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Many chapters presented with national awards at the conference Each year, Mortar Board honors outstanding chapters with a number of awards at the annual national conference:
To see if your chapter was honored with an award at the 2009 Mortar Board National Conference, please check this list. Learn more about national awards here
Nationally, Mortar Board has launched the second annual Virtual Book Drive challenge, held in conjunction with First Book. This initiative, held as a part of the "Reading is Leading" national project, is a great way for chapters, alumni and supporters to unite nationally while working toward a common goal - to give children across the country access to books. With a donation of just $2 toward the national goal of $30,000, a child can be provided with their very first book. Detailed information can be found in the Virtual Book Drive packet. Please note that the Virtual Book Drive will end on November 16, 2009. How your chapter can participate The Mortar Board Virtual Book Drive is a fundraising challenge in which chapters compete to raise funds in order to bring new books to local programs serving children from low-income families.
For complete details, please download the Virtual Book Drive packet. Chapters with the most donations will receive prizes If providing brand new books to children wasn’t enough, there are prizes too! The top three chapters, plus five “honorable mention” chapters, will receive bonus Marketplace credits for their recipient group. Monthly prizes will also be distributed to the top fundraisers for August, September, October and November. Ways to donate
Get ready to kick off your year as a Mortar Board advisor Fall is just around the corner, and advisors can wrap up some details while students are away from campus before the busy season begins. Ensure that all chapter forms and payment have been submitted - It is important to check your chapter's records and know whether all reports have been submitted. You should know that the Official Membership Report (OMR) and corresponding payment are the most important forms at this time. If this form is not submitted, your chapter may be put on probation. Please contact Mary Cay Kuder at mkuder@mortarboard.org or 800-989-6266 ext. 103 to discuss your chapter's account status if you have any questions. Seek out additional chapter advisors - Mortar Board recommends that each chapter have an advisory team to help balance responsibilities for an even workload, if possible. Your university's student activities office, which often keeps a record of faculty or staff who are interested in getting more involved as advisors on campus, may be able to help you in finding additional advisory assistance. Review Mortar Board handbooks - Mortar Board strives to make valuable information available to advisors so that they can fully understand the society and best assist chapter members. The Mortar Board National Office recently updated the Officer & Advisor Handbook and the Membership Selection Handbook, which contain everything you need to know about Mortar Board and being an advisor. Take time to meet with your chapter's official conference delegate - The 2009 Mortar Board National Conference was held at the end of July, and each chapter was required to send a delegate. Try to meet with this delegate to discuss his or her conference experience, ideas and goals, chapter strengths and weaknesses, and a timeline for the academic year. Get in touch with your section coordinator - Mortar Board's section coordinators are your liaisons to the National Office, happy to help with any problems or provide Mortar Board advice. We recommend that if you are not already in touch with your section coordinator, you e-mail them to introduce yourself and build a strong relationship for the coming academic year. Advisors attended Mortar Board National Conference
With the help of national leaders and interactive advisor panels, advisors present were able to learn more about chapter operations, share their experiences, and gain valuable advice from other advisors (including Margot Smith, the Ruth Weimer Mount Chapter Excellence Award recipient advisor and Dr. David Whitman and Dr. Jane K. Smith, 2009 Excellence in Advising Award recipients). Specific discussion topics included creating signature campus events, managing chapter finances, how advisors can directly affect chapter success, membership recruitment and selection, event planning, officer transition and more. Be sure to look for advisor attendance specials for the 2010 National Conference to be held in Chicago July 23 - 25! Advisor spotlight Sally Cobb As advisor, she has helped the chapter to set (and consistently achieve) goals, helping them every step of the way. Always filled with a wealth of ideas, creativity, and seemingly endless energy, Sally enveloped herself fully in each Mortar Board event and activity. Nominator and former chapter president Sonia Savani explained Sally’s devotion best, calling her “the very essence of leadership, professionalism and service.” Sonia went on to explain that “Not only does she encourage every student in her power to give back to the university and to the campus, she shows it with her everyday actions.” One of Sally’s numerous impressive characteristics is the time she committed to Mortar Board. Sonia explained that “She could get by doing the bare minimum quite easily: come to meetings, nod her head at our ideas, and go home and not give it a second thought. But she does not. She is more active than any member (myself included).” |
Mortar Board Lingo "Reading is Leading" "Reading is Leading" is Mortar Board's national project, which is honored by chapters across the nation throughout their year in Mortar Board. Mortar Board members have unified to promote literacy as a part of this national initiative since 2002. Collegiate members chose this project from a list of numerous prospective national initiatives because of its versatility. When honoring "Reading is Leading" with chapter projects, members can work with people of any age, such as children or adult non-native English-speakers to learn English as a second language (ESL). "Reading is Leading" is very rewarding, giving Mortar Board volunteers the ability to build fulfilling relationships with their reading partners. This project is adopted nationally, but is executed on various levels by members, chapters and regional sections. For example, some members will tutor students on their own time or even click-to-give on sites like The Literacy Site. Some chapters hold read-a-thons, book drives, literacy workshops, donate books and more to promote literacy. Mortar Board sections can join together for statewide literacy initiatives. You can learn more about "Reading is Leading" here.
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Having problems viewing this e-mail? View it as a Web site or download a printer-friendly PDF. Mortar Board National Office | 1200 Chambers Road, Suite 201 | Columbus, OH 43212 | 800-989-6266 |
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