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Academic excellence remained a priority for the chapter as a "study buddy" program was implemented. Zeta Iota also utilized a "Support Your Sister Award" and the Skippy Jar to encourage scholarship among members.
==Highlights of 2011==
Our sisters also worked to support Reading is Fundamental by hosting Greek God and Goddess in the Fall of 2011 and reading to children with cancer at CHOP. Zeta Iota supported the Kappa Kappa Gamma Foundation by hosting a charity jewlery party at an alumni's house to raise money. Zeta Iota has encouraged the planning of a sisterhood event every month to promote bonding with sisters and to grow closer as a chapter. In November 2011, a study pizza party was held where 80% of the chapter was present, and in December 2011 an ice cream social was held where 85% of the chapter attended. On October 1, 2011, 75 members of Zeta Iota attended "Kamp Kappa," a two day retreat for sisterhood bonding and chapter planning. The sisters took a bus to Camp Green Lane, PA and were divided into eight Retreat groups. A Kappa Trainer came to speak about Kappa values, traditions and "wearing your letters 24/7." We also had a ritual review with a Kappa advisor and a fireside ceremony where sisters shared personal expereinces about their life in Kappa and spoke about what Kappa means to them. '''Campus:''' The campus began renovations over the summer of 2011. Phase One of Villanova's transformation was completed in November 2011 and "the quad," an area where many of our sisters live, has been transformed and made more appealing. The landscape has been made pedestrian friendly and more aesthetically beautiful. There have been additions to the quad so that there are more places for students to socialize. '''Chapter:''' The overall nature of our chapter is very enthusiastic and sisterly. We have become very close as a chapter continued and have been working together to participate in philanthropic activities sponsored better ourselves as a whole, as well as bettering our individual members. We have worked together to reach our goals and will continue to do so by other Greek-letter organizationsstaying organized, such as Chi Omegafocused and determined. We have learned what it means to embody Kappa Kappa Gamma's Karaoke Nightvalues at all times and do our best to maintain a positive image on campus. This year our chapter has faced some challenges in Academic Excellence, Alpha Chi OmegaRitual, Greek Week, and Committee Involvement. Our Vice President of Academic Excellence worked to improve our chapter's Wiffleball Tournamentoverall GPA by creating an Academic Focus Plan including mandatory study hours, a "study buddy" program, selecting a VPAE Committee to monitor sisters grades and assist with goals, and Tri Deltaarranging tutors for members who sought extra help from sisters. Members of Zeta Iota were rewarded for Academic Excellence through the "Support Your Sister Award," ans the Skippy Jar, in order to keep sisters motivated to go to class and to get better grades. Our chapter was struggling to incorporate ritual into our weekly activities, however, by implementing formal chapter once a month, as well as having weekly ritual reviews, we have improved our knowledge of Kappa Kappa Gamma's Kickball Tournamentritual and have been able to perform our ritual more smoothly. This year we participated in Greek Week and strived to win since we have lost many years in a row. Although we did not win, we worked together to get a large majority of our chapter to participate and be enthusiastic during Greek Week. We also encouraged the members of our chapter to be panhellenic and supportive of the other chapters. This past year we had some difficulty getting girls involved in committees. Our Vice President of Organization created a virtual sign-up sheet for all of the different committees and made it mandatory for every member to join at least one committee. If they did not sign up for one, they were assigned to a random committee.
The overall nature of our chapter is one of sisterhood, dedication, and enthusiasm. Our chapter has striven to become very close, and work together to better ourselves as a whole, as well as bettering ourselves individual members. We have worked together to reach our goals and will continue to do so by staying organized, focused and determined. We have learned what it means to embody Kappa Kappa Gamma's values at all times and do our best to maintain a positive image on campus by wearing out letters twenty-four seven.
==Highlights of 2013==
The Zeta Iota chapter has had successful year filled with many great memories and triumphs. Our chapter has participated in multiple Greek events on campus in an effort to support other chapters and their philanthropies, including Kappa Delta’s Corn Hole Tournament, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Tri Delta, and Alpha Chi Omega’s “Kristin’s Story” Event, Alpha Phi’s Fiesta Bowl, Pi Beta Phi’s “Pi Phi Gives You Wings” Event, Alpha Chi Omega and Beta Theta Pi’s “Rubbery Ducky Race” Event, Villanova’s St. Thomas of Villanova Day of Service and Villanova’s own Special Olympics.
