Installation of Nu Pi at the University of Illinois at Chicago
Brothers:
I’m pleased to announce the installation of the Nu Pi Chapter (#328) at the University of Illinois at Chicago. This is the fifth installation of the biennium.
The Mu Delta chapter at Western Michigan University served as the advising chapter and NCD Governor Jason Mlady served as the colony adviser. Many thanks to these brothers for their service and leadership!
Active and alumni members from Nu, Gamma Pi, Kappa Chi, and Mu Delta attended the initiation and installation. Director of Bands, Dr. José Riojas and NCD Governor Jason Mlady were also in attendance.
Mr. Marco Krcatovich, National Vice President for Programs, served as the Installing Officer.
The chapter is electing and installing new officers in the next few days. We will send out new contact information once we have it so that everyone can send congratulatory notes to our new brothers.
Congratulations to Nu Pi! Welcome to the brotherhood!
AEA,
Evan L. Thompson
National Vice President for Colonization & Membership
Kappa Kappa Psi National Honorary Band Fraternity
evan@kkpsi.org
Installation of Nu Omicron at the University of New Haven
Brothers:
I’m pleased to announce the installation of the Nu Omicron Chapter (#327) at the University of New Haven. This is the fourth installation of the biennium.
Multiple chapters served as participants in the ritual degrees throughout the colonization process. Active and alumni members from the following chapters attended the installation and assisted with initiation: Alpha Epsilon, Alpha Omega, Delta Omicron, Epsilon Nu, Eta Rho, Lambda Nu, Theta Beta, and Theta Upsilon
Current NED Council members in attendance: President Kylie Wolfe, Vice President Shanon Rubin, and Member At Large Emily McPeake. Past NED Officers included: Vice President Emily Quinlisk, Historian/Alumni Liaison Alex Finkel, and Secretary/Treasurer Howard Kalfus.
Mr. Eric Morson, Board of Trustees Member, served as the Colony Adviser and Installing Officer.
The chapter is 32 members strong. The elected officers of the Nu Omicron Chapter are:
President: Christopher Zygmunt
Vice President of Membership: William Belke
Vice President of Projects: Leah Myers
Secretary: Nikolas Decker
Treasurer: Justin Pelletier
Historian: Christopher Jenis
Parliamentarian: Melissa Bannon
Sponsor: Chad Cooper
Director of Bands: Jason DeGroff
Please send notes of congratulations to the Chapter President Christopher Zygmunt at czygm1@unh.newhaven.edu.
Congratulations to Nu Omicron! Welcome to the brotherhood!
AEA,
Evan L. Thompson
National Vice President for Colonization & Membership
Kappa Kappa Psi National Honorary Band Fraternity
evan@kkpsi.org
2016-2018 Chapter Field Representatives Announcement
Brothers:
The National Chapter Field Representative Program began in 1992 to provide a vital link between Active Members and the National Fraternity. We have been served the past two years by two outstanding brothers. I would like to extend my thanks and congratulations to Andy Melvin and Chris Young for their service to Kappa Kappa Psi. The fraternity is better because of their leadership and service.
Kappa Kappa Psi has recently completed the interview process for the National Chapter Field Representative Position. I cannot begin to detail the level of the applications that were received throughout the most recent months. This is an indication of the leadership abilities that are being developed in chapters throughout the country. Our selection committee interviewed four outstanding finalists this past weekend in Stillwater, OK.
It is my honor to introduce our two newest CFRs who will be joining our Professional Staff:
Alaina Peters (alainarpeters@gmail.com) is from Arizona State University and was initiated into the Beta Omicron chapter in the Spring of 2013. She will graduate this spring with a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education. She is enrolled in the Honors College at ASU and recently presented her thesis More Than Teachers: A Study of How Band Directors Handle Student Grief. She has served Beta Omicron in a variety of positions including Secretary and President. In addition, she has served as a presenter and committee chair for Western District Leadership Conference and Convention. The Western District recognized her with the Ideal Active Achievement Award in 2014. She is currently completing her student teaching at Desert Ridge High School in Mesa, AZ.
Justin Chesak (jchesak@unm.edu) is from the University of New Mexico and was initiated into the Gamma Iota chapter in the Fall of 2011. He will graduate this spring with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science with a minor in Psychology. Justin served two terms as his chapter’s Vice President of Membership and is the current President. He served as Vice President of the Southwest District for the 2015-2016 school year and chaired the Colonization & Membership Committee at the 2015 National Convention in Lexington, Kentucky. Justin has also served as a campus tour guide and equipment manager for the Spirit of New Mexico Marching Band.
