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Chapter meetings are held in a designated meeting area in university-owned academic buildings or campus center. The meeting place changes each semester. Our chapter has a house that is university owned in William and Mary's sorority court. We have had the same house since sorority court was constructed. Each year 20 girls live in the house.
==Highlights of 2015==
Gamma Kappa had another wonderful year of love, loyalty, and sisterhood. We continue to participate in numerous activities and events on campus. Our sisters are actively involved as Tour Guides, Orientation Aides, Varsity Athletes, Group Fitness Instructors, and Admissions Office Interns. Gamma Kappa women are well represented in various community service opportunities, as well as at numerous Greek philanthropy events. We hosted two philanthropy events this year. We hosted our inaugural Kappa Kapture the Flag event in the spring, the chapter voted to donate the proceeds the Wounded Warriors Project. Since there were so many worthy causes suggested before the chapter, we also donated some of the money collected from Kapture the Flag to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. Both charities are very important to our sisters. In the fall we once again hosted Kappaccino as our longstanding, annual fall philanthropy, wherein all proceeds were given to Reading is Fundamental and the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation. Both events were extremely successful and brought both our sisterhood and the wider campus community closer together for philanthropy and fun. Kappa Kappa Gamma also won Sigma Chi’s Derby Days this year. We therefore received a portion of the donations they collected for our philanthropy.
Many sisters traveled abroad to explore the exciting wonders of the world each semester and over the summer, carrying the values and spirit of Kappa Kappa Gamma everywhere they went. We had girls studying in Paris, Florence, London, and Prague, just to name a few cities. In October 2001 Gamma Kappa alumnae and the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation launched a campaign to raise $100,000 to establish the Gamma Kappa Sapphire Scholarship. Each year two Gamma Kappa Sapphire Scholarships are awarded to a deserving undergraduate and/or graduate Gamma Kappa member. Since 2001, Gamma Kappa alumnae and the Gamma Kappa chapter have donated $136,000 to the scholarship fund, and twenty Gamma Kappas have received the $3,000 scholarship. In 2012 one of the two Gamma Kappa Sapphire Scholarships was renamed in honor of Sally Ives Gore, Gamma Kappa alumna, ’56. Sally was an initial supporter of the Scholarship campaign and in 2012 funded a major renovation of the Gamma Kappa house. In 2015 the Gamma Kappa Sapphire Scholarships were awarded to Laura Beaudry and Ariana Talaie, both members of the Class of 2016.
In the fall, Gamma Kappa had a very successful Recruitment season. We had around 500 potential new members visit the Gamma Kappa house during Open House Rounds. Prior to the start of formal recruitment the chapter worked together to establish values that we wanted to look for in potential new members of our sisterhood. We performed our skit “Kappas of Oz,” for the third year and it was very successful once again. Our newest pledge class is filled with many wonderful women who have integrated beautifully into the chapter. We were happy on Bid Day to welcome 41 beautiful new members to Kappa! Of the 41 members, we welcomed 24 freshmen, 13 sophomores, and 4 juniors. We had 3 legacies pledge our chapter this year. We continued our extended New Member Program for a fifth year, which allows for more time for new members to learn about our chapter, and for potential Bigs and Littles to bond before Revelation at the end of Clue Week.
This year we celebrated Kappa’s Founder’s Day with a banquet on October 19th, with a small ceremony and a lot of food. It was a slightly delayed celebration this year as Founder’s Day fell over our Fall Break this year.
The chapter organized several sisterhood events throughout the year where we bonded as a chapter and had the chance to interact with sisters we might not know as well. Some of these sisterhood events included nail painting at the house before formals, and “Fried Chicken Friday”, where girls could hang out and eat dinner together before a date party. On Valentine’s Day we had girls come eat candy, decorate cookies, and take pictures with fun Valentine’s themed props. Standards also organized for cupcakes at the house for all members during finals period.
Gamma Kappa hosted two formal events this year. Our Senior Formal was in mid-April this year. It was a beautiful venue on the water and everyone in attendance had an amazing time. It was a well-planned, lovely send-off for our graduating seniors who we miss greatly. Our fall Pledge Formal took place in November the weekend after initiation at the Alumni House, right on campus. We were thrilled to celebrate our new members into our sisterhood.
Campus: The College of William and Mary is a tight-knit community of about 6,000 undergraduates. We are located in the city of Williamsburg, which is a small, but picturesque little village that is home to Colonial Williamsburg. Among its prime attractions are the Capitol Building and the historic Governor's Palace. Because of our well-established reputation as a challenging place of study, with rigorous academic expectations, we are known as a "public ivy." We have an 11:1 student-to-faculty ratio that allows students to get the individual attention desired to graduate with an excellent education and deep understanding of the subject matter within our majors.