Zeta Iota received several formal awards this past year. At the Beta East Province Meeting, Zeta Iota was awarded with the Suzan Syover Root Chapter Improvement Award and the New Member Program Award. Zeta Iota focused on creating Breast Cancer Awareness by hosting Breast Cancer Awareness Week in October 2013, which included passing out lollipops with breast cancer facts, ribbons, baked goods and stickers to promote awareness. We received many donations and hosted a Ladder Basket Ball Tournament on campus where members of other chapters and organizations on campus played and donated to the cause. Our sisters also worked to support Reading is Fundamental by sponsoring a Book Drive, the Monmouth Duo, with Pi Beta Phi.
Zeta Iota has encouraged the planning of a sisterhood event every month to promote bonding with sisters and to grow closer as a chapter. In the spring of 2013, our outgoing Pledge Class Mom held a retreat for the new members at the home of a new member whose mother was a Kappa at Villanova. During this retreat, the new members grew closer together as sisters and learned more about what it means to be a member of this sorority. In the fall of 2013, the members of Zeta Iota attended “Kamp Kappa” that was hosted at a member’s home near campus. “Kamp Kappa” was a retreat for sisterhood bonding and chapter planning, where members were divided up into eight Retreat Groups and spent the day reviewing and embracing Kappa tradition and ritual. A Kappa Trainer spoke about Kappa Values, traditions, and “wearing your letters 24/7.”
We also had a ritual review with and a fireside ceremony where sister shared personal experiences about their life in Kappa and spoke about what Kappa means to them. Following our chapter retreat, our letter of feedback from our LC stated that Zeta Iota’s strengths were Philanthropy, seeking advice and embracing change and our Kappa pride. Our area of focus, or challenges, were Ritual and Sisterhood. In light of this, we have been embracing Ritual at every Chapter and thinking of new ways to engage and educate our members on the founding principles, ceremonies, and traditions that outline what it means to be a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma. We have also been hosting several “JUGS,” just us girls, events such as lunch groups with new members. We also continued giving special tokens at Chapter to members who have exemplified true Kappa sisterhood. This year we started “Polished Kappa,” an award in which a member receives a nail polish for exemplifying a true Kappa. We have implemented this to reward girls for their efforts, to emphasize the importance of sisterhood, and to let our members know that their actions do not go unnoticed.
We are continuing to strengthen Academic Excellence as well. Our Vice President of Academic Excellence worked to improve our chapter’s overall GPA by creating an Academic Plan including mandatory study hours, a “study buddy” program, selecting a VPAE Committee to monitor sisters grades and assist with goals, and arranging tutors for members seeking extra help from sisters. Members of Zeta Iota were rewarded for Academic Excellence through “Support Your Sister Award,” and the Skippy Jar, in order to keep sisters motivated to go to class and to get better grades. In the fall of 2013, our VPAE also implemented the “Smart Cookie Award” where a member was awarded with a cookie at Chapter for doing well on a paper or exam that week.
Last but not least, we have worked on our leadership as a chapter in numerous ways. This fall Jenna Sula, a sophomore and our current Education Chair, attended a Leadership Academy in Ohio to strengthen her knowledge of leadership. In addition, every sister is actively involved in different committees, and we have continued to assign “unofficial” titles for leadership opportunities; these include pledge class leader, and retreat group leader. On December 12, 2013, we conducted Leadership Training with advisers and reviewed The Kappa Leadership Guide with outgoing and incoming Chapter Council members. Our goal for this year is to further strengthen the bonds of our sisterhood, through ritual training, off-campus sisterhood events, and overall Kappa morale so that we may be knowledgeable, proud, and confident in our Zeta Iota Chapter.
Villanova’s continuing efforts to beautify the campus have progressed since construction began in the summer of 2011. The “quad,” an area where many of our sophomore members reside, has been made more appealing. This space has been opened up for organizations on campus to host events and set up tables and interact with the Villanova Student Body. In the spring and in the fall, we set up tables in the quad in order to promote our ladder basketball tournament and to promote Breast Cancer Awareness. In addition, the construction on the landscaped areas around the Grotto, bookstore, mailroom, Connelly Center (dining hall) and library has been completed, making the campus more pedestrian friendly. This new, open landscape has promoted socialization and interaction among its students.
The overall nature of our chapter is one of sisterhood, dedication, enthusiasm and support. Our chapter has strived to become very close, and work together to better ourselves as a whole, as well as bettering ourselves as individual members. We have worked together to reach our goals and will continue to do so by staying organized, focused and determined. We have learned what it means to embody Kappa Kappa Gamma’s values at all times and to do our best to maintain a positive image on campus by wearing our letters twenty-four seven.
==Highlights of 2020s:==