Eta Kappa

 

Eta Kappa
HK
Founded	March 4, 2007 (2007-03-04)
College	Knox College
Location	Galesburg, IL
Homepage	Eta Kappa Homepage
Media related to Eta Kappa Chapter

Knox College established in 1837, Galesburg, Illinois

Founded March 4, 2007 - 31 charter members

181 initiates (as of June 2018)

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Charter Members: Caroline Brooke Allen, Ama Gyamfuaa Awua-Kyerematen, Jessica Rosalin Chan, Jennifer Beth Davis, Miriam Gillan, Danielle Marie Goebel, Virginia Baker Graves, Devynn Elise Hawley, Carolyn Elizabeth Hill, Jacqueline Elizabeth Johnson, Sibel Karabeyoglu, Carly Rose Kauffman, Rebeccah Jane Lanni, Jacqueline Claire Lee, Meryl Hope Leventon, Katya Colleen Manak, Kathleen Elizabeth Manly, Maureen Erin McDonnell, Nerissa Florentine Montes, Lindsey Annette Murrell, Jennifer Elizabeth Nefzger, Alexandra Kristin Nicasio, Stephanie Catherine Osthoff O'Brien, Alisha Carroll Statsinger Oscharoff, Catherine Adeline Ray, Jasmina Marie Ruano, Paloma Romero, Hadley Reese Standring, Jessica Anna Elaine Strache, Leslie Grace Stubbs, and Dana Samson Tipson.

Convention Awards:
2008 New Member Program Honorable Mention
2014 Excellence in Chapter Management

Some of Eta Kappa's Outstanding Alumnae

Fraternity Officers

Fraternity Loyalty Award Recipients

Fraternity Alumnae Achievement Award Recipients

Additional Outstanding Eta Kappa Alumnae
Jordan Nichole Newsom Leadership Consultant 2013-2014, Standards Content Director 2018-2020
Molly Anne Stein Chapter Council Adviser and Advisory Board Chairman of Eta Phi Chapter, Elmhurst College 2013-current
Kathleen Mary Podlipni President of Chicago Loop Alumnae Association 2014-2015, Province Director of Chapters Epsilon Central 2015-16

Historical Highlights

October 16, 2006 TSO shed its letters and began their journey to becoming Eta Kappa Chapter.
March 4, 2007 Eta Kappa was installed.
Spring 2007 Eta Kappa, in their 1st ever Greek Week, came in 3rd place.
In the 2007-2008 year, Eta Kappa made an appearance in every issue of The Key.
Fall 2007 Eta Kappa began their annual fundraiser Win-A-Date. It was called the Uganda Initiative because all donations, monetary and school supplies, were going to be donated to schools in need in Uganda as suggested by Virginia Graves and Emily Putnam. The women raised $1,500 that year. The Win-A-Date fundraiser raises money towards a different philanthropy that is dear to our members' hearts every year since.
Spring 2008 Eta Kappa held a scholarship banquet to recognize professors and build positive Kappa-faculty relationships.
Fall 2008 Eta Kappa got their house!
Fall 2008 Win-A-Date proceeds of $1856.15 went to Girl Effect BRAC programs for Safe Spaces and Small Loans for Teenage Girls in Tanzania as suggested by Kathleen Podlipni, who fell in love with Girl Effect and Emily Jensen, who studied abroad in Tanzania. This is the year that "Win-A-Date" was trademarked by Kathleen and the Win-A-Date committee, Chloe Bohm (Philanthropy Chairman at the time) and Hadley Standring.
February 2009 Eta Kappa co-hosted the Biennial Province Meeting with Alpha Deuteron Chapter (Monmouth College) and were honored with a Membership Award at the banquet.
Spring 2012 Eta Kappa won its 1st Greek Week.
Fall 2012 Eta Kappa achieved its highest GPA average thus far and had the highest Greek GPA overall.
Spring 2013 Eta Kappa won its 2nd Greek Week.
Fall 2013 Win-A-Date proceeds of over $2,000 went to Watts of Love as suggested by Jenna Butler. This was the largest amount fundraised by this event thus far. Founder of Watts of Love, Nancy Economou attended the event and provided an amazing presentation of her experience and work.

The Story of Our Founding

Eta Kappa chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma was originally founded because before Kappa Kappa Gamma came on Knox College's campus, there were only two NPC sororities (Pi Beta Phi and Delta Delta Delta) available for membership. Knox College was also home to these NPC sororities, Delta Zeta (1915-1964), Alpha Xi Delta (1929-1973) and Phi Mu (1912-1989), but they all became dormant or inactive and essentially Knox College was a two NPC sorority school for 18 years!

Our Eta Kappa founders, Catherine Ray, Meryl Leventon, Stephanie O'Brien, Caroline Allen, Sibel Karabeyoglu, and Jennifer Davis believed in diversity and creating options for other women interested in participating in NPC Greek life.

