Dear Kappa Alpha Theta Alumnae and Parents,

The sisters of Kappa Alpha Theta had a very busy spring semester! We started off January with a very successful recruitment period. We welcomed 51 New Members into our chapter and completed a new Cornell 8-week New Member period. Throughout this period our chapter facilitated numerous sisterhood events and events with other Greek chapters. The

Volume 3, Issue 1 July, 2012

I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E :

Kappa  Alpha  Theta  –  Iota  Chapter  

Ingrid’s Jog For Jill 2

Rock The Casa 2

Theta Senior Brunch 3

Iota Spotlights 4

Theta Abroad 5

Announcements 6

Letter from the President A Message from Carolyn Levitan ’13

Kappa Alpha Theta—Iota Chapter—Cornell University

Download the current newsletter online at

http://www.kappaalphatheta.org/chapters/io

ta/

success of this period was proven when we were recognized at Cornell’s Greek Awards as the chapter with Most Outstanding New Member Education. At those same Greek Awards, we also won Commitment to Service and Community, Outstanding Facilities Management, Outstanding Social Responsibility and the overall award for Most Outstanding Chapter. I would also like to share that our Advisory Board Chairman, Diane Miller, won the A.D. White Faculty/Administrator of the Year Award and one of our sisters, Ingrid Nunez, won Outstanding Greek Woman. I would like to congratulate everybody that played a part in winning any of these accolades!

This spring we also participated in our annual Rock the CASA signature philanthropy event to benefit Court Appointed Special Advocates. We had beautiful weather, a great turnout, and ended up raising a lot of money for our local CASA. In the coming weeks we will turn our philanthropic efforts toward the second annual Jog for Jill in Honor of Ingrid Nunez. As many of you know, this event was piloted last year at Cornell and had a huge turnout of almost 700 participants who helped us raise about $50,000 for lung cancer awareness and research. We can’t wait to repeat the success of this event and surpass last year’s totals. The event will be held in conjuncture with our annual Parent’s Weekend, Sunday, September 30. I encourage any of you to stop by the event if you are in the area!

This summer we also sent a representative to Grand Convention in Tucson, Arizona. We are very excited as we won a Silver Kite Award, recognizing us as an outstanding overall chapter! Special thanks to Jaimee Pavia for representing our chapter this year.

I hope you are all having a happy and healthy summer! Loyally, Carolyn Levitan, Iota Chapter President

On Sunday, September 30th, the sisters of Kappa Alpha Theta's Iota Chapter will bring the Cornell community together once again to support the efforts of the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation with a 5K race. Known as the “Jog for Jill” in honor of a student at University of California, Berkeley, the Addario Foundation organizes these events as fundraisers for lung cancer research. This is a cause near and dear to our chapter's heart; Ingrid Nuñez, a sister of the Iota Chapter, was diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer in the spring of 2011.

The chapter has come together in support of our sister and friend: "I never feel as though I'm fighting this cancer alone because I have over 100 girls who are there for me whenever I need someone," Ingrid said. Last year, almost 700 people participated in the Jog. This year, we are hoping for increased participation and have a goal of raising $45,000. Please help us in our efforts by registering for the 5K at www.JogforJillCornell.org

Theta Runs for Jog for Jill in Honor of Ingrid Nunez

Rock the CASA 2012 On a spring Sunday afternoon, the sisters of Kappa Alpha Theta hosted our third Rock the CASA outdoor philanthropy event. CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) is Theta’s national philanthropy group, an organization which works on behalf of abused and neglected children in court to make sure they do not get lost in the legal and social service system. The event, taking place April 29th from 1-4pm, was well attended by the entire Cornell community, both Greeks and non-Greeks. Attendees enjoyed live music from Cornell a-capella groups and a band, barbeque, and games. Ultimately, the Iota Chapter donated over $1,000 to CASA.

Our philanthropy chair, Marion Smith, described this year’s CASA as successful, "This year, we welcomed people back to school with our annual philanthropy event, Rock the CASA! The weather was beautiful and many of our friends showed up to support us. There was also live music (Cornell's own Debbie's Granola, Dylan Owen, The Chordials, and Zach Alexander), as well as a dunk tank, a raffle, and tons of delicious barbeque. Not only were we were thrilled with how the event played out, we managed to raise over $1300 for CASA!"

Kappa Alpha Theta – The Iota Story Page 2

(From Upper Left) Alli Hill ’14, Taylor Daugherty ’12, Gabby Gordon ’12 (From Lower Left) Sarah Cohen ’13, Beth Jacobs ’12, Ingrid Nunez ’14, and Molly Glantz ’12

Photo Credits to Caroline Gross ‘12

Brothers of Delta Upsilon helped out with grilling which was accompanied by snacks and drinks. There was a wide selection of games including a ring toss, raffle, corn hole, and the very popular dunk tank. Participants enjoyed listening and dancing to live music right outside the Iota Theta house at 519 Stewart Avenue! Our VP of Public Relations who helped plan the event, Claire Blumenthal ‘14, described the event as rewarding. “It was great to have fun with our sisters and friends all for a great cause. We look forward to continuing the Rock the CASA tradition and hosting another outdoor philanthropy event next year!”

Kappa Alpha Theta – The Iota Story

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The 2012 Kappa Alpha Theta senior brunch was a great success that was inevitably bittersweet. Seniors and the executive board gathered at the Statler Hotel on Cornell University's campus for brunch on Sunday, April 29th to reminisce about stories from living in the house, philanthropic endeavors, our formal dances (and what to wear!), amongst other memories. As we enjoyed our food and conversation, a slideshow recapping the seniors' journey through college was shown. Each senior toasted one of her sisters, explaining her impact on others and fond memories shared. At the end of brunch, the seniors took a group photo before departing and heading to our philanthropy event, Rock the CASA, that afternoon.

