ΔΓ Parent Newsletter

WHAT IS DELTA GAMMA?

Sororities are surrounded by stereotypes. Sarah Coleman,

junior Elementary Education student, & Carly Ruehl, junior

Nursing student, explained how Delta Gamma transcends

the stereotypes.

“I knew I had to focus on nursing and I didn’t want to get

involved with all the drama that came with Greek Life,”

Ruehl said. She originally did not go through recruitment,

but she changed her mind about sorority life when she met

Coleman.

“Sarah is the whole reason why I chose DG,” Ruehl said.

“She asked if I wanted to hang out with DGs one night at an

informal recruitment event.” Ruehl explained that Delta

Gamma was genuine and comfortable. “I felt like they were

curious about the real me.”

Delta Gee is one of many Greek organizations on Indiana

State’s campus. There are nine total sororities and 13

fraternities. With so many organizations, it is often a difficult

process choosing which sorority will be the best for

someone.

“Delta gamma is diverse,” Ruehl said. “I think that’s what

makes us different from other Greek organizations on

campus. We don’t have a certain ‘look’ to our chapter & we

recruit women who we think are going to live our values

instead of how they look.”

Since joining, both women have held multiple positions.

While each position has its own amount of commitment, all

positions take effort

and passion to

succeed in. Coleman

is currently the

President of Delta

Gee. Ruehl is the

Director of Social

Events.

DG and sorority life

are much more than

sisters hanging out

with each other.

“Sorority life is the

opportunity for women to be a part of something bigger than

themselves,” Coleman said. “It’s a community that

encourages leaders, philanthropists, and strong women to

emerge and gives them the skills and opportunities to be

the very best versions of themselves.”

Women get up to four years as a collegiate member of DG

which leaves the rest of their lives as alumna where they

live out the values they fostered throughout college.

“I think Delta Gamma is really good at encouraging our

women to be their authentic selves,” Coleman said. “I love

Delta Gamma because we recruit all different types of

women, and they create a space where they can be

themselves without feeling judged.

ΔΓ Parent Newsletter

Spring 2016

GOOD LUCK TO OUR SENIOR CLASS OF 2016

Carly (right) & Sarah (left) at the

sisterhood retreat on April 23,

2016.

ΔΓ Parent Newsletter P a g e | 2

MEET OUR ANCHORMEN

Mikey Shepherd, junior Political Science

student, and Dylan Campbell, junior Recreation

and Parks student, were recently chosen as our

Anchormen.

DG women elect Anchormen to assist and

support our chapter and proudly wear our

letters. Shepherd is a member of ΛΧΑ

fraternity. Campbell is a member of ΠΚΑ

fraternity.

“While it’s only the beginning of my term as

Anchorman, I know I will grow so much through

the experiences and times I begin to share with

these women, just as I hope to do the same for

them,” Shepherd said.

Campbell is now in his second term as

Anchorman for Delta Gamma.

“These ladies are each individually special to me and

tend to go over any beyond expectations by being faithful

and true to their values and standards,” Campbell said. “I

hope to follow in their footsteps and learn more about the

organization as my journey continues.”

WHAT ARE DG’S VALUES?

Each Greek organization has a set of values that their

members are to live by in order to maintain the purpose of

the organization. Delta Gamma’s values are defined in

Article II of our Constitution as:

“The objects of this Fraternity

shall be to foster high ideals of

friendship among women, to

promote their educational

and cultural interests, to

create in them a true sense of

social responsibility and to

develop in them the best

qualities of character.”

Bria Goodman, a sophomore Elementary Education

student, connects most with the value of education and

cultural interests.

and

cultural

interests.

“I think it’s important to soak up the diversity that we

welcome in our fraternity because it helps us to be better

and more well-rounded women,” Goodman said.

Erika Smith, a junior Environmental Science major with a

minor in Spanish, also favors the value of fostering

education and cultural interests.

“As a science and language student, this is the most

important value to me because we are working hard as a

chapter to foster intelligent and open-minded young ladies

that can go out into the world and share their knowledge

and understanding with others,” Smith said.

By living life in line with DG’s values, members are able to

grow as women.

“It is fairly simple and easy to live out our values as long as

your heart is in the right place,” Smith said.

As members work daily to understand their values, the

women are able to grow in their friendships, interests,

responsibility, and character.

“We, as Delta Gammas, give friendship a good name in the

way we treat one another with respect and dignity,”

Goodman said.

DG

Quick Fact:

Our

original

symbol

was the

letter

“H” for

hope,

but in

1877, the

anchor

became

our

official

symbol.

Dylan (right) & Mikey (Left) accept their ΔΓ

blocks at the Golden Anchor Ball on April 9,

2016.

ΔΓ Parent Newsletter P a g e | 3

SENIORS SAY GOODBYE

A common phrase in Greek Life is “Not for four years, but for life.” If you’re lucky, you get four full years of Delta Gamma. Many women join later in college and have shorter collegiate experiences, but one woman was lucky enough to spend eight years with our chapter.

Melissa Parrett, a graduating English major, could never image how much DG would mean eight years ago.

“For most DG women, they have four years of being [a collegiate] DG, and that’s true for me too except I was lucky enough to have an older sister who was a DG four years before me,” Parrett said. “The majority of my best friends are sisters who weren’t even in the chapter with me, but they always came around to support my collegiate years.”

After eight years, Parrett promises she is not done yet.

“My #1 promise to my sisters is to come back and support, even when I move out of Terre Haute,” Parrett said. “I was such an involved collegiate member, that I can’t just move on & say goodbye. I still have tons to experience [and] brand new sisters to meet for years to come.”

Parrett plans to work in the Terre Haute City Clerk’s Office until she finds the right library job for her.

Courtney Rowe, graduating

Psychology student, originally did not

join Greek Life.