Our campus is home to over 400 campus clubs and organizations, each of which enjoys a high level of participation. The College of William and Mary is known for being the first college ever to have an organization that referred to itself as a "fraternity." This honor fraternity, Phi Beta Kappa, was founded here in 1776. Acceptance to this fraternity is an extremely prestigious honor and privilege. Since 1776, Greek life has been a great way to get involved and meet new people. Our campus houses 16 fraternities and 9 sororities, with approximately 31% of student body involved in Greek life. Other wonderful social opportunities include a capella groups, club sports, intramural sports teams, theatre and performance groups, and Alma Mater Productions (AMP), which is responsible for bringing comedy acts, singers, speakers, and new movies to campus for students to enjoy on the weekends. In fact, William and Mary is listed as the 4th highest a cappella involved school, nationwide.
As a community, we are service oriented and extremely interested in giving back. This community offers an array of popular alternative spring breaks that allow students to build homes with Habitat for Humanity, go to Honduras to bring medical relief to those in need, and go to Belize to build schools, among other options. Our most recognized service group is the Alan Buzkin Memorial Bone Marrow Drive, which the largest collegiate bone marrow effort in the nation. William and Mary students are active, outgoing, and happy people who are passionate about their interests, both in and outside the classroom.
Some accolades that the College of William and Mary received in 2015 by major publications: Kiplinger’s Personal Finance: Ranks 5th for out-of-state and 7th for in-state for top values U.S. News & World Report: #1 for the Best Undergraduate Teaching in a Public University. #33 of National Universities, #6 Best Public Schools, Forbes: 39th ranking overall, Princeton Review: 7th “best value” public institution in the country. The campus has continued to improve through renovations and construction. Work has continued throughout 2015 on the College’s renovation project of Tyler Hall on Old Campus. The plan is ito modernize the building that has not been upgraded since 1980. Additionally the College is continuing its ISC Phase 3 construction of a scientific research facility on campus. This construction began late spring of this past year and it is expected it will be completed by June 2016.
The women of Gamma Kappa are involved in nearly every aspect of college life at William and Mary. Our sisters are known for their widespread range of activities and dedication to their interests. Gamma Kappa sisters are heavily involved in the Student Alumni Council, Tribe Ambassadors, the Bone Marrow Drive, the Tour Guide program, the Orientation Aide program, Varsity Athletics, and various business development clubs. Many Gamma Kappa members stay healthy and active through club and intramural teams, including gymnastics, field hockey, soccer, equestrian, and Orchesis dance, just to name a few. Other members work for the campus Recreation Center as Group Fitness Instructors or Personal Trainers. Several members of our chapter continue to be involved in philanthropic organizations outside of Kappa, including Camp Kesem which is in its second year at William and Mary. Camp Kesem is a free, week-long summer camp run by volunteers – many from the College – that gives kids facing a parent’s cancer critical support, while empowering these students with life and leadership skills. Finally, many others are in charge of various Branch Out International Trips, such as Students for Belize Education, Kenya Sustainability Village Project, and AIDSTanzania.
The sisters of Gamma Kappa take their academics very seriously as well. Most recently, we achieved a chapter GPA average of 3.463 for Spring 2015, which is well above both the all-sorority and all-women averages. Academically, we are ranked 4th out of 12 sororities on campus and 5th out of 30 total Greek organizations. Two girls earned a perfect 4.0. We had an incredible 48 girls make Dean’s List with a GPA of 3.60 or higher and 10 girls earn scholarship pearls with a GPA of 3.85 or higher. We wear our letters every Monday, proudly representing Kappa Kappa Gamma as a sorority of leaders, scholars, and good friends.
Chapter Philanthropy:
What organization(s) has your chapter historically/traditionally raised money for, or donated hours to, in your community?
Reading is Fundamental (RIF), The Wounded Warriors Project, Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, Junior Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF)
Why did your chapter choose this organization(s) to support?
For our spring philanthropy event each year we give members of our chapter an opportunity to talk for a few minutes about a cause that is close to their hearts that they would like the chapter to support. Then, the chapter votes to choose which organizations to support that year. In spring of 2014 we chose JDRF to support our sister who has diabetes. In spring of 2015 we donated to both the Wounded Warriors Project and the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, because we have a sister whose brother currently serves in the armed forces, and another sister who’s mother had been touched by Pancreatic Cancer.
Woman Behind the Badge:
As we look ahead to the Fraternity’s Sesquicentennial celebration in 2020, please tell us the story of any historic badge being worn by a member of your chapter. Such a badge might be worn by your chapter’s president, another officer or a member who is recognized for her high scholarship. We are compiling information about the fantastic women who have brought us to this point in our history, the Women Behind the Badge.
Do any of your chapter officers wear historical badges? YesX No
If yes, please attach a photo of the front and the back of the badge to this report.
What is inscribed on the back of the badge? Marilyn L. Koch, 4-27-67
==Highlights of 2020s:==