Before their affiliation and installation as a chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma, our founders took the letters Tau Sigma Omega, TSO, sometimes comically called Tau Sigma Omicron. As the story goes, these women met at Knox College's swimming pool where Stephanie O'Brien was employed as a student lifeguard. This is where the historic Alpha document was written. This document was approved by the Dean of Student Life and TSO was officially founded on Thursday, March 10, 2005. TSO had also increased their membership to 10 women. Membership would continue to increase as their first informal recruitment event was held in the Fall of 2005.

Their first chapter council meeting consisted of Catherine Ray (President), Stephanie O'Brien (Vice-President), Meryl Leventon (Treasurer), Kathleen Manly (Philanthropy Chair), Jennifer Davis (Social Chair), Nerissa Montes (Recruitment Chair), Sibel Karabeyoglu (Secretary), and Caroline Allen (Treasurer).

Other TSO members who became Eta Kappa Chapter members include Miriam Gillan (Pledge Educator), Emily Jensen (who has probably served the longest New Member period in KKG history from October 2006 until October 2007), Jacqueline Lee (who would become Eta Kappa's first President), Katya Manak, Maureen McDonnell (who would become Eta Kappa's second President), Alisha Oscharoff (Academic Chair), Jasmina Ruano (who designed the Eta Kappa flag), Dana Tipson, Hadley Standring and Jessica Strache.

Their first philanthropy event was their participation in Galesburg's Polar Plunge event and fundraiser for Special Olympics, a tradition that Eta Kappa chapter carried on until 2009.

TSO was not allowed to participate in formal recruitment in the winter of 2006, but they continued to grow regardless.

By spring of 2006, TSO had been a Greek colony for a year and could begin the process of national affiliation.

TSO ultimately decided to affiliate with Kappa Kappa Gamma (and not with Kappa Delta) because of Kappa Kappa Gamma's dedication to leadership, philanthropy, and scholarship. TSO felt that their ideals were similar to those of Kappa Kappa Gamma's. The Knox Student Life Committee subsequently voted to invite Kappa Kappa Gamma to join the Greek community at Knox.

TSO affiliated with Kappa Kappa Gamma on October 16, 2006 and became the Eta Kappa colony.

As a colony of Kappa Kappa Gamma, the women formerly known as TSO, were allowed to participate in their first formal recruitment in the winter of 2007.

Kappa Kappa Gamma accepted the invitation to install its 132nd active chapter at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois. Eta Kappa was installed on March 4, 2007 by President, Denise Rugani, while Epsilon Chapter (Illinois Wesleyan) acted as Eta Kappa's installing chapter and key sisters.

Eta Kappa Chapter & Knox College

Eta Kappa Chapter at Knox College is located only 13 miles from Monmouth College and the Stewart House Museum, the home of founder, Minnie Stewart. The college was founded by social reformers who opposed slavery and believed in the potential of all to learn, grow, and contribute to the greater good of the community. Knox was one of the first colleges to admit African Americans and women and remains one of America's historically significant liberal arts colleges and is the only remaining site of the Lincoln-Douglas debates in 1858. The City of Galesburg, approximately 50 miles east of the Mississippi River, is a unique town in that it was a planned city whose purpose was fostering religious education. Knox College was the main reason for its existence. (From an official letter, November, 2006)

Knox is consistently ranked in the top 20 liberal arts colleges in America. Most notable is its appearance in Loren Pope's book, Colleges That Change Lives, where 40 schools are discussed that change the lives of their students through the students’ access to their PhD professors, an administration that is supportive of the Greek community, a high percentage of students succeeding in their graduate school pursuits, and other plaudits. Princeton Review, U.S. News and World Report and many other publications applaud this fine academic institution.

Knox is a private, independent college committed to the liberal arts as the best educational preparation for life. The student enrollment in 2007 was 1,245, of which 54 percent were female. More than 20 percent of the student body is Greek with five national fraternities and chapters of Delta Delta Delta and Pi Beta Phi founded in 1889 and 1884 respectively.

Kappa Kappa Gamma was honored to accept the invitation of the exceptional women of a local sorority to affiliate with the National Panhellenic Conference Fraternity. These new Kappas were recognized for their philanthropic efforts on campus and in Galesburg.

Highlights of 2007 - 2010

After Eta Kappa was installed, the chapter did not hesitate to wear their new letters while continuing their earlier philanthropic work and recruitment but were particularly excited to partake officially in Knox College's Greek Community.

On a cold March morning, members of Eta Kappa took a Polar Plunge at Lake Storey in Galesburg, Illinois. With a minimum pledge of $75.00 for the icy dip for the Illinois Special Olympics. A photo of our team's plunge made it in the newspaper, The Register-Mail.

