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2021 KKPsi Fall Mailer Letter

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August 25, 2021 

Brothers of Kappa Kappa Psi, Chapter Sponsors, and Directors of Bands,

As the newly elected National President of Kappa Kappa Psi, I am excited to welcome in the 2021-2023 biennium, as well as a new school year filled with the joy of playing MUSIC!  

You can find information for the 2021-2022 school year here:  2021 – 2022 Fall Informational Mailer.   We hope that the use of a powerpoint format will help organize the information to make it easier to understand, and also allow chapters to use this as a tool to update members on the relevant national information and changes following the 2021 National Convention in Grand Rapids, Michigan. While the amount of content may be a bit overwhelming at first glance, I strongly encourage each Chapter to take the time to review this document during a chapter meeting.  This will help ensure a strong start to the school year.  If after reviewing the PowerPoint you have questions, please feel free to reach out to the National Council by emailing council@kkpsi.org.  

In addition to this update, we have posted the updated 2021 Kappa Kappa Psi National Constitution to the Fraternity website.  Due to the amount of changes that were made at the 2021 National Convention, the National Council created a 2021 Kappa Kappa Psi Constitutional Updates Document to help provide an overview for you.  Once the 2021 National Convention minutes are finalized, we will send those to you as a link to the National Headquarters website.

Also, we have updated the PIVOT Guidance for the Fall 2021 semester.  Relevant updates include:

  • A waiver for band participation, which will be granted by both National Councils, on a case by case basis. However, members must still be enrolled in coursework at their college or university and be in good standing with their university or college to be active members.  Waiver requests should be put into writing via email from the Chapter Sponsor with the Director of Bands cc’ed, and emailed to council@kkpsi.org. 
  • Additional information has been provided for conducting in-person Fraternity Rituals.
  • Some Chapters may now be able to host in-person activities/events: Chapters should only host in-person social, service, membership, or fundraising activities/events during the 2021-2022 school year if the following criteria are in place:
    • Your campus activities office, Dean of Students, Office of Greek Life, or other authorizing body approves your Chapter to host in-person activities/events on your campus.
    • Your chapter activity/event has been approved by your Director of Bands and/or Chapter Sponsor in writing.  This may include your Director of Bands and/or your Chapter Sponsor approving a semester calendar of events.
    • Your Chapter follows all campus, local, state, and federal health and safety guidance.
    • Your Chapter does not penalize members who feel uncomfortable attending these activities/events.

The National Council knows that each campus continues to have their own unique procedure in place while navigating the unknowns of the new variants of the virus. It is our hope that the information outlined in PIVOT! continues to be easily adaptable to every Chapter’s situation.  At this time, we ask that each Chapter send any official documentation from your university as it pertains to their COVID-19 protocol to our Health and Safety team at healthandsaftey@kkpsi.org.  

As we start the 2021-2022 academic year, I hope that you will use the resources available to you to help navigate your return to more in person operations.  Your District Governors and District Officers are there to help assist and support you!  You can find their contact information here: District Leadership.

Your National Council is already hard at work, thinking about how we can create the best possible membership experience for YOU!  Beginning in September, you will receive regular updates on the work of the National Council and National Committees, as well as progress updates on our officer goals and charges.  If you were unable to attend the 2021 National Convention this summer, I invite you to read my Incoming National President Speech, which outlines my vision and goals for the next two years to reCharge our Brotherhood.  I hope you will join me in this effort!

More than anything, it is my sincere hope that as a member of Kappa Kappa Psi, you will take the time to rededicate yourself to the ideals of the order, lean in heavily to our ritualistic values, and be intentional about living our purposes in your band programs.  If we can do these 3 things – then we are meeting our ritualistic obligations as Brothers of Kappa Kappa Psi.

On behalf of the entire Kappa Kappa Psi National Leadership Team, I hope that you have a fantastic start to your academic year, and we wish you the best of luck on your upcoming performance season!