Please feel free to send these individuals congratulatory messages. As they make their transition to Stillwater and become a part of the National Headquarters Professional Staff, more information will be shared regarding their upcoming chapter visits. A special thank you to National President Jack Lee, National Executive Director Steve Nelson, National Office Manager Di Spiva, Chapter & Colony Education Coordinator Yvonne Daye and our entire National Headquarters Staff for all their work this past weekend in Stillwater.
AEA,
Evan L. Thompson
National Vice President for Colonization & Membership
Kappa Kappa Psi National Honorary Band Fraternity
evan@kkpsi.org
March National Council Update – District Convention Edition!
Who else is gearing up for district convention? I know the Northeast District had an amazing convention a few weeks back, the Southeast District is gearing up for a great weekend to come, and the rest of the districts are following on soon after. Convention is a great experience because it is a jam-packed weekend filled with music, fellowship, and membership development. And make sure to make a new friend or twenty. Those personal interactions are one of the best things about being a brother of Kappa Kappa Psi and we always look forward to it. The National Council wants to wish everyone safe journeys as they make their way to convention in the coming days and weeks.
AEA,
Jack Lee, National President
Evan Thompson, National Vice President for Colonization and Membership
Marco Krcatovich, National Vice President for Programs
Zac Humphrey, National Vice President for Student Affairs
Doug Stotter, National Vice President for Professional Relations
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SPRING 2016 PODIUM
Our Publications Manager, Robert Bratcher, has shared with us a link to the Spring 2016 edition of The Podium and now we are sharing it with you! Be sure to check it out!
COUNCIL MEETINGS
Since our last in-person meeting, the national council has gotten together via the fraternity’s OmniJoin online meeting room. During our meetings, we have shared updates on the work being done on an individual basis. These have been a great way to touch base and get caught up on all of our individual projects. It also helped get us focused ahead of district conventions. We are also in regular communication via text and phone working through the day to day, month to month business of the fraternity.
COLONIZATION AND MEMBERSHIP
Evan kept busy over the past few months coordinating installations as well as debuting the new colonization process at the University of New Haven. In the middle of March, Marco installed the Nu Xi Chapter (#326) at The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. This is the third installation of the biennium. In addition, Evan has been working with many chapters and their advisors on addressing membership education related concerns. He has also been working closely with the Curriculum Development Committee in preparing their presentation on the work they have been doing for the upcoming district conventions.
Jack and Evan, along with members of the National Headquarters staff have been reviewing Chapter Field Representative applications to narrow down a list of finalists who will be brought to National Headquarters in Stillwater, Oklahoma for in-person interviews as part of the process to select the next brothers who will serve in this role. Thank you to all brothers who submitted applications for this position – your dedication and passion for the fraternity are greatly appreciated. Best of luck to all who applied!
PROGRAMS AND AWARDS
Marco has been continuing his work on updating the awards process for Kappa Kappa Psi. As part of this work, he is working on having sample applications for each award so that chapters can have better guidance on what they should be preparing for submission. He is also looking at ways to update the Guide to Membership, since a lot of the awards section of the guide will now be online. He also has been working with the Data Team to develop the convention feedback surveys that convention attendees will fill out (or have filled out in the case of the NED) following their district’s convention. These surveys are essential because they help the National Leadership Team as well as your district councils learn and grow from year to year and help provide better programming for next year’s conventions.
STUDENT AFFAIRS
Zac has been working diligently on laying the foundation for the Kappa Kappa Psi Presents podcast. He has been working with members of the National Leadership Team to get episodes recorded and ready for release and distribution. This has been a big undertaking and learning experience, but it has been a lot of fun as well. The aim is to debut this school year with a handful of episodes and then get on a regular schedule as we move into a new school year this fall. More concrete information on the launch day will be forthcoming.
Zac has also begun planning out events for the incoming district officers. This year has been filled with lots of great conversations between Zac and your district leadership and he wants to capitalize on what he’s learned and expand that collaboration going into next year by hitting the ground running.
And this next announcement comes from our Executive Director, Steve Nelson. As Kappa Kappa Psi is a 501c3 non-profit organization, he wanted us to remind our membership and alumni that that designation means that we in no way can participate in election activities. What does this mean? Part of being a brother is being passionate in defense of our ideals, even with political campaigns and candidates. You can support a candidate or cause on your own, but chapters CANNOT participate in any partisan activity, this includes volunteering time or donating money in the name of the chapter or offering your chapter’s support in some capacity. This also includes wearing our letters to rallies or other volunteer related activities. Doing any of these activities could cause Kappa Kappa Psi to lose its non-profit status, be fined, or worse. Be passionate, make sure you vote, but always follow the law.
