Industry Update Provided by NPC

U.S. News and World Report, Patriot-News and The Philadelphia Inquirer report that Lehigh University’s fraternity/sorority life system has been “paused.” In an email to the university community, President John D. Simon and Vice President for Student Affairs Ricardo Hall announced a suspension of all new member activities. They also prohibited contact between existing members and new members, and any events that are not business-related. The “pause” on fraternity/sorority social life, as Lehigh calls it, comes amid intensifying concern about behavior, despite a 10-point plan for improvement instituted by the university last year and commitment from fraternity/sorority life leaders to work toward change. The pause could further erode membership in Greek life on campus. In spring 2015, fraternities claimed 983 members—roughly 37 percent of the male student body. By last spring, membership had fallen just shy of 660. Sorority membership fell, too, from 1,009, or 46 percent of the female student body, to 834.

Coverage from NBC News, The Associated Press (picked up in The Washington Post and The New York Times) and USA Today reports Cornell University freshman Antonio Tsialas was the victim of elaborate hazing that forced fraternity pledges to drink dangerous quantities of alcohol while cycling through seven themed rooms, his parents said in a lawsuit announced Wednesday. Tsialas was found dead in October at the bottom of a gorge. The parents’ lawsuit claims the university has been ineffective at stopping a longstanding problem with hazing. The legal action names Cornell University, the Phi Kappa Psi Fraternity, its chapter adviser, and eight individuals, including seven students.

Grand Council News from CEO Betsy Corridan

Grand Council meets in person three times a year, and by conference call each month they are not together. Quite often, Grand Council deliberations, and subsequent actions, aren’t appropriate for immediate publication. As well, an announcement is often more appropriate shared by a subject matter expert. For example, Director of Extension Lindsay Sell is a far better messenger about extension opportunities than I am. So, I typically have very little share at the close of a board meeting or call. Grand Council is thoughtfully contemplating a great deal these days, but you may not, for good reason, learn of decisions for weeks or months. 

Grand Council met in Indianapolis in conjunction with the Founders Day celebration. Here are some highlights of the meeting.

• Nearly a million dollars, consisting of investment income, realized gains, and royalty income from the past fiscal year, were set aside for charitable and educational uses. 
• Proposed amendments to the Fraternity Constitution and Bylaws for the 2020 Grand Convention were reviewed and considered. According to our laws, this proposed legislation must be distributed eight weeks prior to Grand Convention, which is May 13, 2020. Since many college chapters will no longer be in session then, the material will likely be distributed by the end of March.
• 2014 college district boundaries were assigned to the 2020 nominating committee for the purpose of electing nine district representatives to the committee. Elections will be held by conference call once delegate registration closes and chapter delegates are known. We had great success with the district election process in 2018 because of the strong leaders chairing the meetings. Each meeting must be chaired by an alumnae or college district director. If you are interested in chairing a meeting, please contact me directly. More information, including a map of the district boundaries, will soon be available on the Board Service web page of the Theta website.
• Goals and objectives for the 2020 Plan of Aspirations were endorsed by Grand Council. In the next step of Plan development, objective owners will develop tactics to support the Plan. The Plan will be introduced at Grand Convention.
• The following statement was endorsed regarding the use of personal pronouns: 

To remain consistent with our membership eligibility statement, “Those who identify as women are eligible for membership in Kappa Alpha Theta,” as well as our own description and pride-point of being a women’s fraternity, the Theta organization will continue to use the pronouns of she/her/hers when writing or speaking on behalf of Kappa Alpha Theta.

This has nothing to do with the pronouns any of us chooses for personal identification. It simply means that when writing/speaking on behalf of Theta, we use the gendered pronouns “she” and “her” when referring to a member. Of course, it may also be possible to rephrase sentences to avoid gendered pronouns by making the subjects plural. If you need assistance with writing, please contact Director of Communications/Editor Liz Rinck. If you have questions about philosophy, please contact me.

• Grand Council’s role in granting exceptions to college chapter alcohol policies was considered, directing bylaws amendments to be drafted shifting approval from Grand Council to a position much closer to the operations of college chapters. 
• A discussion reflected on progress made in the eight years since Theta’s organizational shift moving Grand Council away from Theta operations. While concern was expressed that some in the workforce don’t quite understand Council’s responsibilities as a governing board, concern was also expressed about the amount of operational decisions that remain with the board. In some cases, our laws don’t reflect the philosophy of separating strategic governance and operations. Case in point: college chapter policies described above. 

Grand Council will continue to consider shifts of operations from Grand Council to others better equipped to manage operational issues. If you have questions about Grand Council responsibilities, please contact Fraternity President Mandy Wushinske. If you have questions about workforce (volunteers and staff) responsibilities, please contact Chief Operating Officer Jenni Schmaltz.

Thank you for all YOU do for Kappa Alpha Theta. Stay tuned to Igloo for more Theta news, and please don’t ever hesitate to contact me with questions or concerns.

Loyally,

Betsy

Workforce Update

The college chapter budget committee is pleased to announce that Elizabeth Chambers, Gamma Pi/Iowa State, is now budget district director (BDD) in College District II. 

The Bulletin

The January edition of The Bulletin has been posted in Theta Portal > chapter portal > HQDocs > The Bulletin for all college and alumnae chapter officers and advisors, and they were notified by email. Workforce members always have access to The Bulletin via Igloo > Files > The Bulletin. The Update is Theta’s main communication source for the workforce and The Bulletin is Theta’s main communication source for college chapter officers and advisors and alumnae chapter officers. 

Theta Foundation’s 2020 Scholarship Application

Please help spread the word about Theta Foundation’s scholarship opportunities! More than $700,000 is available to support members pursuing undergraduate and graduate study during the 2020-2021 academic year. Interested applicants are encouraged to review the 2020 Scholarship Application resources, including upcoming help sessions. Please contact Theta Foundation Programs Manager Mary Kate Smith with questions.

Official Sesquicentennial Apparel

An instantly classic, beautifully designed, limited apparel collection with Theta’s 150 sesquicentennial logo is available now via the Theta website! The collection’s sizes range from S to 2XL. The apparel is available for bulk purchases, too, if your chapter is interested in placing a group order of quantities of 24 items or more. Group orders can include a mixed arrangement of various pieces from this collection and you’ll get a better deal on the overall price. Please contact Lewis Dawes from ThetaStore for group order inquiries.

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