Greek Alumnae Panel

Last Wednesday, October 19, Panhellenic women were invited to the KU Alumni Association to meet a group of four Panhellenic Alumnae, pick their brains and ask for advice on life after college. Members of the panel included:

Anne Atha a member of Pi Beta Phi sorority, graduated in 2009 with a Bachelor of Science in Human Biology, she is now in her third year of dentistry school at UMKC. She will graduate with a D.D.S in 2013.

Courtney Brax also a member of Pi Beta Phi sorority graduated in 2009 with a Bachelor of Science in Business Management. She is currently in her final year at the KU School of Law and will graduate in 2012 with certificates in Business, Commercial and Tax Law.

Mallory 'Hammersmith' Hannah is a member of Chi Omega sorority and graduated in 2008 with a Bachelor of Science in Journalism with an emphasis in strategic communications. She is now an Account Manager at Diamond Merckens Hogan Advertising Agency in Kansas City.

Jessica Roberts is a member of Delta Delta Delta sorority and graduated in 2003 with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. She currently works as the Associate Director of Annual Giving, specifically Mail Campaigns for KU Endowment.

Undergraduate women posed questions and panhel members offered advice. Here are a few pieces of advice from panel members:

1. Don't be afraid to put yourself out there. Sometimes you have to cold call in order to gain connections. Most people are happy to help younger professionals. The worst they can say is no. So go for it. 
2. You can NEVER be too persistent. Get creative when trying to contact and network. Drop by the office and see if someone is free to chat or grab coffee. Did you recently go on vacation? Send your connections a postcard. People will be impressed with your dedication.
3. Talk up your Greek involvement. What you do in the Greek community is impressive, so don't be afraid to showcase what you've done and what you've learned. Many people are curious about Greek life, so explain it to them! Just remember to avoid using jargon only Greeks would know. 
4. If you are interested in post-graduate experiences like Peace Corps, Teach for America etc. Go for it! Employers and graduate schools look very favorably upon these experiences. They show you are a dedicated and driven person, that you can fully commit yourself to a cause for an extended period of time.
5. Resumes should be one page! If your experiences run longer than a page ask someone to help you pare down the information. You often get attached to the things on your resume and it is harder to let go of certain experiences. Ask someone else to decide what is the most impressive and work from there. You may also be able to combine and condense lines of your resume. For example, put all your volunteer experiences on one line. If you do not have enough experience to fill a page, expand on your existing experiences. Discuss what you did and what you learned from each opportunity. How are those skills transferable to the job you are applying for?
6. Customize. Customize. Customize. Research the company you are applying to and tweak your resume, cover letter, writing samples and interview answers to fit that specific company. Highlight the experiences that best relate to the job you want. 
7. You are also interviewing the company, they aren't just interviewing you. Yes, you want a job, but don't settle for just any job. Ask questions during the interview. Is this company really going to be a good fit? Can you see yourself working there? Will you be happy spending 40 hours a week with these people?
8. Learn what you want in a job from your internships. Don't be discouraged if your internship didn't turn out to be exactly what you hoped for. Now you know what you like and what you don't. This is great information to have during a job search. 

We are proud of the accomplishments made so far by our panel members and we are looking forward to seeing what great things our current undergraduates go on to accomplish! Special thanks to the panel members, Alumni Association and Stephani Gerson for helping to make this event a success.

Did you attend this great event? Leave a comment letting us know what piece of advice was most helpful for you!

Supporting our Military Sisters

Last month the Chairman of the National Panhellenic Conference wrote a special message to honor and recognize women in the military. You can read her message here.

Sorority women come from all walks of life and can be found in all types of careers. They can be found serving their country in all branches of the military and in high ranking positions. Notable sorority women in the military include:

Margaret A. Brewer, Brigadier General, Marine Corps
Marianne Blackburn Drew, Rear Admiral, Navy
Terri Walter Gabreski, Brigadier General, Air Force
Claudia Kennedy, General, Army

The National Panhellenic Conference also shared the story of a sorority woman, who at the age of 58, decided to join the military. You can find the podcast interview with Kappa Kappa Gamma Carol Haertlein Sells here.