Greek Week began with Sunday’s Greek Olympics with stations set up throughout campus. Monday was Trivia Night, which had a large turnout. Tuesday was devoted to philanthropy with a blood drive. Philanthropy actually went on all week with donations being accepted for The Boys and Girls Club with each Greek organization earning points for the amount of supplies and money donated. The Greeks were able to raise $125 for The Boys and Girls club as well as boxes of school supplies. On the evening of Thursday May 8th 2007, the Gizmo on the campus of Knox College was packed with excited sorority and fraternity members clad in neon green shirts which read, “Greekalodeon,” the Greek Week theme. Members had gathered to watch the popular Greek talent show and find out the winners of Greek Week. The show was filled with a variety of acts including Kappa Kappa Gamma’s singers and dancers playfully mocking Knox Greek organizations to much applause. As it would turn out, the chapter skit would win the award for funniest performance. Many of the Greeks present were happy for such a relaxing and fun week, especially since there were previous tensions and difficulties in the Greek community the past year surrounding local greek colonies affiliating with NPC or IFC organizations. Overall, Kappa Kappa Gamma came in 3rd place with 122 points.

The last three weekends of October 2008 were spent by having the women of Pi Beta Phi and Kappa Kappa Gamma taking a twenty minute drive north of campus to scare the pants off people. The two sororities tried something new for the both of them - a joint philanthropic venture. We believed that since both of our organizations were founded “up the road in Monmouth", and with both of our national philanthropies being geared toward literacy, it would make for a great pairing. The women joined together at the Country Corner Farm Market and Pumpkin Patch to work the corn maze by either welcoming victims with the provided scary story or by actually scaring the people inside. Afterwards the proceeds from the ticket sales were split up among the organizations based on how many hours each worked. All our proceeds went to Reading Is Fundamental.

On the evening of October 24th, 2008, the ladies of the Eta Kappa chapter brought students, parents, and other members of the Greek community together for their second annual “Win-A-Date” event. $1,856.15 was raised to support Girl Effect through BRAC programs for Safe Spaces and Small Loans for Teenage Girls in Tanzania. The evening was the culmination of a week of fundraising through change wars between Greek organizations on campus. The two members from each of the social Greek organizations Kappa Kappa Gamma, Delta Delta Delta, Pi Beta Phi, Phi Gamma Delta, Tau Kappa Epsilon, Beta Theta Pi, Sigma Chi, Sigma Nu, and colony, ATP, as well as from the Alpha Phi Omega Service Fraternity and Sigma Alpha Iota Music Sorority volunteered to be hosts and hostesses for the dates. Local businesses donated dinner, movie, and bowling certificates, which were given as prizes to the winning bidders and their dates. Among the many generous donations made that evening was one exceptional date that sold for over $230. Eta Kappa members felt a special connection to this particular cause not only as women, but also from the personal experiences of its members. One active’s travels to Uganda inspired the first Uganda Initiative event in 2007. Another member, studied abroad in Tanzania in 2007. With this in mind, Eta Kappa chapter was inspired by Girl Effect and was proud to support the education and empowerment of women internationally.

As a chapter, we also emphasized the support and encouragement of our members in their leadership roles and involvement in other campus activities. These included AAINA, American Chemical Society, Alpha Phi Omega, Asian Student Association, Best Buddies, Business Club, Campus Progress, Carl Sandburg Literacy Coalition, College Art Association, Costume Shop, Cottage Hospital,Cross Country, Dance Squad, Film Production Club, Galesburg Civic Art Center, Golf, Habitat for Humanity, Harambee, Hillel Club, Intramural Sports, Intervarsity Christian Fellowship, Invisible Children, Jazz Combo, Junior Great Books, Knox Ambassadors, Knox Bloggers, Knox College Choir, Knox College Sign Language Club, Knox County Jail Literacy Project, Knox County Regional G.S., Knox Galesburg Symphony, Knox Sandburg Community Concert Band, Knox String Ensemble, Making Things Craft Club, Mortar Board, Odyssey Mentoring, Office of Admissions, Order of Omega, Prairie Players, Pre-Health Club, Pre-Vet Club, Reading Buddies, Rotaract Club, Rugby, SASS, SHAG, Soccer, Spanish Club, Student Athletic Advisory Council, Student Athletic Training, Student Senate, Studio Theatre, Tennis, Terpsichore, Track and Field, Union Board (Flunk Day planning!), Women’s Chorale, Water Polo, WVKC and Yoga Club.

In May of 2009, Sigma Chi and Kappa Kappa Gamma co-hosted an ultimate frisbee tournament to raise money for the FISH Food Pantry. Proceeds from the event were donated to the pantry that provides families in need with enough food to feed them with three nutritious meals a day.

Eta Kappa chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma brought 14 Greek organizations and students together along with 35 businesses from Galesburg on Friday, October 16, 2009 in the Gizmo for the purpose of raising money for Valhalla Experimental Station in Guatemala through their 3rd Annual Win-A-Date event. The total amount of money raised for Valhalla was $1227.56. Previous to the actual event, the chapter fundraised through change wars again, as jars for the president of each Greek group participating was at a table in Seymour Hall during meals. The president’s jar with the most money earned the title of the “ultimate date” and received the biggest gift certificate received through donation from a local Galesburg business. Gift certificates for local Galesburg businesses such as Q’s Café, Kaldi’s, etc. were auctioned off as date packages with optional Greek male and female hosts/hostesses.

