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Beta Chi Chapter won the Scholarship Cup for the year 1919 and 1920. This cup was awarded to the woman's fraternity receiving the highest average for the scholastic year at the University of Kentucky.
The chief honor of this period came to the Chapter when Sarah Gibson Blanding, a Beta Chi alumna, was elected by the Board of Trustees as Dean of Women. “The Dean is gone, long live the Dean!” was the cry on the lips of the Beta Chis. She was only twenty-six years old, and the youngest woman in the United States to have the responsibility of such an office. She was a native to Lexington, Ky. After her high school graduation, she took a two-year course at New Haven Normal School of Gymnastics, which qualified her to become an instructor in the Department of Physical Education at Kentucky while still a freshman at the university. In her senior year of college, she was president of Beta Chi, president of the Administrative Council, captain of the varsity basketball team, and national vice-president of Mortar Board. She also served as the president of the alumnae association at Lexington.
Most of the social events of this era were Fraternity or Panhellenic affairs. The Founders Day banquet of 1921 was held in the Lafayette Hotel, which had just been completed. Fan Ratliff presided over the affair, which was cleverly planned as a musical banquet. The tradition of the Mother’s Day tea was inaugurated, and an agreeable custom of paying calls to patronesses was established. The patronesses and alumnae were honor guests at a Kappa picnic on the river banks in May of 1920. An invitation to a Province dance issued by Delta Chapter was recorded in the minutes of the same year. Rushing parties were continued as usual, except that the Fraternity abolished the house dance for rushees.It appeared that men rushing for other fraternities were spreading propaganda at the dance. The biennial formal dance was initiated at this time, and the first of a long series of these good times took place at the Phoenix Hotel. During the year 1920, the Kappas played the Chi Omegas in a basketball contest that has never been forgotten. So enthused were the fair opponents that the inter-sorority basketball tournament had to be abolished! Three new nationals established chapters on Kentucky’s campus --- Delta Delta Delta, Delta Zeta, and Zeta Tau Alpha. Beta Chi entertained each group at a tea. One interesting social event was a Pantry Party given at the house. Mothers and patronesses were invited to come and help re-stock the pantry shelves.