Striving with you,

Jessica Lee

48th National President of Kappa Kappa Psi 

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Kappa Kappa Psi National Communications Team Application

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Brothers of Kappa Kappa Psi:

This is a reminder of the application deadline for the Kappa Kappa Psi National Communications Team.  Applications are due via the Jotform by Friday, December 1, 2017!  Please apply to be a part of this wonderful opportunity to promote and support Kappa Kappa Psi!

___________________________________________________________________

At the 2017 National Convention, past Vice President for Student Affairs Zac Humphrey proposed the creation of a National Communications Team to facilitate the sustainability and growth of all communication tools at the disposal of the fraternity on a national level.  This team of Brothers would support the Vice President for Student Affairs (VPSA) officer on the National Council of Kappa Kappa Psi and National Publications Manager and Multimedia Designer (Publications Manager) staff member of National Headquarters of Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma.

Members of the National Communications Team would utilize all forms of communication the fraternity utilizes to reach brothers, whether they are active, alumni, honorary, or life. To this end, they would help fill out social media gaps with posts on a year-round basis, maintain and update the national fraternity’s google calendar with deadlines, as well as district and national event dates, generate content for the national website and The Podium, support the ongoing efforts relating to the fraternity’s podcast, Kappa Kappa Psi Presents, and any other responsibilities as required or deemed necessary by the National Council.   Members of the National Communications Team would be willing to commit 2-10 hours a week of active participation in creating materials as a volunteer on behalf of the fraternity.

Interested brothers that possess skill sets that would contribute positively towards the mission of this team should submit an application providing a clear picture of why they want to participate and what they have to offer, including any example work. Examples could be in the areas of social media, reporting, editing, podcasting, video and/or sound editing, layout and design, or other areas.  Formal experience is not required to apply!

Applicants will complete the application requirements and submit using the JotForm link: (https://tinyurl.com/kkpsicommteam). All requirements must be included in order to submit a completed application. Applications and materials should be submitted by Friday, December 1, 2017 via JotForm.

Applicant Requirements:

  • Must be an Active, Life, Alumni, or Honorary member of Kappa Kappa Psi in good standing
  • Experience in communications, public relations, broadcasting, media, pod casting, journalism, graphic design, or other related fields.
  • Letter of Intent which outlines what contributions you feel you can make to the team, as well as ideas for ways to increase or improve communication within the fraternity.
  • Resume/Vita
  • Two Letters of Recommendation
  • At least one example of multimedia work

Please submit completed applications via JotForm by Friday, December 1, 2017. If you have any questions, please contact National Vice President for Student Affairs, Jessica Lee at (jessicalee@kkpsi.org).

AEA,

Jessica Lee
National Vice President for Student Affairs

Last Council Update before National Convention 2017!

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Happy Friday!

We are T-11 days until the opening session of the 2017 National Convention of Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma. Because we are now under two weeks away, the national leadership felt it was a good time to post some reminders about business to be discussed and about the logistics of the event itself. As always, if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to reach out!

Alright, let’s get down to brass tacks, this year’s convention has a few big ticket items in terms of business, the national curriculum framework proposal, The Road to Wisdom, national officer elections, and the fraternity ritual being off its ten-year moratorium. But there are also a lot of other, more general reminders relating to national convention and the work of the national council. So let’s get started:

The Road to Wisdom

First up, the national curriculum proposal, The Road to Wisdom. The framework that the Curriculum committee has been working on this biennium will be presented to the Colonization and Membership committee during convention where it will then be debated and discussed.

Many of you have been asking to see more materials relating to this curriculum, and you’re in luck! The committee, working with our National Publications Manager, Robert Bratcher, has uploaded PDFs of the Vice President Teach Manual and the MC Guidebook on the national convention website here. These are up to date as of today, July 7, 2017.

