DAY OF GIVING

DAY OF GIVING 2021

The best road trip

By Christy Marx Barber, Staff Writer

The perfect road trip might include great friends, scenic stops, surprises around every bend and a beautiful destination. With the theme “All Roads Lead to ZTA,” the ZTA Foundation’s second annual Day of Giving, on Oct. 15, 2021, included all those elements and more.

“We wanted to honor our Founders on Founders’ Day by emphasizing the connections we make in our sisterhood no matter where life takes us,” said Foundation President Carolyn Hof Carpenter. “We were overwhelmed throughout the day as the donations continued to pour in.” The Day of Giving’s virtual road trip began at 9 a.m. ET, at ZTA’s original sisterhood site in Farmville, Virginia. The day took donors across the country to view fun, informative videos that revealed each location’s connection to the Founders or ZTA history. The journey stretched from Alaska to California to Texas to Tennessee and ended at International Office in Carmel, Indiana, at midnight ET. Throughout the trip, sisters from all 50 states, Canada and Germany hopped on the turquoise bus with 1,615 donations totaling an incredible $287,240.41. First-time donors accounted for 235 of those gifts.

ROAD TRIP PREP

Among the great friends who made the road trip a success were 85 Ambassadors—alumnae members who used their social media platforms before and during the Day of Giving to encourage their circle of friends to donate.

The surprises around every bend were made possible by the generosity of these 32 challenge donors:

GETTING THE SHOW ON THE ROAD

To start the road trip, ZTA received a combined donation of $3,750 from:

NATIONAL PRESIDENT Alicia Patten Williams

Theta Psi Texas State University

ZTA FOUNDATION PRESIDENT Carolyn Hof Carpenter

Theta Tau The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

ZTA FRATERNITY HOUSING CORPORATION PRESIDENT Dinah Jackson Laughery

Beta Gamma Florida State University

ALL 50 STATES CHALLENGE

After a donation from every state (yes, all 50, plus District of Columbia, Canada and Germany) ZTA received a gift of $5,000 from Shamim Syed Wu (Theta Omega, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona).

Visit ZTADayofGiving.org to view videos about the significance of each location to ZTA’s history.

FIRST-TIME DONOR CHALLENGES

After 100 first-time donors, Malaea Nelms Seleski (Eta Rho, University of North Alabama) gave $1,898.

After 150 first-time donors, Kelley E. Moulton (Eta Lambda, College of Charleston) gave $5,000.

(HORSE) POWER HOUR CHALLENGES

Reaching 100 donations in an hour unlocked gifts from:

Laura Moak Redman

Delta Lambda Georgia State University $1,250

1,250 TOTAL DONATIONS Kay Dill Kreutzer

Eta Rho The University of North Alabama $3,500

1,350 TOTAL DONATIONS Debbie Buscher

Zeta Mu Jacksonville University $4,000

1,500 TOTAL DONATIONS Jennifer Speidel Baker

Eta Theta Missouri University of Science & Technology $5,000

SISTERHOOD STOPS

The ZTA bus got fuel for all the challenge goals throughout the day with gifts from:

Anonymous Donor

$1,250

Dr. Darcy L. Russell

Sigma Baker University $1,500

Dr. Rachelle J. Douglass

Alpha Psi University of Missouri $2,000

MILE MARKER CHALLENGES

As destination challenges came to an end, mile marker challenges tracked progress. Donations continued to roll in and unlocked gifts after:

Laura Ladewig Landers

Theta Psi Texas State University $1,500

Bridget Higginbotham

Eta Omega Louisiana State University in Shreveport $1,898

Michelle Macartney

Delta Delta Baldwin Wallace University $2,500

V. Jan Middlebrooks

Beta Omicron University of South Carolina $2,500

Dr. Kelly Smith

Gamma Pi University of Georgia $5,000

Bonney Stamper Shuman

Gamma Pi University of Georgia $5,000

REACHING THE DESTINATION

At the end of the journey, with all challenge goals achieved, Tanya Snyder (Iota Omega, University of Maryland) completed the amazing Day of Giving with a gift of $15,000.

