News from Ohio State Organization |
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Believe :: Belong :: Build
2021 – A year of promise and hope?
It's our actions that define us-
Our thoughts, our will, our ways.
We are all in this together.
Soon there will be better days.
--Victoria Calleja
We have just finished a very atypical year, leaving all to wonder what actually lies ahead for 2021. No one knows what 2021 will bring and nobody knows what our “new normal” will be or even look like. Although there are dire warnings of this pandemic “getting worse, before it gets better,” in my mind, 2021 has to be better than 2020! I also yearn for our additional stress and anxiety to abate “sooner, rather than later.”
The pandemic has brought massive changes to almost every aspect of our lives…how we live, where we live, where we go or cannot go, what we do or cannot do, where we work, how we go about our work, what it means to be a “kid” these days, what it means to be a student or a classroom teacher, what family and friends mean, what is actually important. I suspect that after many months of being placed on “hold”, many of us have begun to ask what is my role in all of this, where do I fit in and how do I adopt/adapt a new way of thinking that takes everyone into account so all can look forward to the future with hope?
Our efforts to break the COVID-19 siege revealed both the best and unfortunately, the worst of the American character. Our journey from here on should be quite clear, yet very simple…resolve to be patient and steadfast and to collectively spend 2021 fighting for science, truthful facts and honesty, democracy and empathy and to repair, mend and heal, if we can, all that was lost in 2020.
With the newly approved vaccines, I am hopeful there will be better days ahead and certainly look forward to 2021 being a year of reawakening and recovery for us all. Life, without a doubt, will continue to be and feel different as we recalibrate and refocus our optimistic hopes on achieving the “new normal.” Your Ohio State Organization Leadership Team continues to meet (on Zoom) regularly to plan and strategize as we lend our attention and efforts to the needs and the business, at hand, for DKG/Ohio. We too are looking forward to returning to normalcy. We encourage you all to “stay the course,” remain vigilant and patient, and take to heart the following words of Victoria Calleja.
“It's our actions that define us-
Our thoughts, our will, our ways.
We are all in this together.
Soon there will be better days.”
Wishing you and yours a brighter and happier 2021!
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Convention Update
Upcoming Connectivity Events
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A New Year, A New Way to Do the OSO Convention! |
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Well, the year 2020 was certainly one like no other! When the 2020 OSO State Convention was postponed two weeks before the scheduled event, we thought moving it to late August would give the virus enough time to move on, and we could have our convention as planned. Little did we know that around that time the coronavirus would begin ramping up for the fall. Then we thought, “Of course, the April 9-11, 2021, convention at the Embassy Suites in Dublin will take place as planned!” At this point, all we know is that there will be a convention in 2021, but we just don’t know if it will be on-site or virtual. The February issue of The Voice will be an important communication for providing a clearer understanding of how the State Convention will be formatted.
In the meantime, the Connectivity Team will be bringing you two Zoom events in January. The kickoff to our author series will begin on Wednesday, January 13, at 7:00 P.M. with Carol Trembath, who will be sharing her newest children’s book, Fairies and the Global Tree to the Rescue: A Tale of the Fairy Flu. The story is “a gentle framework for health conversations about the current viral infection.” The second Zoom event will be Zentangle with a Valentine’s Day theme on Thursday, January 21, at 7:30 P.M. According to what I found online, Zentangle is a type of art therapy to enhance relaxation and focus. Who among us couldn’t use a little relaxation and focus as we begin 2021!! You will need paper and some type of writing tool (pen, pencil, markers, or colored pencils). As with our other Zoom events, it is important for you to register in advance with the links provided below. After registering, make sure you flag the emails from President Diana Kirkpatrick. Put the dates on your calendar or do whatever you need to do to remember to join us on Wednesday, January 13, at 7:00 P.M. and Thursday, January 21, at 7:30 P.M. If you have an idea for a future Connectivity event, I would like to hear from you. Take care. Stay safe!
Linda Diltz, Beta Rho
Convention Coordinator
lindadiltz1@gmail.com
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Registration Links for
January Connectivity Events
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Happy New Year!
CLASSROOM TEACHERS! OSO members!! Do you need money to pay for that class you need to update your teaching skills or to upgrade your degree? ADSOEF has the funds you need. Just look at what we can do for you!
Most applications are due a month from now, February 1, so complete that application now, girl! Click here to view the various funds that are available, who is eligible and application due dates.