In addition to those amazing resources, there are other documents for your perusal, such as a Rationale Statement and planning guides for the Spring and Fall semesters. I would also steer you to the fraternity’s podcast, Kappa Kappa Psi Presents, as we have devoted a number of episodes to the curriculum over the past six months. Specifically, I recommend the following episodes: 24, 26, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 38, 52, and 52a. I would especially suggest you listen to both 52 and 52a as they are the most recent and 52a is filled with brothers from the pilot chapters who actually used the curriculum this year as part of the membership education process. You can find all those and more here.

And if all that still isn’t enough, you can always reach out to the committee itself by sending an email to curriculum@kkpsi.org.

Kappa Kappa Psi Officer Elections

As you know, the election process was changed at the last national convention, in Lexington, Kentucky. As such, the slate of candidates has already been announced by the nominations committee. You can find their report here. You can find a list of all of the candidates along with introduction video clips here. Episode 39 of the podcast also features the audio content of the introduction videos, you can find that here.

Kappa Kappa Psi Ritual

Next, the Kappa Kappa Psi ritual! As many are aware, National President Jack Lee and National Vice President for Colonization and Membership Evan Thompson created the Ritual Performance and Education committee this biennium. They asked me, your National Vice President for Student Affairs, to serve as chair. We were charged with reviewing the entire ritual book and compiling a list of updates with respect to the performance and preparation language. The committee submitted its convention report to Jack earlier this week, and I can say we were very thorough.

It was an humbling experience and I am excited to see the conversations that take place within the Ritual and Regalia committee in a few days. Due to the secrecy of the ritual, I cannot provide even an overview of the suggested changes on this platform, but know that our committee did not make any recommendations that altered content within the ritual–our work was about the performance of the ritual so that the lessons and values it teaches can be articulated in the best way possible!

Also, I want to get  everyone excited for all of the ritual related content that will be presented at national convention. There were be a number of workshops centered on our ritual and I am excited to see the conversations that take place!

National Council Feedback

I also would like to remind everyone that the council has their summer meeting directly in front of national convention. So if there is something you want to be sure we discuss, please don’t hesitate to submit your feedback here.

Other Reminders and Updates

With the big items out of the way, here are some other reminders:

National Convention is happening July 18th-22nd at the Buena Vista Palace resort in Orlando, Florida. You can find more information regarding registration, schedules and workshop descriptions, along with any other information you’d need here.

Be sure to use promo code ZKDZP when booking your SuperShuttle to the Buena Vista Palace for NatCon and save 10% on your trip! For more information click here.

Remember that as this is an official fraternity event, our attendance policy will be in full effect. Please refer here for more information on what to bring to verify your status as a brother in good standing.

I am excited to also share the following information with you! This afternoon, our National Executive Director, Steve Nelson received confirmation from the hotel of the following:

– All attendees will now receive complimentary parking.
– Attendees will receive a 15% discount off food purchases in the hotel’s restaurants
– Complimentary wifi will be available in meeting rooms (for light use, not for streaming or downloading of large files/videos)

If you are interested in spending the free day on Thursday at a theme park, there are also discounts available to us through the national convention website. Click on the attraction tickets menu and follow the directions for whichever parks you are interested in visiting. Deadlines for those discounts are fast approaching.

Also, remember to plan for the weather! It will be the middle to end of July in Florida! It will be hot, humid, and will probably storm in the afternoons. And while your packing, make sure to include not only your swimsuit for the awesome lazy river. But also be sure to pack your coolest letters and your best school spirit gear (for the fight song competition after banquet on Saturday).

Also, for situational awareness purposes, I wanted to share the closest non-Disney Springs/Hotel food and grocery options. There is a shopping center just off I-4 and just outside the resort property where you can find a Gooding’s (grocery store), McDonalds, Taco Bell, Waffle House, Chevy’s, Buffalo Wild Wings, TGI Fridays, Sweet Tomatoes, and more. This is about a 2 mile or 30 minute walk, which I have done it before when I stayed at another hotel around the corner from the Buena Vista Palace. Directions/google map of the area can be found here.

Be sure to add the fraternity and sorority’s google calendar that is being updated with national convention events with date/time/room locations here.

