The Year in Review 2004-2005
Our first year as an alumnae chapter exceeded all expectations. We had a fabulous executive board and a really great experience creating and managing the virtual club.
The data: we had 49 dues-paying members. Our budget was $1,225 (100% of the budget came from dues). Our expenses pretty much matched our income – our three largest expenses were support to the collegiate chapter, printing/distributing our newsletter, and our per capita dues to National Headquarters ($7*49=$343).
Our first order of business was getting ourselves up and running as a chapter. The planning committee worked behind the scenes to create the whole concept of a virtual club. The committee members are listed at the end of this document, a huge thank you goes out to all of them. We are also grateful to Courtenay Bogers and Betsy Fenn at National. We owe a huge debt to all our members, many of whom jumped at the chance to join and be trailblazers. A special thank you goes out to Sarah, our Ritual Chair, who organized the details for the Installation ceremony and to the women who performed the ceremony: Jennifer of National Council with Heather and Andrea of the ZU Advisory Board.
In our first year overriding goal was supporting the collegiate chapter. We provided
- welcome back treats at the start of fall and spring semesters, delivered to the house
- support and assistance in recruiting a full advisory board
- co-sponsorship of a domestic violence awareness week event
- a “survival kit” for the new Chapter President
- small useful gifts to the new executive board officers wishing them congratulations/good luck
- assistance during Recruitment, both with local members who could attend events and long-distance support (cards, care packages) from our more geographically distant members
- sponsorship of 2 sisterhood events during Recruitment, a pizza party and a casual chips and soda get together
- small but meaningful welcome gifts to the new members following formal Recruitment
- advice, ideas and funding for the Spirit Sister to improve chapter morale (it didn’t stop snowing in Cleveland ‘til May!!)
- good luck emails and cards during Greek Week
- edible and inspirational goodies for all chapter members for good luck during finals both terms, our favorite item was pencils with a url of helpful tips http://axoalummtm.org/finals.html
- congratulations and e-books to the graduating seniors
Not even 1/10th of this would have been possible without the hard work of our Collegiate Liaison. Thank you, Leila! We are well on our way to fostering a positive relationship with the collegiate chapter.
A secondary goal was to participate in philanthropy projects, both online and in person. To these ends, we
- adopted a chapter philanthropy, Call to Protect, and encouraged all our members to donate their used cell phones
- developed an area on our website to where in a few minutes or with a few dollars, our members could make a difference, particularly in terms of domestic violence awareness http://axomtm.squarespace.com/dva/
- worked to find and share opportunities we call “Click to Help” where by signing a petition or voting or merely clicking, a donation is made to a charitable cause
- chose Race for the Cure as our 2005-06 philanthropy “in person” project and set a goal of having at least 15 of our members participate nationally. So far 2 members walked in Washington, DC and 1 in the Madison, Wisconsin event (both held June 4th). We have volunteer coordinators creating teams for the Cleveland and Orlando Races, both of which are October 9th.
Other highlights of the year included
- the continued success of our private website which now has 300 photos and 145 news items posted, helped in part by the “Post & Win” contest that encouraged members to share news.
- the creation and ongoing development of our public website http://axomtm.squarespace.com
- celebrating MacDowell Month, Hera Day, International Badge Day, International Women’s Day, Sexual Assault Awareness month and Domestic Violence Awareness month online.
- chronicling MTM’s history on 2 weblogs – a monthly summary http://axomtm.squarespace.com/mtm-history/ and a day-to-day behind-the-scenes journal http://axomtm.squarespace.com/journal/
- the creation and ongoing development of a virtual book club http://axomtm.squarespace.com/book-club-discussion-board/
- exploration of ways to collaborate with Case beyond the collegiate chapter; for example, the DVA event we cosponsored with the collegiate chapter was also co-sponsored by the university’s Center for Women; also we met and talked regularly with the staff in the Greek Life Office.
- creation of an “adopt a grad student” program to support our sisters pursuing advanced degrees.
- publication (online, any (ZU) alum can download a copy) of a Zeta Upsilon Alumnae Directory that includes contact information, year of initiation, and the name of each woman’s big sister.
- submission of an article about our founding to the Case Magazine.
- submission and publication of a brief article and photo of our founding in The Lyre.
Thank you to our Planning Committee: Ann Marie, Kathy, Maura, Shelley, Susan, Nikk, Gai, Lisa, Michelle, Karen, Tayra, and Sarah.
Thank you to our Executive Board: Lisa, Leila, Karen, Jennifer, Heather, Nikki, and Erin.
Respectfully submitted,
Amy, President
August 10, 2005