“My first year at ISU, I didn’t join, and

it was an awful decision,” Rowe said.

“I went down a very dark path and

knew I needed something to be my

life-saver. Luckily, DG was there to

help me get back to being myself.”

Every senior wishes they had more

time, and Rowe is no exception.

“I wish my years didn’t go as fast as

they did, but that’s life,” Rowe said. “I

wish I could start over as a new

member all over again because my

sisters mean more to me than

anything and I’m definitely not ready

to leave them.”

Rowe recently had her “a-ha” moment

of how much DG means to her.

“I was walking towards the library to

go to class & I looked over to see big,

gold Delta Gamma letters shining and

in plain sight,” Rowe said. “All of the

sudden I started tearing up, realizing

how much this fraternity has done for

me & where I might be without DG.”

After graduating, Rowe plans to move back to her

hometown of Carmel, Indiana. She is currently weighing

offers for different marketing and management positions in

Indianapolis.

Courtney (left) & Melissa (right) have both

left their mark on the Gamma Omicron

chapter.

Delta Gamma Facts

Our

mascot is

the

Hannah

Doll.

Our

flower

is the

Cream-

Colored

Rose.

Only

initiated

members

know the

meaning

behind the

symbols on

the crest.

ΔΓ Parent Newsletter P a g e | 4

ONE LAST WEEKEND

Delta Gamma’s sisterhood retreat was on April 23 at the

Sycamore Outdoor Center in Brazil, Indiana. Sisters

camped out for the night after playing sisterhood-building

games, canoeing, hiking, and hanging out.

Meghan Jacobson, a junior Elementary and Special

Education student, is the Vice President of Programming

for DG. She organized the entire weekend so that

sisters could spend some time together before finals and

summer break.

“Retreats are about getting to know your sisters better

and just spend real time with one another,” Jacobson

said. “Since this year’s retreat was right before study

week, it provided the girls with the opportunity to get off

campus and have some fun before the stressful two

weeks ahead.”

For Bailey Bryant, a freshman Criminal Justice student, this

was a new experience for her as it is her first year in DG.

“My favorite thing about the retreat was being able to be

outside and enjoy beautiful weather with my sisters,” Bryant

said. “I also enjoyed canoeing and talking to others I don’t

normally talk to.”

On Sunday morning, the members performed a ceremony

for our seniors because the retreat was their last event as

collegiate members.

Jessica Richman, a graduating senior Health Science

student, stepped into a new chapter of her life at the retreat.

“[At the retreat], I felt like I had all of my sadness about

graduating under control right up until the [senior]

ceremony,” Richman said. “That was the moment where I

went from a collegian to alum in a matter of minutes. It was

overwhelming and almost heart breaking that this was it.”

Through all of the tears and hugs from sisters, sisters were

able to grow closer.

“Girls were able to become closer to their sisters and learn

more about sisters they do not know as well,” Jacobson

said. “Seeing how happy and appreciative my sisters were

made all of the planning worth it.”

ANCHOR SPLASH

Anchor Splash is the largest event that Delta Gammas put on to raise money for Service for Sight. Anchor Splash is a swimming competition in which campus organizations compete in different relays.

Jessica Bicknell, graduating senior Marketing student, was the Director of Anchor Splash 2016. DG typically hosts Anchor Splash as a one-night event, but that changed this year.

“We made Anchor Splash into a week-long event,” Bicknell said.

Changing Anchor Splash to a week-long event helped to increase participation and donations because there were more opportunities to get involved.

Micaela Kamps, senior Psychology and Counseling student, enjoys that Anchor Splash brings the Greek community together.

“Anchor Splash brings me closer to my sister because we all work together as a team in a positive environment,” Kamps said. “On the day of Anchor

Splash, everyone is so excited and optimistic that it is almost impossible to have a bad time.”

Jessica (left), Alyssa McNeal (middle), & Emily Mathyer

(right) “throwing the Gamma” at the sisterhood retreat on

April 23, ’16.

From left to right, Alexis Wilson, Shelby Zagorski,

Sydney Allen, Erin Ray, Emily Spitsta, and Katie

Hilton at Anchor Splash on February 19, 2016.

Delta Gamma raised $4,335.67 for Service for Sight.

ΔΓ Parent Newsletter P a g e | 5

THREE GENERATIONS

Maybe it was destiny, maybe it was a coincidence. One woman, Kara Johnson, was predisposed to love Delta Gamma. Johnson, a sophomore Elementary Education student, has a family filled with Delta Gam women including her grandmother, Marilyn Harbison, great aunt, Nancy Olmstead, aunt Marci Smith, and cousin Kylie Smith. “Having went through my new member period and initiation made me more confident in knowing that this was right for me,” Johnson said. Johnson has been learning about Delta Gee since she was young because of the women in her family. “My grandma was talking DG up to my cousin and I since before we were in middle school,” Johnson said. “We knew all about sororities and DG. She even sang Delta Gamma songs to us before bed when we were younger.” The goal of DG is to shape women into their best selves. “[My grandma and my aunt] are both hardworking, selfless people,” Johnson said. “My grandma is always ready to lend a hand to someone in need whenever she can. My aunt is always helping others through her job as well. I see the DG values a lot more [in my family] now that I know the values.”

The values have set Johnson’s family up for success. The DG values of friendship is seen in Johnson’s grandmother. “Delta Gamma goes a long way,” Johnson said. “My grandma is still friends with people from her pledge class, and they come to family gatherings sometimes. They have kept in touch and that is so inspiring to me.”

From left to right, Alyssa Hess, Kylee Lloyd, Megan Massey,

and Kara Johnson.

THE GAMMA OMICRON CHAPTER OF DELTA

GAMMA THANKS YOU FOR YOUR LOVE AND

SUPPORT.