If you have any other questions between now and then, please don’t hesitate to reach out! You can either send an email to myself at zac@kkpsi.org or you can call national headquarters at (405)372-2333.

Keep striving and seen you real soon!

Zachary T. Humphrey
National Vice President for Student Affairs

Report of the Nominations Committee – 2017 Elections Slate Announcement

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Brothers,

At the 2015 National Convention in Lexington, KY, there were several changes to our nominations process for National Council and Board of Trustees positions.  One the most significant changes is that the Committee on Nominations now completes its work prior to National Convention.  Sections 3.708 and 3.709 of our National Constitution prescribe the requirements and specific work of the committee.  In addition to numerous on-line meetings and candidate interviews, the committee met in-person in Dallas, TX in mid-April.

The committee has fulfilled their duties and have created a slate of candidates that are automatically placed in to nomination for his/her slated office at our National Convention in Orlando, FL that occurs July 18-22.

On behalf of the committee on nominations, I am pleased to present the report and slate that was created by the committee.  I encourage all Brothers to review this report.  Additionally, Brothers attending National Convention will have the opportunity to interact with all candidates seeking to serve on the National Council and Board of Trustees.  A full list of eligible candidates can be found by clicking here, or visiting the national convention website.

I want to thank Chris Haughee, as chair of the committee, as well as all members of the committee for their work and dedication to Kappa Kappa Psi.

I look forward to seeing many of you in Orlando, FL as we come together to advance Kappa Kappa Psi even further as the world standard of excellence for band fraternal organizations!

 

Jack Lee

National President

2017 National Convention Keynote Speaker

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Brothers,

This biennium we had 17 individuals who composed moving, personal, and interesting speeches for the Keynote to kick off our 2017 National Convention in Orlando.   It takes incredible courage to submit and place yourself forward to speak to the brotherhood and I hope you will join me in honoring all of the brothers who submitted.  They truly embody the best of our brotherhood.

This biennium I am pleased to announce that Emma Mary Shaw, a brother from the Epsilon Xi chapter at Miami University, has been selected as our National Convention Keynote speaker.

Brother Shaw’s moving address answered the question, “Why does Kappa Kappa Psi Matter?”.  Please join me in congratulating her!

Brother Shaw is a former chapter President, VP of Membership, and secretary for Epsilon Xi.  As a saxophone player, she performed in the concert and marching ensembles and graduated this year from Miami University with a degree in Mathematics and Statistics.   This fall, she will complete a second degree in Music Education after student teaching.

See you in Orlando (don’t forget to register today)!

AEA

—

Marco A. Krcatovich II

National Vice President for Programs

mkrcatov@kkpsi.org

Be a part of the fraternity’s Podcast Crew at NatCon this summer!

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Are you interested in getting more involved on a national level? Are you studying something involving audio or video? Is recording a hobby you particularly enjoy? Is podcasting or videoblogging your thing? And last but not least are you attending national convention? If you answered any of the previous questions in the affirmative, I want to leverage your skills and passion.

I am looking for brothers who are in good standing with the national organization who would be interested in being part of my podcast crew at national convention. My goal is to get as many sessions recorded as possible so that brothers who aren’t able to attend NatCon can get in on the action. I am also hoping to record some of the social experience--the gatherings by the pools, in the halls, at the theme parks. All of this being done as a way to share that national convention experience with everyone long after the convention has ended.

If this interests you, you will find a button linking to the application below. And as a heads up, applications are due by June 15th.

Now before anyone panics, this isn’t a crazy process. At the end of the day, I am simply looking for a few good brothers who want to help me create content for this podcast while at national convention. So all of you budding filmmakers and journalists as well as audiophiles and techs, here’s your chance to funnel your other creative passions into the fraternity. And if you are none of those things and just want to help, that’s great too, submit and app and be part of the podcast today!

Keep striving!
Zac

Gold Star Recognition – Submissions due July 1

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Brothers of Kappa Kappa Psi,

In 1947 at the National Convention in Stillwater, Oklahoma, the National Chapter of Kappa Kappa Psi recognized members of Kappa Kappa Psi who were killed in action while serving our country during World War II. They created a memorial recognition knows as the Gold Star.

