Become a certified advisor this January in Florida

Mortar Board is taking the first-ever certification and enrichment program for advisors on the road to sunny St. Petersburg, Florida!

As a participant in the Leadership Excellence and Advisor Development (LEAD) program piloted by Mortar Board’s Advisor Task Force, you will learn

• How to effectively advise the collegiate chapter's leadership team, the cream of the campus crop
• How to cultivate relationships among a diverse group of students
• How to enhance students' co-curricular education through many opportunities for teaching and interacting outside of the classroom
• How to help chapter leaders apply their existing skills to the one-of-a-kind leadership situations that they face
• How to enhance your own interpersonal assets to work best with millennial students
• How to create and maintain a strong advisor team to help your chapter and balance your workload

"LEAD provides an opportunity to learn from seasoned members of Mortar Board and gain valuable insights. I feel like I've seen the light! I'm very excited about the upcoming academic year and to share in the experience of the chapter's development."

Dean Dayle Wilson, University of Miami, LEAD certified advisor

• Best practices in student organization advisement with topics including fundraising, member motivation, conflict resolution, risk management and more

LEAD will be held on Thursday, January 20 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the St. Petersburg Marriott Clearwater. Tuition is just $225 for early registrations received on or before Monday, December 20. Complete details are available at www.mortarboard.org/LEAD.

Don't miss out on this opportunity! Download the registration form now

Please forward this information to the student affairs staff members at your institution so they can take advantage of LEAD this winter as well.

LEAD is sponsored by the Frances Aicher Lewis Endowment of the Mortar Board National Foundation.

Invest your funds with the help and expertise of the Chapter Endowment Program™

Is your chapter interested in establishing a permanent scholarship in the name of the chapter? Does it seem you endlessly fundraise just to keep the chapter going? 

The Mortar Board National Foundation Fund has developed the Chapter Endowment Program™ which may specifically help to bridge that widening funding gap. 

The Chapter Endowment Program™ encourages members, chapters, award recipients, friends and even chapters to easily make tax-deductible, substantial contributions to a permanently endowed fund in the name of your chapter.  The Fund will be professionally managed and maintained, at no charge, within the larger Mortar Board National Foundation fund.

A few provisions of the Chapter Endowment Program™:

• An initial gift of $10,000 is preferred.
• One half of the balance of the fund will be added to the General Fellowship Fund, to be distributed in the name of Mortar Board. The earnings of the remaining balance will be distributed to the chapter as outlined in a signed agreement.
• Fund earnings will be distributed to the chapter on a semi-annual basis.  Chapters may choose to have earnings reinvested to build principal.
• Contributions and additions must be directed to scholarships, awards and fellowships at either the national or chapter level to fully qualify as tax-deductible contributions.

For details, please contact National Foundation Chair Sally Steadman at foundationchair@mortarboard.org or Executive Director Jane Hamblin at jhamblin@mortarboard.org.

Get ready for Mortar Board Week: February 13-19, 2011

Mortar Board Week is the perfect time for chapters to hold events and celebrate the founding of Mortar Board. Depending on your chapter's size and local campus activities, you may choose to hold one event for the week or host daily activities.

Detailed assistance with both planning and publicity for the week, including a helpful Visibility Resources Folder complete with sample posters and press releases, is available at www.mortarboard.org/mbweek.

Gain campus visibility

• Create a Mortar Board display in the student union or popular campus location.
• Encourage current Mortar Board members to wear T-shirts or pins to classes.
• Post fliers or posters (if permitted) in the student union, residence halls, dining halls, classrooms, sorority and fraternity houses, athletic or fitness facilities, and club meeting rooms.
• "Chalk" sidewalks on your campus (if permitted) with information about Mortar Board Week.
• Have chapter members staff a table at the student union and provide informational brochures and applications to potential applicants.
• Use campus electronic message boards or social networking sites

Apply for visibility grants
Mortar Board is offering a special grant to chapters who hope to enhance their visibility during Mortar Board Week. This grant can be used to cover any visibility costs, from printing t-shirts to buying advertising space. Applications must be received on or before Wednesday, December 15.