TRAVEL, DISTRICT CONVENTION, AND NATIONAL TOWN HALL
As we mentioned up top, we are in the midst of district convention season. The National Council is looking forward to getting face time with the active membership over the next couple of weeks. Please don’t be shy and be sure to say hi!
With the NED kicking off the district convention season, Zac and Marco for the national council, Adam Cantley, Danny George, and Eric Morson for the board of trustees, Mike Napolitano, Ali Beidler, and Daniel Miller for the Alumni Association Board of Directors, as well as the CFRs attended representing the National Leadership Team. They introduced the new format for the Kappa Kappa Psi Town hall session, which allows students to submit questions to the national leadership team via Twitter and Google forms. While many topics were discussed, many more were not due to time constraints. The national leadership team is looking at ways to tackle the unanswered questions and work to get that information to the brotherhood.
This has already been publicized, but posting it again will not hurt anything. The National Town Hall has been a staple of district conventions for the past handful of years and this year we were looking for ways to make it easier for brothers to participate and ask questions, as there has been some issues in the past with incorporating questions into the overall event. To that end, we have created individual online question submission forms for each district convention. Please feel free to leave the Kappa Kappa Psi National Leadership Team a question, comment, or concern by following the link for your respective convention. We will try to address as many as possible during the Town Hall segment of convention. Your name, email, and chapter are optional, but feel free to leave it for follow-up purposes. In addition to the district-centric Google form, we are also promoting a hashtag for each district convention so that questions can be submitted via Twitter as well. Either of these options can be done now, in the lead up to convention, or while you are at convention.
DISTRICT-CENTRIC TOWN HALL GOOGLE FORMS AND HASHTAGS
MWD: MWD Town Hall Google Form and #MWDTownHall
NCD: NCD Town Hall Google Form and #NCDTownHall
NED: NED Town Hall Google Form and #NEDTownHall (NED already happened and it was awesome)
SED: SED Town Hall Google Form and #SEDTownHall
SWD: SWD Town Hall Google Form and #SWDTownHall
WD: WD Town Hall Google Form and #WDTownHall
Kappa Kappa Psi Presents Announcement
Taking into account feedback received following prior Kappa Kappa Psi Presents sessions, coupled with conversations had with students and alumni since national convention in Lexington, I am happy to announce the transformation of Kappa Kappa Psi Presents into an ongoing podcast. Episodes will be similar in structure to the sessions from the fall where I along with a guest or two get together and talk about a topic. The only difference being instead of an hour or hour and a half session once a month, we are aiming to deliver a 20 to 30 minute episode weekly. In addition to chapter operation related topics like finances, the OMRS, and recruitment, we are also aiming to provide snapshots in time of our organization by bringing you interviews with current active and alumni members, as well as current and past members of the national leadership team.
While I am still in the process of recording the first handful of episodes and investigating the best way to disseminate the podcast, I wanted to share this exciting announcement with you (especially since I let the cat out of the bag at the Northeast District Convention this past weekend).
Now, you are probably wondering how you can actively participate in this project. For starters, I have created a google form where you can submit ideas, questions, and topics to be covered during future episodes. In addition, please feel free to tweet your questions using the hashtag #KKPsiPresents. Or you can email us directly at kkpsipresents@kkpsi.org. Despite the pre-recorded format of of the episodes,we are still aiming to have this be a collaborative conversation. We even plan to do some live twitter chats where we will take questions and record our conversation during the chat and then post the recordings later.
In addition to general suggestions for ideas and topics, we are aiming to create episodes on the topics covered in the fall as well as the one that was postponed due to scheduling. If you have anything you have always wanted to know regarding the OMRS, chapter finances, continuing membership education, or recruitment, please follow the links to the associated google form for those topics specifically.
OMRS: http://goo.gl/forms/w0KnJWSjr4
Finances: http://goo.gl/forms/PaMMlvX4Nq
Continuing membership education: http://goo.gl/forms/kNraF0ZYm3
Recruitment: http://goo.gl/forms/RFIv5UYTxr
Suggestions: http://goo.gl/forms/Mq0dihdHM0
I’m looking forward to continuing the conversation as we embark on this exciting new project together!
AEA,
Zac Humphrey, National Vice President for Student Affairs
Kappa Kappa Psi District Convention Town Hall Update!