During the May 2010 Knox Greek Week, Eta Kappa Chapter had members win two very distinguished awards at the Greek Banquet: Adviser of the Year Renee Tadie (ABC/CCA/VPS Adviser from 2007-2010) and Emerging Female Greek Leader Emily Putnam. Raise the Roof!

On Thursday, October 28, 2010, the Business Club’s Halloween Crafts Day provided an opportunity for Knox students and children from the local Boys and Girls Club to bond over Halloween-themed crafts and games. The multidimensional club along with members from Alpha Phi Omega and Kappa Kappa Gamma hosted 30 children, ranging from six to nine years old. The afternoon began with a game of freeze tag, followed by Duck, Duck, Goose and Red Light, Green Light. Refreshments were served.

On Friday, November 5, 2010 the women of Eta Kappa hosted its 4th Annual Win-a-Date event to fundraise for the BeLikeBrit foundation. According to the organization’s mission statement, BeLikeBrit works “to serve the children of Haiti by establishing a safe, nurturing and sustainable orphanage in an environment where they can grow, learn and thrive.” The money the sorority raised went towards building a new orphanage. Before the event began, the Greek men and women that went with each date package were asked to describe their ideal date, including the place and atmosphere. Each also chose a runway song that played while they were onstage, several using the opportunity to show off their dance moves. Various date packages, such as gift cards to Jimmy Johns or Cherry Street Restaurant, were auctioned off to the highest bidder. Members of 10 different Greek organizations volunteered their time to accompany the winner on each date. The successful auction raised approximately $1,850 dollars and the event had a large turnout.

Highlights of 2011

2011 began with a successful formal recruitment. On January 23rd, 2011 we welcomed 11 new members. In addition to new members, we welcomed a new advisor after Renee Tadie, our outgoing advisor, retired in 2010. Pat Kane began as the Standards Advisor in 2010, then our House Board Treasurer as well as our Event/Risk Advisor in 2011.

When we returned for Spring Term, we had an informal recruitment. This gave us the opportunity to have four new members join our chapter. The pledging ceremony was held on April 10th, 2011. During that time, the new Chapter Council was installed. Their installation was quite special because this year marks the first time Eta Kappa held the event, Kappa Kabin. Kappa Kabin is a weekend of bonding and training for both the outgoing and the incoming Chapter Council. The event was held at Stephanie Bailey’s cabin in Peoria. Stephanie Bailey has been our Finance Advisor & House Board Member since 2008, our VPO advisor, and began her role as CCA/ABC this year. Amanda Crow, who was the Vice President of Organization at the time, held the event.

When Eta Kappa returned for the new school year that September, they were excited to begin a new term of fresh opportunities. Unfortunately there was not an informal recruitment held during Fall Term. We did make the most of this term, however. Eta Kappa participated in Sigma Chi’s annual philanthropy event, Derby Days, and won the weeklong competition! Eta Kappa held their 5th annual Win-a-Date fundraiser, which allowed Eta Kappa to raise funds for the Joyful Heart Foundation. They also worked with Phi Gamma Delta to have a Light the Night event. During Fall term, there were many Kappas who studied abroad and traveled to the U.K., Argentina, and Spain.

Highlights of 2012

We began 2012 by welcoming eight new members into Eta Kappa chapter with a successful formal recruitment. In February, we held our annual Reading is Key event at the Galesburg Public Library. In March, we celebrated the fifth anniversary of our chapter, and it was amazing to see just how far we haveve come in such a short amount of time.

After Spring Break, we welcomed back three of our sisters who had been studying abroad in Spain and held informal recruitment, welcoming three additional sisters into our chapter. That month, we also elected our new Chapter Council, a group of strong and capable women who were installed in April. The incoming and outgoing members of Chapter Council participated in a weekend of bonding and training at our annual Kappa Kabin at Stephanie Bailey's cabin (Finance Adviser & House Board Member 2008-current, VPO Adviser 2010-11, CCA/ABC 2011-current). Amanda Crow, Vice President of Organization held the first Kappa Kabin in 2011.

In the spring, we participated in our campus's annual Greek Week, in which we won 1st place against the 11 participating Greek-letter organizations. Also in the spring of 2012, Teresa Amott, was installed as the 19th president of Knox College. It was an inspiration to our chapter and women across campus to see our 1st female president.

Fall 2012 brought out the best in Eta Kappa. When we returned to campus in the fall of 2012, we began work on our annual Win-A-Date fundraiser. Through cooperation with other Greek-letter organizations on campus, we were able to raise almost $2,000 to benefit the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America. Eta Kappa also won Sigma Chi's annual Derby Days, a friendly competition between all of the sororities on campus. Fall contineud its streak of good things as it provided our chapter with the prestige of having earned the highest GPA average that we have ever achieved as a chapter and additionally earning us the title of having the highest GPA out of all the Greek organizations for the term.