Prior to the 2007 National Convention, the National Council was approached by Kappa Kappa Psi brother from Zeta Sigma and Kappa Epsilon, Danielle Adams-Davis.  Danielle asked the National Council what could be done to recognize current military members and brothers in 2007. The National Council at that time felt the national convention in Orlando would be an appropriate time to recognize members of Kappa Kappa Psi and our band family who have served our country.

At the 2007 National Convention in Orlando, FL the National Council used the Gold Star recognition from 1947 to serve as inspiration to recognize brother and band members that are current military members or who have previously served their country.

Members were recognized in the following manner:

*Gold Star Memorial* for Brothers who have passed while serving our country with a memorial resolution from the national council.

*Blue Star Recognition* for Brothers who are currently serving our country or are veterans.

*Silver Star Memorial* for Band members who have passed while serving our country with a memorial resolution from the national council.

*White Star Recognition* for Band members who are currently serving our country or are veterans.

This biennium, the National Council will once again recognize members of our Kappa Kappa Psi and band families. If you have names you would like to submit to be recognized this summer at National Convention, please submit the following information at http://natcon.kkytbsonline.com/gold-star by July 1, 2017.

Name and Rank:

College or University:

Chapter (If Applies):

Branch of Service:

Primary Service Job (Optional):

Active, Reserve, Retired or Veteran Status (Optional):

Which Star you are Requesting:

If you have any questions about the Gold Star Memorial, please send me an email (mkrcatov@kkpsi.org).

Marco A. Krcatovich II
National Vice President for Programs
mkrcatov@kkpsi.org

Call for District Governor Applications 2017-2019

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Brothers of Kappa Kappa Psi:

The District Governors are key members of the National Leadership Team. These adult leaders serve as the administrative officers of their respective district and provide mentorship to the district and chapter officers. District Governors are expected to assist the district officers with the development of a vision for the district and build positive, professional connections with all students, alumni, and national leadership.

Each biennium your District Governors are appointed to serve for a two-year term. While we often have governors that return for multiple biennia, we also have times when positions are available. While a vacancy may not exist in all districts this biennium, please know that applications will also be used for future consideration for committees and special projects. This is more than an application for a Governor position; this is an opportunity to donate your time and energies to the students and work of Kappa Kappa Psi for the 2017-2019 biennium.

Applicants who meet the basic requirements will submit a completed application to the National Vice President for Colonization & Membership by Friday, May 12, 2017.

Applicant Requirements:

• Must be at least twenty-five (25) years old

• Completed an undergraduate degree

• Possess outstanding business or professional ability

• Resident of district applying for

• Be a Life, Alumni, or Honorary member in good standing of Kappa Kappa Psi

Governor Application Requirements:

• Letter of Intent – Highlight fraternity, band, and professional experience

• Resume/Vita

• Three Letters of Recommendation, one of which should be within the applicant’s profession

Please send completed applications to National Vice President for Colonization & Membership Evan Thompson (evan@kkpsi.org) by Friday, May 12, 2017.

AEA,

Evan L. Thompson
National Vice President for Colonization & Membership
Kappa Kappa Psi

National Council Announces Fall 2017 Colony Application Deadline

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The National Council will begin accepting applications for Fall 2017 colonization starting May 15, 2017 and closing on June 30, 2017. This deadline window aligns with the summer meetings of the National Council. We welcome all interested schools and band programs to apply within the application window.

Applications sent before May 15th or after June 30th will not be accepted for review for a Fall 2017 process. Schools missing this deadline window will be encouraged to apply after November 15, 2017 for a Spring 2018 process.

Please visit https://www.kkpsi.org/membership/starting-a-chapter for more information on how to get started.

If you have any questions regarding Kappa Kappa Psi’s colonization program, please contact VPCM Evan Thompson at evan@kkpsi.org.