Incorporate recruitment
Depending on your chapter's selection and recruitment schedule, the application deadline for membership may fall after the end of Mortar Board Week. If this is the case, Mortar Board Week can be an ideal time to promote Mortar Board membership.

Campus service projects
Honoring Mortar Board's ideal of service is a great way to commemorate the Society's founding. Here are a few service projects, large and small, that a chapter can do to serve its alma mater.

• Sponsor a study refresher for second-year students to help them through the "sophomore slump."
• Hold a recognition progam for academic advising staff that highlights their work and describes Mortar Board.
• Work with your director of admissions to hold a thank-you breakfast for admissions staff who work hard to enroll the best students. This is great visibility for Mortar Board!
• Attend a women's athletic event as a chapter.
• Take a "thank-you" flier to every advisor of a student organization to hang on the advior's door knob
  

Social events
Mortar Board Week can be a great time for chapter members to bond and celebrate the Society's founding. Whether events are open to all students, alumni, prospective members or active members, social activities can be a great way to promote Mortar Board.

Helpful resources
Mortar Board has created a compressed folder of materials that can help your chapter publicize Mortar Board Week. The Visibility Resources Folder contains:

• Mortar Board Week logo  - The official event logo is available in a variety of resolutions in both color and black and white.
• Posters - Designs available in both color and black and white for 8 1/2" by 11" and 11" by 17" fliers. These are great for posting in classrooms, dining halls and residence halls.
• Electronic postcards - Pre-made electronic postcards ready to be filled with your chapter's event information can be sent to campus media or students to help promote the week's events.
• News release help - Mortar Board has provided a template for Mortar Board Week news releases, a sample release for a fictional chapter, a handy Mortar Board Week fact sheet and a useful Mortar Board Stylebook for writing consistency.

Encourage chapter members to apply for fellowships

The Mortar Board National Foundation invites Mortar Board members of all ages to apply for the 2011-2012 Mortar Board National Foundation Fellowships on or before January 31, 2011.

The Mortar Board Fellowship Selection Committee has designed applications to provide for a streamlined, yet thought-provoking application process that allows each applicant to showcase her/his accomplishments and plans. This committee reviews all completed applications.

A completed application for a Mortar Board National Foundation fellowship consists of three parts, outlined below. The deadline for receipt of the completed application (all three parts) is January 31, 2011. An incomplete application will receive no consideration.

1. A Microsoft Word application form (available for download here), completed in full, and sent as an e-mail attachment to fellowships@mortarboard.org;
2. A current, official transcript from every institution of higher education that you have attended, postmarked on or before January 31, 2011 and mailed to:

   Mortar Board National Office
   1200 Chambers Road, Suite 201
   Columbus, OH 43212

3. Two recommendations as described here.

Advisor spotlight

Pamela R. Cysner, B.A.
University of California, Los Angeles, Agathai chapter

In her 27 years of advising Mortar Board, Pam Cysner says she is constantly amazed at students’ commitment, energy and passion. Turn-about is fair play! Her chapter members feel the same way about her because she has passed on her amazing leadership skills to them. She is a person who leads by example. Members of the Agathai chapter rave that her service and leadership go beyond what any student can expect from an advisor. With constant encouragement, dedication, patience, wisdom and support, she has helped the chapter find a prominent place as a high-achieving campus organization at UCLA.

Connect with Mortar Board

Mortar Board Lingo

Join the national Advisor Task Force

Are you interested in serving on the national Advisor Task Force? Mortar Board needs your experience and suggestions to help improve advisor relations. Please e-mail Megan Stevens at mstevens@mortarboard.org if you would like to get involved.

Important downloads for advisors

Officer & Advisor Handbook

Membership Selection Handbook

Welcome new staff member

Jennifer Bergman joins the Mortar Board National Office staff as development and operations specialist. Jenny is a 2005 graduate of The Ohio State University and has honed her skills working at Ohio Wesleyan University and the American Cancer Society, bringing expertise in areas of development, event planning, marketing, communications and fundraising to Mortar Board. She replaces Mary Cay Kuder, who retired November 30.

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