Unfortunately in the fall, Knox's Panhellenic Council voted to lower quota, so we were unable to hold informal recruitment. Since then, quota has been raised and we are excited to hold informal recruitment again in fall 2013.

Highlights of 2013

In February, we celebrated Academic Excellence month for the first time by collecting study tips and sharing them with the campus, promoting our academic achievements through social media, and engaging in a “Letters in the Library” competition. By the end of Winter Term, our House Chairman and her committee finished an ongoing renovation of our basement, and Eta Kappa celebrated a fun new wall color, waterproof floors, and furniture. Just before Spring Break, we initiated eight lovely new members, some of whom were elected onto Chapter Council just the next day.

Spring Term was bittersweet time for us as Eta Kappa prepared to say goodbye to 18 graduating seniors, who comprised nearly half of our chapter. Despite the major loss, this dynamic group of women made sure to leave Eta Kappa thriving. One way they did so was by teaching us to live Kappa’s ritual daily in a new ritual appreciation program.

In the spring, we won the annual Greek Week competition as well as several other chapter awards at the annual Knox College Greek Banquet. Afterwards we conveniently celebrated at our formal which was held at the Soangetaha Country Club this year. Continuing our winning streak, several members attended Province Meeting and brought home the Chapter Scholarship Award, as well as six honorable mentions.

Eta Kappa focused on a new philanthropic organization during this time, selling friendship bracelets for Vitamin Angels, which brings essential nutrition to at-risk populations. However in continuing with philanthropic traditions, this year’s annual Reading is Key event had an “outer space” theme and was held at the Discovery Depot in Galesburg.

In attempting to bond with each other and our sisters from Monmouth, we joined Alpha Deuteron Chapter at Monmouth College for a tea party at the Minnie Stewart House for an event fondly titled, Loyal-Tea.

During the spring, we also renewed the lease on our house, but never imagined what was in store for us. First, we learned Knox College graciously offered to help the Greek community by allowing us to pay our rent through community service hours, which we have already been completing through our philanthropic endeavors. In other financial news, the Treasurer of Eta Kappa took great initiative this term to create a budget for the upcoming year that would be conducive to our small chapter size, and she educated the chapter on exactly where our money goes.

When we returned to Knox in the fall, we were pleasantly surprised that one of our advisers, Pat Kane (Standards Adviser 2010-current, House Board Treasurer 2011-present, Event/Risk Adviser 2011-14), gave our chapter house a complete makeover during the summer. We could not be more thankful for our new furniture, shelving, remodeled bathrooms, and countless decorations. Although Fall was an adjustment period for Eta Kappa due to the large change in our chapter size, our sisters bonded on a deeply personal level and found a new appreciation for the changing chapter. We began the school year with informal recruitment, during which our Membership Chair implemented a completely new system by creating bump and rotation groups. Our new system also incorporated the values of our ritual into the recruitment process. We recruited and initiated three lovely new members. In October, we were lucky enough to join Alpha Deuteron chapter at Monmouth for Founders Day. We visited two of our founders' graves and shared a luncheon. For our annual Win-a-Date philanthropy event, we chose to donate our proceeds to an organization called Watts of Love, which brings solar powered lights to people around the world with no electricity. We were lucky to have the organization’s founder, Nancy Economou, at our event to speak about her incredible experiences with Watts of Love, and we ultimately raised over $2000 for the organization. Fall Term was big for Eta Kappa’s public relations: Eta Kappa now has its own Twitter and Instagram accounts, and our Kore Groups are now utilizing our Facebook page and group to attend and support “Kappas on Kampus” events and clean the house together. At the end of term, we prepared for formal recruitment.

2013 was an exciting time for Knox as well as Eta Kappa, as the college finished raising the $11.7 million needed to restore Alumni Hall, one of the oldest buildings on campus. We are excited for our younger sisters to utilize the technology and resources in this building in the future. Other exciting events for the college included bringing comedian Ed Helms to campus as our commencement speaker, witnessing a Knox graduate be named an adviser to President Obama, and welcoming President Obama himself to the campus in July, an event some of our sisters volunteered at. We feel lucky to be on a campus with so many inspiring visitors, as well as graduates who inspire us to be successful in our futures as graduates of Knox College as well.

The women of Eta Kappa continue to represent a wide variety of extracurricular activities, areas of study, philanthropic interests, athletics, and cultural backgrounds. We take great pride in supporting each other’s differences by attending shows, games, and academic presentations of our sisters. We consider ourselves to be a close-knit chapter, and hope that Eta Kappa continues on its current route of success for years to come.