The 2012 pledge class will be missed and we hope to see them at our Homecoming Alumnae event in the fall!

Theta Class of 2012

Food For Thought

“There are no rules about what you can and can’t do anymore. I love a biker jacket worn over a gown. It’s about experimentation and a sense of creativity. Women are more empowered than they’ve ever been.”

-Tory Burch, Renowned Fashion Designer & Kappa Alpha Theta Alumna

Theta’s Senior Brunch!

Thank  You  Seniors!  

 

Jaimee Pavia ‘14

Junior

Major: Communication Minor: Applied Economics and Management

Hometown: Rochester, NY

Positions in Theta: Chief Operating Officer

Activities: Association of Women in

Communication

Future Goals: Next spring, I plan to participate in the Cornell in Washington program. After graduation, I hope to work for the marketing

(specifically, social media) department of a major television network.

Iota Spotlight

Annelise Quinn ‘14

Junior

Major: Nutritional Sciences

Hometown: Cranbury, NJ Positions in Theta: Steward and Event Director

Activities: VP of CUDA (Cornell University Dietetics Association), member of HealthNuts, research volunteer for ENHANCE, member of the Dean’s Undergraduate Advisory Council for the College of Human Ecology

Future Goals: I would really like to become a Registered Dietician and start my own practice. I would also like to run a marathon.

Clara Foung ‘15

Sophomore

Major: Human Biology, Health & Society Minor in Nutrition & Health

Hometown: Irvington, NY Positions in Theta: Membership Development Committee Representative for 2012 PC

Activities: Pre-Professional Association Towards Careers in Health (PATCH), Guiding Eyes for the Blind, Cornell Fashion Collective

Future Goals: My future goals include going to medical school, becoming ambidextrous, and organizing a “Call Your Girlfriend” dance flash mob

Belinda Platt ‘13

Senior

Major: Industrial & Labor Relations Minor: Communication

Hometown: Hamden, CT

Positions in Theta: Intramurals Chairman, Assistant Membership Chair, MDC, Skit Committee Leader (albeit not an official

Theta position, it’s my favorite)

Activities: Adventist Christian Fellowship and Creativity Collective

Future Goals: I’ve never known exactly what

I wanted to do post-college. Here are some options that appeal to me at the moment: be a

part of Saturday Night Live in any capacity (even the janitorial staff will suffice), work in

the creative department of an ad agency, and/or create a rollerblading gang that may or

may not have a community service component. Ultimately, I want to leave my

mark on pop culture.

Kappa Alpha Theta – The Iota Story

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If you would l ike more information about these Spotl ight candidates , Contact Maggie Henry, mch228@cornell .edu

Kappa Alpha Theta – The Iota Story

Thetas Abroad

Coming to the United States from Singapore to attend university, I was not sure that studying aboard in another foreign location would be very beneficial. After all, what was the point because that’s exactly what I was doing at Cornell. Since the beginning of freshman year, every semester brought new opportunities, new friends, and new experiences. Towards the end of sophomore year, however, this changing environment started slowing down, and I began to think about the option of spending a semester overseas. I had heard a lot of my friends raving about their experiences while abroad, but I was nervous of starting my life there from scratch. Leaving my best friends was difficult because I didn’t want to miss out on all the things we had planned for the spring semester, but I finally decided to go!

I was assigned to live with a host family along with another girl, Samantha, which was reassuring because I could at least get to know her a little before we started classes. Within the first hour of meeting Sam we clicked. Not long

after that we formed a close bond with two other girls, one who I had known from Theta at Cornell, and another one who we had met on the program. The four of us became very close friends and spent most of our time together wandering around the magnificent city. I can definitely say that the friendships I made during my time abroad will last a life time.

While in Europe I took some trips to visit other countries in the Eurozone. Traveling within the Eurozone is convenient and cheap (if you book far enough in advance)! My favorite place to visit outside of France was Barcelona. This small, historic city proved to be a fantastic new experience, where I tried some of the world’s most excellent food as well as their local cava. Looking back on it now, I realize how quickly the time passed and how much was packed into such a short period. I can safely say that going abroad was one of the most rewarding and best decisions I had made throughout my college career.

Alissa Poloumieva ‘13 – Paris, France

Kappa Alpha Theta – The Iota Story

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Announcements

To Our Alumnae On behalf of every member of Iota, I would like to offer our deepest gratitude to our alumnae. We

truly appreciate getting to know each and every one of you through your emails, letters, and various events such as the Alumnae Homecoming brunch, the Reunion Weekend held in June and our

summer networking event in New York City.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me at mch228@cornell.edu or Diane Miller ’88, Advisory Board Chairman at djm15@cornell.edu.

-Maggie Henry, Alumnae and Foundation Liaison

Do you know a women attending Cornell and potentially participating in Panhellenic recruitment? If you would like to recommend her as a potential new member, you may complete an on-line Letter of

Reference form at www.kappaalphatheta.org, or you can print the form or send a letter to

Kappa Alpha Theta

c/o Shauntle Barley, Recruitment Director

519 Stewart Ave.

Ithaca, NY 14850

While Letters of Reference are no longer required for membership in Kappa Alpha Theta, they are extremely helpful in allowing us to get to know a potential new member before she walks into our

house during recruitment.

As always, we sincerely appreciate your support of the Iota chapter and value your membership and contribution. If you would like to become more involved with the Iota chapter, we urge you to send us your pictures, memories, advice, favorite Theta traditions, and any general feedback or questions.

Please visit our newly revamped website at https://www.kappaalphatheta.org/chapters/iota/page/home.

And remember, you are always welcome at the Iota chapter of

Kappa Alpha Theta!

Debby Gu