LINK BY LINK

Extension Excellence Grows zta’s Sisterhood

| Christy Marx Barber, Staff Writer |

Each chapter represented in Zeta Tau Alpha’s Chain of Chapters had a unique beginning, yet the one gold and 257 shiny, silver links are uniform in their design and were made possible by the process known as extension.

Cynthia Byars Courtney, who served as Extension Director from 1988 to 1996, calls extension the lifeline of the Fraternity. “It is so necessary for us to be strong and competitive,” she said. “Being involved in extension creates long-lasting memories. You connect with sisters across the country and make forever friends.”

The methods ZTA has used to extend The Chain have changed over the years (see Archives story, page 26). Today, chartering a new chapter is a multi-step, months-long journey started by a host campus and completed by ZTA.

Campus vote and National Panhellenic Conference announcement

A campus Panhellenic Association must vote to open for extension and does so usually when all its NPC groups are over Total or recruitment numbers are rising. Once that decision appears in the digital NPC Extension Bulletin, National Council decides if ZTA will apply to open a chapter. In reviewing each opening, ZTA considers: the number of alumnae in the area who could become advisors; the long-term financial obligation, especially when the campus has housing; the proximity to other chapters that could assist; and if ZTA would like to grow in that geographic area. National Council prioritizes campuses where ZTA could reactivate a currently closed chapter.

When a campus allows it, ZTA representatives may make an exploratory visit to the campus before applying. “Those Zetas are the first to make friends on that campus,” said former Extension Director Dolores Gonzales Gastineau. “They will be observant of everything around them. What are the popular activities on campus? What are students involved with?”

The visit may also include a meeting with fraternity/sorority life representatives. “We ask what the vision is for fraternity and sorority life,” Mrs. Gastineau said. “What is the campus stance on social responsibility? Does the administration support that stance, and how deep is that support?”

Being from southern California, one of Mrs. Gastineau’s favorite exploratory visit campus tours was at Boise State University in Idaho. Campus guides drove the ZTA team around campus in the Broncos’ helmet cart in the snow. Many months later, in January 2018, ZTA installed Lambda Omicron Chapter there.

The application

Once National Council has voted to apply for the opening, the Extension Director and ZTA staff begin to create the application. In addition to answering the campus committee’s specific questions, the digital application showcases ZTA’s educational and harm reduction programming, philanthropy and service work, and diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. “Since joining staff in 2019, I’ve worked on five different applications, and all of them covered different topics and needs while telling the complete and powerful story of who we are as an organization,” said Collegiate Services Manager Karoline Park, the staff member responsible for extension materials. “Promoting ZTA to the university comes naturally. We lead with our Nine Key Values. We use them to tell the story of ZTA and why we are a strong partner on campus and in the fraternal community.”

The presentation

After reviewing all the submitted applications, the campus Extension Committee selects a group of two to four organizations to make inperson presentations. The day-long event usually includes a campus tour, a working lunch, small group meetings with committee members and a formal presentation open to the entire campus. A team of National Officers makes the presentation using print pieces, digital slideshows and videos created by the staff to convey why ZTA would be a great selection.

The polished, professional presentation delights former Extension Directors. “I am so proud of the resources we have today,” Mrs. Courtney said. “The presentation team was usually just me and a District or Province President. All we had were turquoise Ultrasuede tablecloths monogrammed with ZTA, accordion-fold presentation boards, trinkets and T-shirts and a few slides in a projector. What we do now is simply amazing.”

“...I help them to visualize themselves developing their sense of belonging with likeminded women and challenge them to leave their unique legacy within ZTA and on campus.”

- former National President and Extension Director Alice McCann Mathews

Recruiting a new chapter

If ZTA is selected, the Extension Director and staff work together to create a campus-specific extension plan. Leadership Consultants and National Officers may visit the campus again to scout high-traffic locations for the best on-campus exposure and meeting spaces for recruitment events. They meet with fraternity/sorority life administrators to select the best dates for extension recruitment, which normally occurs after Primary Recruitment. On some campuses, ZTA may be given time during Primary Recruitment to speak with all potential new members about the plans for a new chapter.

