4,264
edits
Changes
→The Early Years (Excerpted from The History of Kappa Kappa Gamma Fraternity: 1870 to 1976)
==The Early Years (Excerpted from The History of Kappa Kappa Gamma Fraternity: 1870 to 1976)==
Kappa chapter began June 9, 1881, at Hillsdale College, with six charter members. Curiously, there are two charters in the archives, one with the name Upsilon on it, crossed off, and Kappa written in. (The present Upsilon was chartered in 1882 at Northwestern University. When the Hillsdale chapter was name Kappa, it was "given the name of a chapter now deceased." There is no trace of the original Kappa; it might have been at Aledo, Illinois, a few miles from Monmouth.)
The Fraternity in 1881 was only 11 years old and had been diligently planting chapters, especially at church-related mid-west colleges, even though there was an unfavorable attitude toward the secret society. But where other chapters did not, Kappa chapter did survive, and gained in strength and respect. From the beginning, Hillsdale has accepted women as equal to men, and it was the first college in Michigan to grant a woman an academic degree. Life in this Free Will Baptist college was austere, lady principals were vigilant, and rules were strict; yet is tolerance and warmth made the early graduates recall their college years as "their happiest years."
The expressed purpose of the chapter was "to gain moral, spiritual, and social development commensurate with the intellectual, and social development commensurate with the intellectual training supplied by the college." The faded ink and the scattered notes of the first meetings, in members' homes or rooms, tell of readings from Macauley, Shakespeare, George Eliot, and Elizabeth Barrett Browning. The programs were much like those offered by the Ladies Literary Union or the Germanae Sodales, the women's branches of the five literary societies, which for years had dominated the campuses.
At an early chapter meeting four friends were invited to be members, and at the next meeting they were pledged and initiated. There was no rush, no pledge training, and not until 1900 was there a time lapse between pledging and initiation.
The chapter archives are full of interest: the two charters, the minute books, the roster of initiates. A founder's key is worn by the chapter president, other officers wear other members' keys, and other badges are kept in the archives. Older members may be able to identify a slender "Shreve" key made in San Francisco and another one, the "Wright" key, made by Auld jewelers, as well as the familiar "Burr-Pat" badge. A parchment scroll beautifully inscribed by an alumna with the initiation ritual is a special treasure.
The small chapter was happy to acquire what it called "rooms" (one room and a closet) on the fourth floor of East Hall, the girls' dormitory. The Pi Beta Phis had space there too, and both used an old square piano. Not until about 1915 was a house rented, and the present house, which is owned by the college, was not acquired until the 1920s, when the college bought two old houses and turned them over to the two sororities to put in good condition. Alumnae groups called on members all over the country for help, raised money locally, borrowed on collateral put up by the women themselves, struggled with plans, assembled furniture, and succeeded in establishing gracious, comfortable homes. Twenty-two girls live in the Kappa house, and it is the gathering place for the chapter of 50 or more.
There have been many changes, of course; the temp of life has quickened. The actives have assumed their share of campus activities and keep pace academically, winning a gratifying number of awards for excellence in scholarship and leadership. Alumnae find the chapter in general mature and aware of the world off campus.
The forerunner of the province convention, the sub-convention, met at Hillsdale in May, 1885, with only Xi and Kappa chapters involved. Hillsdale was again hostess in 1901 to six Michigan and Ohio chapters. Now in Delta Province (then it was Beta), Hillsdale serves when her turn comes, each time enjoying working together and welcoming delegates and officers to the meeting. Earlier this had seemed a formidable task for a small group in a small town. Seven 50-year members were honored in 1955, and in 1967 the meeting space and living quarters of the Dow Leadership Center made preparations much easier.
Kappa chapter members who have served nationally are Mary Frances Ball Mauck and Harriette Rice (Bates), grand treasurers, and Harries Pasmore (Hiltabidle), co-organizer to Gamma Tau chapter.
Frances Mauck was the chapter's first initiate and its first delegate to the national convention which elected her grand treasurer. Her husband, Joseph W. Mauck, became president of Hillsdale in 1902, and many Kappa alumnae remember the Mauck home as the focal point of campus social activities, and especially the Kappa breakfasts at Commencement to honor the graduates and welcome returning alumnae. In time the three Mauck daughters became Kappas, and their son's wife wears the key. Many years later three granddaughters were initiated with the key which university President Mauck gave his wife after she lost her first one.
After Frances Mauck's death the Board of Women Commissioners of Hillsdale College raised funds for a residence hall for women named in her honor. Her daughter, Ruth Mauck Wolrath, gave time and counsel to the chapter until her death in 1947, and granddaughter Doris Wolrath Friedrichs was honored with a memory book and an antique gold bracelet at the 1972 Homecoming for her many contributions to the chapter.
An addition is now being made to the beloved Kappa house, and the college, which holds title, is constantly helpful. The relationship between the college and its fraternities is an indication of the distinctive atmosphere on the Hillsdale campus. Visitors from huge universities would find this a different sort of world. Hillsdale is no longer a church-related college but some of the early atmosphere lingers on in the spare old buildings, facing a tree-shaded campus. The Victorian tower of Central Hall, which replaced an older burned building, has symbolized Hillsdale for a hundred years. On the other side of the old buildings are new ones around a quadrangle, providing a harmonious modern complex.
Hillsdale remains an independent private college, accepting no Federal aid, a stand which has received empathetic expressions from many individuals and foundations. The college has received several awards from the Freedoms Foundation, based in Valley Forge.
The enrollment in the early 1970s was about 1100 students. (There were approximately 475 in 1881). The trustees feel this is a desirable number for a small college in which students want to stand out as individuals in a college community. There is room for personal relationships with other students, with faculty, and with administration. Students come from the entire country to Hillsdale, and from other lands, for here they can receive individual attention, especially in English.
Kappa Chapter feels itself fortunate to be on a campus where it is accepted as a part of the fine institution and has flourished more than 90 years.
==Highlights of 2011==