Kappa Alpha Theta

Kappa Alpha Theta
ΚΑΘ
Abbreviation:	Theta
Org Founded:	1879 at DePauw
CU Chapter:	Epsilon Upsilon
Chapter Established:	1986
Motto:
Symbol(s):	Kite and Twin Stars
House:	534 W. 114th
Recognition:	Panhel
Contact:	rof2103@columbia.edu

Kappa Alpha Theta, Epsilon Upsilon chapter, is one of the sororities recognized by the Panhellenic Council. The chapter currently occupies a brownstone at 534 W. 114th St.

The chapter earned a 5 star ALPHA Standards of Excellence rating in spring 2013 and received a Special Achievement in Community Service award for their community service actions taking place that year, which superseded that of every other chapter in amount of funds raised and hours dedicated.

The chapter earned a 4 star ALPHA Standards of Excellence rating in spring 2012 and was awarded Outstanding Panhellenic Chapter by the Inter Greek Council. The chapter also earned achievement awards in philanthropy (presented to chapters that raise over $60 per member), community service (presented to chapters that complete over 20 service hours per member), academics (presented to chapters that have an average GPA above 3.4), and campus involvement (presented to chapters where over 60% are involved in another campus activity.)

These were all of the awards that chapters could possibly receive that year.

The chapter also earned the Chapter of the Year award in 2010.

Theta has consistently been one of the top fundraisers for Relay for Life. The Columbia chapter raised $11,898 in 2012 and $15,218 in spring 2013.

Biased News Coverage

Despite the fact that Columbia's Kappa Alpha Theta chapter is, tangibly speaking, one of the highest performing campus organizations in terms of the amount of money it raises for philanthropy, hours it dedicates to community service, employment help it offers members, and support it provides to fellow campus organizations, no campus news source has ever published an article detailing the positive ways in which Theta contributes to society.

Since many of the girls in Kappa Alpha Theta are, stereotypically speaking, attractive white girls and therefore fun to Facebook stalk by those less content with their lives and physical appearances, Columbia Spectator and Bwog were very excited in 2014 when their Facebook stalking resulted in finding pictures of Theta girls dressed up as Mexicans (i.e. wearing sombrero hats and fake mustaches. See photo at right). The girls' costumes were similar to what Chicano Caucas, A.K.A. the group claiming to be offended by the photographs, wears and promotes at their events.

Thetagate was an incredible opportunity for both Columbia Spectator and Bwog since people less content with their physical appearances and life situations are highly attracted to stories like these. The story attracted a tremendous amount of media attention towards the publications and individual journalists involved.

Since the event Columbia's Theta chapter has worked to increase cultural awareness and education among both their chapter and community as a whole. Just one week after the Facebook stalking (and resulting articles) occurred, an event was co-hosted between Lambda Phi Epsilon and Onyx Dance Troupe entitled "No Harm Intended: A Discussion on Microaggressions and Their Unintended Consequences". The event included award-winning speaker and microaggressions expert Prof. Kevin Nadal, who spoke about forms of discrimination that are difficult to address because they are: subtle, which makes them hard to recognize and easy to trivialize; unintentional, which leads offenders to believe they have done nothing wrong; and so ingrained in our media and culture so as to have become unnoticeable.

Campus news sources did not publicize this event.

Campus news sources have never released a story about the fact that Theta contributes more in terms of collective philanthropy donations and community service hours than any other Greek organization and nearly every other campus organization. (Ex: The chapter raised $15,218 for Relay for Life in 2013.)

Service & Philanthropy

Theta’s national philanthropy, Court Appointed Special Advocates (or C.A.S.A.) is supported by every Theta chapter world-wide. C.A.S.A. is a unique organization that trains volunteers to speak on behalf of children involved in court proceedings. They provide valuable advisory information to judges and juries and very often also become trusted friends, mentors, and advisors, lending children the support they need during what can be a process filled with stress and uncertainty.

In addition to C.A.S.A., Kappa Alpha Theta chapters support the Theta Foundation. The mission of the Theta Foundation is to secure and manage resources for the education, leadership, and philanthropic programs of the Fraternity and for the scholastic, professional, and service pursuits of its members to help them reach their fullest potential and make a difference in the world. In short, it is an organization by Thetas for Thetas.

Theta’s philanthropy events, each held once per academic year, are open to the entire campus and have raised thousands of dollars for their philanthropies to date. The events are meant to foster a sense of both Greek and campus-wide community while promoting the cause of and raising money for Theta’s national philanthropy.