The Kappa Kappa Psi Town Hall has become a tradition of the annual district convention experience. This year, the National Leadership Team is looking for ways to make it easier for brothers to participate and ask questions, as there has been some issues in the past with incorporating questions into the overall event. To that end, we have created individual online question submission forms for each district convention. Please feel free to leave the Kappa Kappa Psi National Leadership Team a question, comment, or concern by following the link for your respective convention. We will try to address as many as possible during the Town Hall segment of convention. Your name, email, and chapter are optional, but feel free to leave it for follow up purposes. In addition to the district-centric Google form, we are also promoting a hashtag for each district convention so that questions can be submitted via Twitter as well. Either of these options can be done now, in the lead up to convention, or while you are at convention. We want to make it as easy as possible to get your question out there.
We hope you all are getting excited for district convention season to kick off! We look forward to seeing you all in the coming weeks.
AEA,
Zac Humphrey, National Vice President for Student Affairs
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Google Forms and Town Hall hashtags
MWD: MWD Town Hall Google Form and #MWDTownHall
NCD: NCD Town Hall Google Form and #NCDTownHall
NED: NED Town Hall Google Form and #NEDTownHall
SED: SED Town Hall Google Form and #SEDTownHall
SWD: SWD Town Hall Google Form and #SWDTownHall
WD: WD Town Hall Google Form and #WDTownHall
Installation of Nu Xi at The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Brothers:
I’m pleased to announce the installation of the Nu Xi Chapter (#326) at The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. This is the third installation of the biennium.
Alpha Zeta Chapter from Indiana University served as the advising chapter and performed all rituals. Thank you to Alpha Zeta and Chapter President Bang Co for their outstanding service to the fraternity!
Active and alumni members from the following chapters attended ritual and installation: Eta, Nu, Alpha Zeta, and Eta Delta. NCD Governor Ishbah Cox, NCD President Bang Co, and NCD Secretary/Treasurer Jeric Tumang were also in attendance.
Mr. Marco Krcatovich II, National Vice President for Programs, served as the Installing Officer.
The elected officers of the Nu Xi Chapter are:
President: Rose Craig
Vice President of Membership: Salma Qamruddin
Recording Secretary: Andrew Smith
Corresponding Secretary: Hannah Cathryn Drake
Treasurer: Adam Laird
Historian: Angela Roeser
Alumni Secretary: William Pritchard
Parliamentarian: Joshua Johnson
Sponsor: Barry L. Houser
Please send notes of congratulations to the Chapter President Rose Craig at ricraig2@illinois.edu .
Congratulations to Nu Xi! Welcome to the brotherhood!
AEA,
Evan L. Thompson
National Vice President for Colonization & Membership
Kappa Kappa Psi National Honorary Band Fraternity
New Kappa Kappa Psi Colony at The University of New Haven
Brothers:
We are proud to announce the establishment of our newest Kappa Kappa Psi Colony at the University of New Haven, in West Haven, CT. The Colony Members invite you to join them as they go through The Ritual of the First Degree on Sunday, February 28, 2016 at 1:00 PM.
Brothers from the Delta Omicron (UConn), Epsilon Nu (UMass), and Lambda Nu (Sacred Heart) Chapters will participate in a multi-chapter show of support.
The Ritual will be held at:
The University of New Haven
German Club
300 Boston Post Road
West Haven, CT. 06516
Please arrive by 12:30 PM and use the German Club entrance facing Boston Post Road.
Thank you for your support of this incredible group of band members as they advance the mission and vision of Kappa Kappa Psi!
AEA,
Evan L. Thompson
National Vice President for Colonization & Membership
Kappa Kappa Psi National Honorary Band Fraternity
Installation of Lambda Nu at East Tennessee State University
Brothers:
I’m pleased to announce the installation (reactivation) of the Lambda Mu Chapter (#276) at East Tennessee State University. This is the second installation of the biennium.
Lambda Rho Chapter from Tennessee Technological University served as the advising chapter. Thank you to Lambda Rho for their outstanding service to the fraternity!
A large contingent from the Lambda Rho Chapter was present including several alumni brothers. Mr. Evan Thompson, National VPCM, served as the Installing Officer.
The newly elected officers of the Lambda Mu Chapter are:
President: Erica Hicks
Secretary: Katie Wright
Treasurer: Cory Seguin
Historian: Rebecca Kelly
Alumni: Cody Wilson
DOB: Dr. Christian Zembower
Please send notes of congratulations to the new Chapter President Erica Hicks at hicksel@goldmail.etsu.edu.
Congratulations to Lambda Mu! Welcome to the brotherhood!
AEA,
Evan L. Thompson
National Vice President for Colonization & Membership
Kappa Kappa Psi National Honorary Band Fraternity
January National Council Update
Happy New Year brothers! The national council recently met in New Orleans for our annual winter council meeting. While there, we gave updates on the work done since national convention and began planning for the next six months. The weekend was full of great conversation and planning for the future. Below you will find a brief update on the work the council tackled during our meetings.