The $287,240.41 raised in 2021 was a significant increase over the $226,369.69 raised in 2020. “When we hosted the inaugural Day of Giving in 2020, we had no idea what to expect, and our sisters blew us away,” Mrs. Carpenter said. “The second year reinforced our belief that all roads lead to ZTA, no matter where your journey began. We thank every donor who has fueled our sisterhood.”

Donations from of the Day of Giving allow the Foundation to continue to provide scholarships, educational programming, leadership training and philanthropy efforts that make an impact on members’ lives.

1,000 TOTAL DONATIONS Anonymous Donor

$2,500

1,150 TOTAL DONATIONS Sara Hays Johnston

Alpha Upsilon Oklahoma State University $3,000

DESTINATION CHALLENGES

Nine sisterhood sites revealed with 100 donors each and gifts of at least $1,250 for each included: FARMVILLE, VIRGINIA Alice McCann Mathews Eta Iota Valdosta State University

SITKA, ALASKA Marnie Marlar Frazier Eta Omega University of Louisiana in Shreveport

JELLICO, TENNESSEE Kimberly Jones Ivester Gamma Pi University of Georgia

BIGWIN INN ONTARIO, CANADA Jill Burrows Levine Beta Omega Union University

WEST BADEN SPRINGS, INDIANA Anonymous Donor

MIAMI, FLORIDA Carla Martin Cobb Theta Tau The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

DALLAS, TEXAS Cynthia Byars Courtney Gamma Tau Texas Tech University

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA Heather Matthews Kirk Delta Kappa Louisiana State University

CARMEL, INDIANA Keeley McDonald Iota Sigma Old Dominion University

After all nine sites were unlocked, Jenni Zottola Leger (Zeta Sigma, The University of Texas at Arlington) donated $6,500.

STEADFAST STRONG

Zeta Tau Alpha Convention 2022 Grapevine, Texas

Gather with Zeta sisters from all over the country for Convention 2022 at the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center, July 12-17, 2022. Registration will be available in February on the ZTA website (zetataualpha.org) or by calling International Office at (317) 872-0540.

Call for Nominations

The Zeta Tau Alpha Nominating Committee is preparing a slate of qualified nominees to serve as members of National Council for the 2022-2024 biennium. The committee invites all members to provide input for this process. The election will take place at Convention 2022 in Grapevine, Texas.

THE SLATE COMPRISES THE FOLLOWING OFFICERS:

• National President • Vice President Collegiate I • Vice President Collegiate II • Vice President Collegiate III • Vice President Alumnae I • Vice President Alumnae II

• Secretary-Treasurer • Extension Director • National Panhellenic Conference Delegate

NOMINEES MUST POSSESS THE FOLLOWING QUALIFICATIONS:

• Belief in sisterhood and a commitment to ZTA • Talent as an effective administrator and motivator • Critical thinking skills, including the ability to define problems, evaluate solutions, establish priorities and make decisions • Availability to travel as needed, to communicate by phone and email daily, and to commit time to necessary administrative work

EACH NOMINATION SHOULD INCLUDE:

• An explanation of why the candidate would be wellsuited for the office • Pertinent ZTA information, including: collegiate chapter; alumnae chapter; collegiate and alumnae positions held, such as advisor, house corporation or association officer, Province President or District

President, etc.

Zeta Tau Alpha members who wish to submit names to the committee should send their nominations by Feb. 1, 2022, to: Helen Kristensen Fish

Nominating Committee Chair

307 Cedar Dr. Metairie, LA 70005 helenfish@cox.net

ZTA EXTENSION: A HISTORY

By Patti Cords Levitte, Archivist, and Susan L. Beard, Archives Committee Chair

In a typical school year, Zeta Tau Alpha makes extension presentations on college campuses that are looking to grow their Panhellenic communities. If chosen, ZTA creates the nucleus of a new chapter through values-based interviews with potential new members. The in-person installation of Lambda Upsilon Chapter at University of Wisconsin-Madison this fall was a return to normal Fraternity operations for Zeta Tau Alpha and served as a reminder of just how far ZTA has come in the process of creating new chapters.