Highlights of 2014

We began winter term like every winter term by welcoming NMs into our sisterhood after a long and grueling yet rewarding formal recruitment. This year it was appropriately themed, “Winter Wonderland.” Diverging from tradition, Bid Day/Night was on a Sunday instead of a Saturday due to the Polar Vortex. We revamped Bid Day/Night and the NM process by establishing a buddy system to welcome NMs. In February 2014, Eta Kappa hosted its annual semi-formal (at Cherry Street) and their annual Reading is Key event (theme: “Reading is Wild").

During the month of March, Knox College's National Panhellenic Council (NPC aka Panhell) hosted its first annual Wellness Week, which included participating in a clothing swap with Knox College's other NPC sororities, Delta Delta Delta; Phi Beta Phi; and Alpha Sigma Alpha. Just before spring break, we initiated our 8 NMs, some of whom were elected onto chapter council the following day during elections, proving that our chapter nurtures leaders.

Our incoming 2014-15 chapter council started spring term off by participating in a weekend filled with bonding and training at the Kappa Kabin. Kappa Kabin is a cabin that adviser, Stephanie Bailey owns in Peoria and lends to our chapter to use for Leadership Day. The first Kappa Kabin was in 2011. That following weekend, we held a continuous open bidding (COB aka informal recruitment) event themed “Spring into Kappa." We welcomed 3 additional sisters to our chapter. Alpha Deuteron Chapter of Monmouth College again invited us to attend their Love & Loyal-Tea event around the beginning of spring term.

At the end of April, Knox College's annual Greek Week was held. The theme this year was “Greek TV". Also at the end of April, Standards surprised the rest of the chapter with a secret sisterhood event at Lake Storey. We grilled hamburgers, played games, and in the lake.

In May, Eta Kappa hosted its annual formal at Cherry Street Bar and Restaurant and its annual Academic Excellence Banquet in the Common Room of Old Main.

Towards the end of spring term, we initiated our 3 new members, and said goodbye to 9 strong graduating seniors.

Returning to Knox in September, Eta Kappa focused on building sisterhood and friendship. During Homecoming at Knox College in October, we held our annual open house for alumnae to revisit the house and old times. After Homecoming, we hosted a fundraiser, Save-A-Heart (a play on the former, Win-A-Date, Eta Kappa's annual date auction themed fundraiser). Proceeds benefited the American Heart Association. Also during this time, Knox’s National Panhellenic Council hosted its 2nd annual Wellness Week (although technically the week long was held a second time in the year 2014). This time we participated in yoga and indulging on desserts with our NPC sisters. Also in October and also in good ole' Greek spirit, we participated in Sigma Chi’s Derby Days and in a dessert pot-luck with Delta Delta Delta. The memorable activities of Derby Days included pumpkin carving and a talent show. Proceeds from Derby Days benefited local non profit, Safe Harbor Family Crisis Center.

In 2014, Knox College, for the first time in 20 years, opened the doors of Alumni Hall to faculty and staff since its closing. Women's Volleyball, Women's Basketball, and Men's Basketball would similarly bring the experience of a first time in a long time by defeating rival, Monmouth College. Go Prairie Fire!

FYI: Eta Kappa Chapter hosts chapter meetings in the Kappa House located at 320 West Brooks Street during late afternoons on Sundays. The house is owned by Knox College and does not provide lodging or classroom space. The Kappa House is open daily from 8:00 AM to 11:00 PM for the members of Eta Kappa Chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma to use as a space for doing homework, cooking snacks or meals (baking treats for sisters!), and meetings/events.

In terms of housing the members of Eta Kappa Chapter, members often exercise the option of living together in dormitory spaces across campus and in apartments/houses off campus. These living quarters are in no way affiliated officially to Eta Kappa Chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma.

Highlights of 2015

During the year of 2015, Eta Kappa has grown in areas that were once weak and continued a tradition of leadership. In January, we held formal Panhellenic Recruitment. Thanks to the due diligence of our Membership Chair and her committee, we met quota and also were given a quota addition. We were immediately able to hold a COB event in an attempt to reach total. We welcomed 9 new members to Eta Kappa as our Winter Formal class, the largest new member class we have had in recent history. During February, Eta Kappa joined Nationals to hold Academic Excellence Month. Different families competed against each other throughout the month to see which family could accrue the most study hours in order to win a prize. The competition was fun but it’s rewarding to see the bonds built from studying together! We also raised funds for the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation through our annual event, Kappa Krush, which we table to have students and faculty send cans of Krush Soda to friends during the week leading up to Valentine’s Day. Our annual Semi-Formal dance was also held in February at Cherry Street Grill with the theme of “Every Kiss begins with Kappa”, it was a fun and safe event for all the Kappa’s and their dates.

In March, we ended the term in full force with the initiation of our new members, our annual Reading is Key event at the Discovery Depot, which is hold as a way to support Reading is Fundamental, and elections for chapter council.