In the weeks before the extension recruitment, Leadership Consultants arrive on the new campus. They set up bright turquoise tents in popular locations and introduce themselves and ZTA to students passing by.

Current Leadership Consultant Maggie Lorenz remembers walking from class at University of Cincinnati to the dining hall on a rainy day in fall 2018. “You couldn’t miss the turquoise blue Zeta Tau Alpha tent on the lawn,” she said. “A Leadership Consultant stopped me and asked if she could tell me more about ZTA. I remember her speaking with so much enthusiasm. That spoke volumes about her dedication and passion for ZTA, because not many people would be willing to stand in the cold rain talking to strangers all day. I signed up for an infoview for later that week after talking to her for a few short minutes.”

Infoviews are one-on-one conversations between a potential new member and a ZTA National Officer during the extension recruitment week. “It’s an opportunity to have a meaningful conversation about membership in ZTA, the experience as a founding member and the unique role of helping to start the chapter,” said former National President and Extension Director Alice McCann Mathews, who continues to serve on the extension team. “I love to find out what brought them to their university, their hobbies and interests and their involvement on campus. I help them to visualize themselves developing their sense of belonging with like-minded women and challenge them to leave their unique legacy within ZTA and on campus.”

Recruitment week also includes large group invitational events: Experience ZTA, Think Pink. Think Zeta.® and Preference events. These events give ZTA the opportunity to showcase programming, philanthropy and sisterhood. They also introduce potential new members to the other women who may become their sisters.

Current Leadership Consultant Caitlin Perkins recalled her experience as a potential new member at the Preference event at Boise State in 2017. “I was so in awe of the number of people in the room, and even though I

was sitting next to complete strangers, I wasn’t intimidated,” she said. “I will never forget the moment we received our bids. We all just started squealing and laughing out of complete shock and joy. We hugged each other even though we wouldn’t know each other’s names until later!”

Chartering a new chapter

Each new ZTA chapter is assisted by a Director of New Chapters from Bid Day through Installation and for several years beyond. This National Officer also directs the Leadership Consultants who guide the new chapter through the new member program, campus activities, officer elections and installation (see Lambda Upsilon installation story, page 32). The guidance was especially important to Lambda Tau Chapter (Long Island University Brooklyn), the only ZTA chapter recruited, initiated and installed virtually due to COVID-19. “Our Leadership Consultant and DNCH were not only our ZTA mentors; they were also our life mentors,” said founding chapter President Rama Diallo. “I love their ability to understand the chapter’s dynamic and the dynamic of NYC. They saw the change and impact we could make in our community even before we knew it ourselves. We relied on them to help us live up to the words in our Creed.” After each celebratory installation banquet, the

Chain of Chapters is carefully packaged and returned to International Office. The staff takes it to a jeweler who solders the newest link in place permanently and The Chain is carefully stored until ZTA repeats this extension process once again.

“Adding a link to our Chain of Chapters is so rewarding for everyone involved. National Council, the Fraternity Housing Corporation, the ZTA Foundation, our dedicated volunteers and talented staff all play a role. It is truly a collaborative process,” Extension Director Raechel Bennett Biggs said. “ZTA is committed to supporting our existing chapters while seeking opportunities to add new chapters. Each link is equally important, and that’s truly the strength of our Fraternity.”

ZTA’s Extension Directors through the years

Extension Director became an elected National Council office in 1978. ZTA is forever grateful to the women who have served in this vital role.

*Martha C. Edens

1978-1980 and 1984-1986

Jeanne Manley (Nowell) Kennedy

1980-1982

Dava Fuerst (Fox) Hendrickson

1982

Cleo Stout Tapp

1982-1984

Linda Bowers Deviney

1986-1988

Cynthia Byars Courtney

1988-1996

Alice McCann Mathews

1996-1998

Julia Marthaler Hill

1998-2002

Terri Dew Millsap

2002-2004

Karen Farmer Mills

2004-2010

Marlene Dunbar Conrad

2010-2016

Dolores Gonzales Gastineau

2016-2020

Raechel Bennett Biggs

2020 to present

*Deceased