From the very beginning, Founder Maud Jones Horner was determined to make ZTA a national organization but wasn’t exactly sure how to make that happen. Maud felt it was critically important to establish a legal foundation for ZTA before trying to expand. ZTA existed only as Alpha Chapter until the Virginia State Senate legally chartered the Fraternity in 1902. With legal recognition in place, ZTA began expanding. The earliest new chapters, all located close to Alpha Chapter, came into existence through personal connections at those schools. Of those first three attempts, Original Beta Chapter (Richmond Women’s College) and Gamma Chapter (Hannah More Academy) both failed due to campus disapproval of women’s fraternities. Plummer Jones, Maud’s brother, also reached out to women he knew at other colleges in Virginia, but none of those efforts led to new chapters. ZTA continued to look for new places to extend, but it wasn’t until the Fraternity found connections at University of Arkansas (Epsilon Chapter) in 1903 and The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (Zeta Chapter) in 1904 that ZTA was able to move past its Virginia roots.

As the Fraternity began to find its footing with new chapters, fraternity men and officers of other national sororities reached out wanting to assist in growing ZTA’s membership. It was common at the turn of the 20th century for other fraternity and sorority groups to attempt to influence where other organizations would start new chapters, and ZTA established at least one chapter thanks to members of other groups.

[1]

[1] Alpha Theta Nu, the local sorority that became Sigma Chapter (Baker University) in 1912 [2] A new chapter announcement from the 1920s [3] Part of a petition submitted to ZTA by Sigma Omega Sigma, a local sorority at University of Cincinnati, in 1920 [4] Hand-drawn and colored 1905 postcard announcing the chartering of Iota Chapter (Richmond College) [5] Part of a 1904 letter recommending women at Bethany College (Theta Chapter) to ZTA

Albert Wilson, a Sigma Nu from Ohio who had heard good things about ZTA, recommended the Fraternity to a group of women at Bethany College. They would become Theta Chapter in March 1905, a few months after Albert’s first letter to ZTA’s second Grand President Bruce Houston Davis. Albert also tried to get ZTA to place chapters at two other Ohio colleges and wanted to broker a merger between ZTA and another NPC organization, but ZTA did not allow Albert to have any further influence on the organization. In 1906, Mrs. Davis started the process that enabled ZTA to join the National Panhellenic Conference, which allowed ZTA to enter colleges with stricter educational standards and to successfully compete with older, more established sororities. Her work led to rapid growth under the next Grand President, Dr. May Agness Hopkins. ZTA granted charters to 16 new chapters from 1909 to 1920, all of which were local sororities or groups formed for the express purpose of petitioning ZTA. number of women entering college after World War I and during the 1920s led to the rapid growth of Panhellenic systems.

The number of unsolicited petitions received by Grand Chapter exceeded the amount of growth that ZTA could sustain. Early applications required the petitioning group to provide its complete history as well as that of the college and to demonstrate how ZTA would benefit from accepting the group. Many of the early petitions included items from the local sorority, like scrapbooks and even jewelry, some of which is on display in ZTA’s Historical and Educational Center. Even with the absorption of all these local groups, the Fraternity still had a conservative policy toward growth. Early leaders like Dr. Hopkins felt that 12 to 15 women—or up to 25 if there was housing—was the ideal number of members for a chapter; but this guideline would soon go by the wayside. The increase in the ZTA’s preferred method of extension would continue to be absorbing local organizations that came with a solid alumnae base and local recognition. This method would change after World War II, when another wave of college students including many women who were first-generation college students matriculated. ZTA still occasionally acquires a local sorority, as was the case with Lambda Beta Chapter (University of Rhode Island) in 2009, but acquisition is not the typical process anymore.

For many decades, ZTA could place chapters where it chose. In the 1980s, NPC started regulating the process by which new chapters could be added to a campus. These regulations limited ZTA’s ability to place new chapters, because organizations had to be invited to join a campus before establishing a chapter. Often, the campuses that are open for extension are ones where a ZTA chapter already exists. Since 2010, ZTA has opened 16 new chapters and rechartered nine.

While the amount of time it takes to establish a strong foundation and open a chapter varies, extension will always be the way ZTA grows. Exploring possibilities and sharing ZTA’s sisterhood on new campuses is exciting, and the Fraternity looks forward to continuing to extend the bonds of ZTA sisterhood on as many campuses as possible.