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Our Scholarship Committee Chairman and ADSOEF Educational Services Committee Chairman welcome your questions and their Committees can hardly wait to review your application! ADSOEF is focused on funding the future of excellence in education!
We want to fund your excellent educational goal!
We've "got your back," see?
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"Volunteerism is the voice of the people put into action.
These actions shape and mold the
present into a future of which we can all be proud."
Helen Dyer
FOUNDATION DIRECTORS SHAPE THE FUTURE!
Do you have a desire to shape the future for educators and students? If you are looking for something worthwhile to do that will influence the future, apply to be a Foundation Director. You can share your enthusiasm, skills, and knowledge to strengthen the Alpha Delta State Ohio Educational Foundation.
Serving as a Foundation Director of ADSOEF, you will ---
Be part of a team!
Be a positive influence!
Face new challenges!
Learn & serve!
Experience personal satisfaction!
Join the excitement!
Do your part!
Keep active!
Raise awareness!
Influence the future!
If you want more information or have questions, you can contact Dr. Norma Kirby or any of the current directors or members of the ADSOEF Nominating Committee. Contact information is on the Foundation website at adsoef.weebly.com.
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A Handful of Ways to Ring in the New Year of 2021
As the New Year of 2021 has arrived, let’s continue to ignite our minds and hearts with an eternal flame by empowering women educators in Delta Kappa Gamma Society to serve. We can do this with a handful of five concepts that uses five fingers on a hand to identify each one of them. We want to encourage each other to proceed “Forward, moving ever!” [Phrase taken from The Delta Kappa Gamma Song written by Anne Webb Blanton and Cora M. Martin]
Melodie A. McGee, Gamma Nu Chapter
Educational Excellence Committee Chairman
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Ohio’s property tax financing of schools, deemed in unconstitutional in 1994 by the Ohio Supreme Court, is finally being addressed in the Statehouse for the first time with a plan to implement a new financing plan in FY2022. House Bill 305 is currently in Senate Finance Committee, having passed the House on December 3, 2020. Previously, according to the State School Board, only 18% of the state’s school systems have been funded properly. HB 305, dubbed the Fair School Funding Plan, does have the support of the Ohio School Board, according to a Cincinnati WLWT report December 8, 2020.
Pamela Henney, Legislative Advocate
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Forms, Forms, Forms!
I would like to reiterate the importance of completing forms and sending them in a timely manner. It’s even more vital now that we are meeting virtually after the Pandemic hurled us into unchartered waters.
Form 6 – Report of the Death of a Member
Form 2 – Chapter Necrology Report
The Buckeye-Cherry Challenge
Debby Canter, Delta Epsilon
First Vice President/Membership Chair
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Cheryl Quay, Debby Canter, Deborah Mihalik, Karen Estridge |
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Delta Delta past co-presidents, Brenda Ceplecci and Mary Ann Augustyn, visited Trumball County Children's Services offices on Wednesday, December 2 to drop off clothing donations to complete the chapter's 2018-2020 Biennium Fostering Project. A "Thank You" banner was presented to them in appreciation of the contributions made by Delta Delta. |
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DKG Winter Gallery of Fine Arts |
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Early Fall Morning - Yellowstone Lake |
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The Arts & Humanities Jury of The Delta Kappa Gamma Society International announced the publication of photographs ‘Early Fall Morning-Yellowstone Lake’ and ‘Fallen Autumn Leaves’ by Cathy Tenney, editor of The Voice, in the DKG Gallery of Fine Arts, an online gallery of works of art and letters at www.dkg.org.
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Important OSO-DKG Dates to Remember |
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January 13, 2021 - Author Series featuring Carol Trembath
Fairies and the Global Tree to the Rescue: A Tale of the Fairy Flu
Zoom Event @ 7:00 p.m.
January 15, 2021 - First Day to Submit
Arts & Humanities Submissions for Spring Gallery
DKG International
January 21, 2021 - Zentangle Activity
Zoom Event @ 7:30 p.m.
February 15, 2021 - Last Day to Submit
Arts & Humanities Submissions for Spring Gallery
March 1, 2021 - Buckeye Cherry Challenge Form Due
(Submission Form Available on/after January 15, 2021)
April 9-11, 2021 - OSO State Convention
Embassy Suites - Dublin, Ohio
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Remembering Our Lost Sisters |
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