AEA,
Jack Lee, National President
Evan Thompson, National Vice President for Colonization and Membership
Marco Krcatovich, National Vice President for Programs
Zac Humphrey, National Vice President for Student Affairs
Doug Stotter, National Vice President for Professional Relations
—
TRAVEL
Earlier this quarter, Jack attended a meeting with Chair for the Board of Trustees, Rod Chesnutt, and National Executive Director, Steve Nelson, in Fort Myers, FL. This meeting has occurred for several years and was an opportunity for Rod and Jack to work with Steve to kick off the biennium.
Kappa Kappa Psi had representation at The Midwest Clinic with Evan, Marco, and Doug, as well as multiple other members of national leadership including governors and board of trustee members. The conversations following the clinic indicate that it was a great meeting.
The fraternity and the sorority will have representation at the annual Honda Battle of the Bands event held in Atlanta, Georgia. Along with Jack, Evan and Zac will attend on behalf of the fraternity.
DISTRICT CONVENTION PLANNING
Jack is currently working with the district presidents to provide feedback on their convention plans. This process involves the use of a convention plan template created by Immediate Past President Christine Beason that allows for all convention related information to be included in a single document. This makes the review process more efficient and streamlined.
In addition, Marco has notified the district councils of funds they were awarded based on leadership fund requests submitted prior to the winter council meeting.
NATIONAL COUNCIL MEETINGS
The council has made plans to begin meeting on regular basis in between our in-person winter and summer meetings. These meetings will be a venue to give updates on projects in-progress as well as discuss current fraternity business to help give more time to the big picture conversations and planning discussions that take place during in-person meetings.
COLONIZATION AND MEMBERSHIP
Evan shared that our three active colonies are on track to be installed within the next few months and that we have already begun receiving applications for colonies using the updated application that debuted in the fall. The council reviewed these applications during our meetings in New Orleans.
The council also had a discussion relating to a national leadership development program that would replace the National Leadership Symposia that was discontinued in 2012. Evan and Marco are both working on how this can be done in a way that will most benefit our membership.
Evan reported that as of our council meeting in New Orleans, there were 210 total chapters, with 4,613 dues paying members. He also shared that the average chapter size is 20 brothers.
Evan also gave an update on the Curriculum Development Committee, which had a series of in-person meetings directly prior to the start of the winter council meeting. The goal of this committee is the development of a National Membership Development Program and more on that will be presented at the upcoming district conventions.
The fraternity currently is accepting applications for new Chapter Field Representatives (CFR) as the current two are entering into their final semester. The council wants to thank Andy Melvin and Chris Young for all of their hard work and dedication over the past two years. If you are interested in applying for CFR, check out the more on the application process here.
Evan has also begun the process of planning for this upcoming District Leadership Conference that is attended by the district presidents over the summer. This work is coordinated with his Tau Beta Sigma counterpart, Jonathan Markowski.
PROGRAMS AND AWARDS
Marco shared the progress of his work towards streamlining the awards application process as well as leading a conversation centered on the evaluation of awards and program applications. He is going to be working with National Headquarters staff to create dedicated sections of the national website for each award or program that will also feature past winners, FAQs and other resources that would be helpful for aspiring chapters.
Marco also reported improved participation during November’s National Month of Musicianship. This year 170 chapters listed at least one participating event on their Fall Activity Report (FAR), with 28 chapters meeting his goal of four activities throughout the entire month. This is up from the 2014 totals of 150 chapters doing at least one even and 17 reporting that they did four. The resulting conversation centered on effective ways to promote programs like this. It also led to a discussion about expanding the theme months to other pillars of Kappa Kappa Psi. Marco and Zac are going look at how best to implement this idea moving forward.
STUDENT AFFAIRS
During the meetings, Zac relayed many concerns and questions that have cropped up from active students throughout the fall. These ranged from changes made at national convention to if and how districts could accept credit cards for district related events. Concerns like these led to conversations about ways that the council could communicate upcoming changes in a more effective way, as well as making better use of the District Convention Town Hall format.
The future of the Kappa Kappa Psi Presents/VPSA student chats was also discussed. Based on those conversations, Zac is going to experiment with the podcasting format and transform the Kappa Kappa Psi Presents sessions into ones where brothers can submit questions and comments ahead of time or during a prearranged time period. Zac and his guests will then discuss those submissions and other points relating to the topic of the episode. These conversations will be recorded and made available to brothers nationwide. Be on the lookout for more information regarding this going forward.