Early April was a time for our officer transitions. Our annual event, Kappa Kabin, was held as a way to unite the new Chapter Council and create goals for the upcoming year. The Chapter Council for 2015-2016 hopes to increase communication and cohesion within the council in order to grow to new heights within each position. Following the Earthquake in Nepal, we partnered with the Pi Beta Phi and held a “Pi’s and Kappacino” event in order to give funds to the Nepali Earthquake Relief Fund. This event was very close to our heart due to the fact the one of our sister’s is from Nepal and there is a very large Nepali population on our campus. We were even able to raise $640! Our new philanthropy chair and her committee also created a Little Free Library for local children with the idea of “take what you need, leave what you want”. Throughout the term, we participated in various events that we have a tradition of being a part of such as Greek Week, Alpha Phi Omega’s Walk-a-Thon, and Tri Delta’s Kickball event for St Jude.

We also hosted a Leadership Consultant in the Spring, we were very excited to welcome Whitney back to our chapter!

The school year was finished off with our Formal, which was held at the Burg Bar and Grill and with our annual Senior Sendoff event. We couldn’t be more proud of the 10 Eta Kappa seniors who graduated in June of 2015!

Over the summer, our Public Relations chairman worked tirelessly to update our website and worked with our Membership chair to design a great shirt for our Fall Informal Recruitment Bid Day. We also wear these shirts to Pumphandle, an event our school holds each year prior to the beginning of classes starting where all students, faculty, and staff meet on the lawn to shake hands.

Fall term saw lots of success for Eta Kappa. We held our most successful Fall Informal Recruitment and welcomed 4 new members to our chapter. Our New Member Chairman held an amazing Bid Night event of cookie decorating, games, attending the Volleyball Game on campus where one of the New Members was playing, and ending it with a movie night at the house. Our Vice President of Standards and Standards Committee organized a special Secret Standards event in lieu of a chapter meeting. This Secret Standards event was our annual trip to the Pumpkin Patch! We picked out pumpkins, sipped apple cider, enjoyed a hayride, and ended the trip riding on their mini cow train- an Eta Kappa favorite.

Our chapter also championed a new major philanthropic event called the Kappa Kolor Run! Our Philanthropy chairman worked tirelessly to create a fun event that was accessible to our entire campus. We were able to raise $470 dollars for OLE Nepal, an organization working to create access to education in Nepal following the major earthquake there earlier this year. We were also selected to for the Rose McGill Holiday program for the first time! We raised money to buy Christmas gifts for a Kappa in need and wrapped the gifts together as our Brunch Buddies event, a new event our chapter implemented this year that consists of our members having brunch and performing a philanthropic service.

Some other new additions to our chapter was using GINsystem to log study hours in study spaces throughout campus as well as an attendance competition to encourage members to take active control of their membership!

At the end of the term, we were able to initiate 3 of our 4 New Members after a successful Inspiration Period. Eta Kappa holds the tradition of having meaningful events during the inspiration period. The remaining member was unable to initiate at that time due to the Women’s Soccer team making it to the Conference final which occurred during our initiation. We are happy to say, however, that Elmhurst College was gracious in hosting our New Member and two of our active sisters and she was initiated!

Knox College was recently able to hire a new Greek Life Advisor, Eleanor Kahn. Eta Kappa was happy to welcome her to our campus, she has been very accessible and a great resource for our chapter. Our chapter has also been very active within the Greek community. Currently, we are the most represented organization in Order of Omega, a National Greek Honor Society in which two of our sisters, seniors Mackenzie Anderson and Cassidy Jones, hold the executive positions of President and Secretary, respectively. Eta Kappa prides itself on being very well represented on Panhellenic Council as well. Senior Emily Powers is the President of Panhellenic Council, a high honor. In the Spring, our chapter received an All Greek Award for best Academic Program.

Eta Kappa has held itself to a higher standard than perhaps ever before. As a whole, our chapter has been refreshed and uplifted this year. It is the opinion of our chapter that officer transitions in April brought new life to our chapter as these officers began to work together in ways that harnessed our potential. Our members have been showing willingness to bring Kappa to new heights, as explained through the many new endeavors throughout the year. It if for this reason that we feel we have most triumphed in overcoming apathy and eagerly embraced new opportunities, which has allowed us to truly live up to Kappa Kappa Gamma’s ideals.

As mentioned above, Knox College hired Eleanor Kahn. She serves as Campus Life Staff in many roles, one of which is the Greek Life Advisor, a position that ceased to exist for a year at our school.

Chapter Philanthropy:

What organization(s) has your chapter historically/traditionally raised money for, or donated hours to, in your community?

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. This Fall we were also chosen to participate in the Rose McGill Holiday Program, which we enjoyed so much!

Why did your chapter choose this organization(s) to support?