In this podcast you will learn that Carol decided to join the U.S. Army after taking a visit to an Army rehabilitation center in Texas four years ago. She is part of a new doctoral program at Brooke Army Medical Center. She took a leap of faith from teaching occupational therapy in Wisconsin to instructing occupational therapists for the military – and she had to go through basic training along the way.

This Fourth of July we wanted to recognize our military sisters and send them our support. We recognize that freedom isn't free and our hearts go out to all the enlisted men and women as well as veterans that have served our nation and protected our families.

Circle Of Sisterhood: The Story of Neth, Chapter 2

Chapter Two

    Neth was very pretty, short, and light-skinned. She looked fourteen or fifteen, but she thought she was much older than that; she had no idea of her actual birth date. A female cousin had taken Neth from their village, telling the family that Neth would be selling fruit in Poipet. Once in Poipet, Neth was sold to the brothel and closely guarded. After a check by a doctor confirmed that her hymen was intact, the brothel auctioned off her virginity to a Thai casino manager, who locked her up in a hotel room for several days and slept with her three times and he later died from AIDS. Now Neth was confined to the guesthouse and was young enough and light-skinned enough to rent for top rates. When she was allowed to go out into the village she was under close watch since there was fear that she would run away. However, this is something Neth wouldn’t even consider doing out of fear of getting beaten.

    Nick bought Neth for $150 and returned her to her home village. Neth opened up a grocery shop, which initially was a thriving business. Unfortunately men in the area took advantage of uneducated women and would take her things without paying. After the decline of her shop Neth almost got back into trafficking but was stopped by a member of the American Assistance for Cambodia named Bernie. Bernie arranged for Neth to move to Phnom Penh and study English and hair dressing. She excelled in this and wanted to own her salon. During her time there Neth found out that she had AIDS and became deathly ill and discouraged. Neth fell in love and married a man named Sothea and they had a baby. During her pregnancy Neth found out her previous AIDS diagnosis was false and that she was actually HIV negative. Neth got back on her feet and pursued her career in hairdressing and is now working as a manager in a small shop near her home village gaining experience so that she can open up her own shop in the near future.

Hawaiian parable: A man goes out on the beach and sees that it is covered with starfish that have washed up in the tide. A little boy is walking along, picking them up and throwing them back into the water. “What are you doing, son?” the man asks. “You see how many starfish there are? You’ll make a difference.” The boy paused thoughtfully, and picked up another starfish and threw it into the ocean. “It sure made a difference to that one,” he said.

Story summarized from Half the Sky by Nicholas D. Kriston and Sheryl WuDunn, Vintage Books,  2009

Circle of Sisterhood: The Story of Srey Rath Chapter 1

When Srey Rath was 15 years old, she went to work in Thailand as a dishwasher to help support her family who was suffering from financial need.  Srey went with her new employers but was surprised when she was not taken to work as a dishwasher but was actually given to gangsters and sent to Malaysia.  She arrived at a brothel and her boss told her she must repay the debt she owed to him. She tried to fight back but was beaten each time she did.  All of the girls at the brothel were beaten and tortured into compliance and forced to smile.  They were forced to “work” every day of the week for at least 15 hours per day. The girls were never allowed to leave the brothel and never saw any of the money.  

Srey Rath was lucky. She was a strong young girl who was able to escape. One night, she and a few other girls broke open a window and climbed across a board only 5-inches wide to the balcony of the nearest apartment building.  Many girls were too afraid to follow in fear that they would fall and die.  Srey was willing to take that chance.  She escaped and was able to find a social worker who gave her the information for a group that supports girls who fall victim to sex-trafficking.  They gave her $400 of money that had been donated to their organization so that she could by a cart and become a street peddler.  Srey Rath is an intelligent young woman and was soon able to start saving money and expand her business.  Today she owns not just a cart but a stall, and the stall next to it. And the stall next to that. Today she is married and has a young son. She is currently saving money to provide her son the education she was never able to receive.

Story summarized by Kelly Tankard from Half the Sky by Nicholas D. Kriston and Sheryl WuDunn, Vintage Books, © 2009.