is Fundamental. The end of the year until summer consisted of lots of meetings and sisterhood events online and doing our best to keep our members engaged and making the best of the pandemic. In August, we got to return to school, however, due to restrictions and even though we were on campus, we had to meet half online and half in person. Our members who normally were involved in athletics got their seasons cancelled or postponed. Our members who were involved in other clubs as well as student teaching had meetings and classes that looked a lot different then what they were used to. Although this was a change the Kappa spirit was still very much alive.
In June, our President, Michaela Thawley, was able to take part in the 150 year convention for Kappa Kappa Gamma. This was very exciting and interesting because due to the impact of covid-19, the convention wasn’t able to meet in person, however, they made the most of the situation and put on an amazing event online.
On November 15th, we had the idea to sell masks for our campus in order to raise money for Ovarian Cancer due to the light of the pandemic. Although we could only meet in small groups we found a way to split up into groups and Tie dye masks, wash them, dry them, and organize them. We also figured out a way to do a contactless delivery so that we could keep clear of COVID-19. This event was something we had never done before, however, ended up working really well for us. We were also able to make a sisterhood event out of tie dying masks, while socially distancing ourselves. Due to COVID-19 our chapter was advised not participate in Informal Recruitment. As well as our homecoming this year was all virtual, so we were not able to have any of our Alumna come to campus. Towards the end of the term we were able to take part in elections and elect a whole new E-Board. Since we left campus shortly after this event, we are eagerly waiting for news of whether or not we will be able to return to campus again. However, our E-board is actively doing things to engage and help our members through these trying times.
Throughout 2020 ETA Kappa really strived to educate ourselves on diversity and inclusion in order to maintain an inclusive environment both within our chapter and on campus.
Our chapter chose Reading is Fundamental, Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation, and Ovarian Cancer research as our philanthropies this year. We chose to support Ovarian Cancer research, because one of our sister's immediate family members was affected by Ovarian Cancer. This cause was very important to both her as well as her family, so our chapter voted on making our fundraiser an event for Ovarian Cancer Research.
Our chapter was one of the first chapters to implement a diversity and inclusion officer. Usually we hold one event per term having to do with diversity and inclusion. However, due to the pandemic, rather than doing in person events we decided to take part in the social media awareness campaign. We posted ways for our followers to educate themselves on diversity and inclusion as well as ways we could donate as well as sign petitions. In our chapter we have also implemented chapter trainings as well as talks about diversity and inclusion.
Before we left campus we were one of the first schools to have the Kappa Van come to campus and present to our chapter. Our whole chapter turned in for the celebration video online. We also talked about our favorite Kappa memories the chapter after the celebration. On our instagram we were able to post the whole day and do quizzes about kappa. We also had members share their favorite memories and pin dress online. Although we were not in person we did our best to celebrate this amazing accomplishment online.
==Highlights or 2021==
This year our chapter managed to stay involved in a number of activities and gaining achievements while still experiencing the pandemic. We managed to make and sell masks to support ovarian cancer. While promoting the importance of health and social distancing, we were able to raise over $250.00. Four of our members achieved a perfect 4.0 GPA for Winter and Spring term. Our chapter as a whole also won an award for having the highest GPA for Greek Life (FSL LIFE) on campus and second highest for all campus clubs. We were also able to donate books for RIF to a local elementary school. When we formed as a new executive team we had a few key goals for our chapter really get us started. Those goals were to be more organized, communicate better with our Specialists, and build a more closely connected chapter regardless of the pandemic. Throughout the year we developed more goals like member retention with a hyper focus n recruitment. Overall we feel that we have really met these goals. We implemented weekly Sisterhoods, and once a month ritual reviews in order for our members to really feel connected to each other and to the history of Kappa. Our Specialists and advisers have been sent our weekly chapter meeting minutes, and we have had more frequent meetings with our non-council officers. Going into the new year I truly feel like our chapter is in a much better place and is growing in many ways.
We try to support local school reading fundraisers as well as Blessings in a Backpack. this organization helps to feed 400 students in Galesburg over each weekend. As a chapter we try to help to pack bags (when allowed in person) as well as add volunteer time In whatever ways are needed. We also collect plastic bags and donate to the organization for packing the food . This is a huge need in the Galesburg community, and we feel that as a chapter, it is important to help.
W held a fundraiser event that asked for donations to Kappa Kappa Gamma. We raised over $700.00 for the Kappa Foundation. Those who donated had their name put into a drawing for advertised prizes.
We implemented a position for a DEI Director this year. They could not have done a better job! We had multiple trainings and workshops brought to u virtually as well as in-person. We held a diversity potluck supper within our chapter that allowed us to experience other members' cultures and their childhood favorite meals.
We began the year with all chapter and Sisterhood events held online. While our school had us learning from home until February, recruitment and Initiation were all done virtually online. We still met once a week online for chapter meetings and Sisterhoods. Once we returned to school in person we were able to use classrooms to hold chapter meetings, Sisterhoods, and other events that could fit within the public health guidelines during the time our house could not accommodate it. Now we are back in our Chapter House per campus occupancy rates and have returned to our new normal.