An Eta Kappa tradition is to choose an organization to fundraise for each year that is near and dear to a sister’s heart. In the past, we’ve supported sisters who suffered from Crohn’s Disease, a sister who has had ongoing battles with Heart Disease, an orphanage that a sister worked at personally in Botswana, and more. We raised funds for the Nepali Earthquake Relief Fund this year on two separate occasions, due to how close the cause was to one of our sisters and the Nepalese community at Knox College. We paired in a new event with Pi Beta Phi, Pie’s and Kappacino’s, in the spring. We also created another new major fundraising event, the Kappa Kolor Run, as a way to replace an older, outdated event our chapter had held in the past. We raised over $1000 in the year 2015 for the Nepali Earthquake Relief Fund and were even able to meet the Director of the organization.

Highlights of 2016

For the year 2016, Eta Kappa has evolved and grown, and continued a tradition of leadership. In January, we held formal Panhellenic Recruitment. Thanks to the dedication of our Membership Chair and her committee, we met quota. We were also able to add another new member through COB immediately following bid day. We welcomed 9 new members to Eta Kappa as our Winter Formal class, the same size for a new member class that we had in 2015. During Recruitment, we had our LC Ariel there to help us out. She was very helpful as we worked to make sure all chapter members understood the procedures for voting during Recruitment.

During February, Eta Kappa joined the fraternity to hold Academic Excellence Month. Every member competed to earn points by sending pictures of themselves studying to their academic liaisons. A lot of members became very involved with it and it was great PR for Kappa on campus. The spirit of competition was fun, but it’s rewarding to see the growth in study habits that our VPAE was able to foster. We also raised funds for the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation through our annual event, Kappa Krush, where we table to have students and faculty send cans of Krush Soda to friends during the week leading up to Valentine’s Day. We raised over $100 for the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation. Our annual Semi-Formal dance was also held in February at Iron Spike; it was a fun and safe event for all the Kappa’s and their dates.

In March, we ended the term in full force with the initiation of our new members, our annual Reading is Key event at the Galesburg Public Library, which is our way of supporting Reading is Fundamental, and elections for chapter council right before the end of our Winter Term.

Early April was a time for our officer transitions. Our annual event, Kappa Kabin, was held as a way to unite the new Chapter Council and create goals for the upcoming year. The Chapter Council for 2016-2017 hopes to increase communication and cohesion within the council in order to grow to new heights within each position. Accountability has become a main priority for the Eta Kappa Chapter Council.

Throughout the term, we participated in various events that we have a tradition of being a part of such as Greek Week, Alpha Phi Omega’s Walk-a-Thon, and Tri Delta’s Kickball event for St Jude's.

We also held an informal recruitment event, and we were able to get 4 new members, which brought us to total. We held our initiation at the end of our Spring Term to bring our chapter to 40 members right before our senior class graduated. The school year was finished off with our Formal, which was held at the event hall 156 Main and with our annual Senior Sendoff event.

Over the summer, our VP Standards represented us at Convention in San Diego, CA. She brought back many ideas that other chapters have used to improve accountability as well as some good ideas for sisterhood events,

Coming back for the fall, we did not hold an informal recruitment event because we were above total. This was the first time in recent memory that Eta Kappa has been the biggest sorority at Knox. Since we did not have new members, our focus has been on improving chapter support and bonding as a whole group so we can successfully welcome new members in January. Our diversity chairman has put together many events to help us foster a better understanding of each other.

Our chapter also championed a major philanthropic event for the second time called the Kappa Kolor Run! Our Philanthropy chairman worked tirelessly to create a fun event that was accessible to our entire campus. We were able to raise $430 dollars for the Alzheimer’s Association. We selected this philanthropy because two of our members have a grandmother who is dealing with Alzheimer’s and we always choose a philanthropy that is near and dear to our members. We are there for each other to lift one another up and make the world a better place.

We wrapped up our fall term with some membership workshops and the selection of day chairs for recruitment so that we can go all out when we return to campus in January for Formal Recruitment.

Our chapter has also been very active within the Greek community. Currently, we are the most represented organization in Order of Omega, a National Greek Honor Society in which one of our sisters, Allie Whitehill, is the Vice President.. Eta Kappa prides itself on being very well represented on Panhellenic Council as well. Junior Maggie Brick is the Vice President of Panhellenic Council and served as the interim President in the Spring of 2016. Six of our sisters were a part of the Women’s Soccer team that went to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. We were all so proud to cheer them all on in their historic run to an undefeated conference season.

This year, another sorority transitioned to a house this year. Now that Alpha Sigma Alpha has a house, every sorority on campus does. We hope this will help us boost interest in formal recruitment and allow all of the chapters to grow simultaneously. The Greek community has been working hard to come together as a whole and make itself a presence on campus that is seen in a positive light. As a whole, the Greek community has help more philanthropy events than ever before.

Our chapter has evolved as always, but our focus on academics has been rapidly improving. We had the highest sorority GPA for both Winter and Spring of 2016 and we are very proud of that. The academic excellence committee has been working hard and it has paid off. We have also been working on lifting each other up as women. In a world that sometimes pits women against each other, it is important to us that we as a chapter lift each other up and support one another. Many of our members were deeply saddened by the election results, but it has given us a new drive to stand up for womankind.

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. . 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.