—This post was written by Haley Wadley, vice president of the University of Wyoming chapter— From March 14-16, Region 8 held their Regional Summit at 7,200 feet in Laramie, Wyoming! Members from around the region gathered together to participate in an adventurous weekend that would turn […]
—This post was written by Katrina Notarmaso, chapter president at The College of New Jersey— During the weekend of Friday, 28 February and Sunday, 2 March, Golden Key members, leaders, and advisors from Regions 1 and 10 convened for their Regional Summit at Stony Brook University in […]
—This post was written by Danesha Winfrey, Council of Student Members (CoSM) for U.S. Region 2, The University of Memphis—
Friday, 28 February 2014
Golden Key’s Regions 2 and 3 teamed together for our Regional Summit this year at Georgia State University, which is where Golden Key was born thirty-six years ago! Therefore, this Summit was indeed a special one. First, registration kicked off at the Hilton Downtown Atlanta and we also had chapter meetings with our respective Associate Director. Inside of the inviting Student Center, we were given a warm welcome by the panthers of Georgia State University.
We started out with our mixer and our welcome message from Brad Rainey, Golden Key Executive Director. He informed us on how Golden Key International Honour Society uses its funds effectively and how many hours we have contributed to service, among other valuable announcements. We are proud to be part of an honor society that gives more to its students than many other honor societies. Our night continued with a keynote address from Gala Jackson, M.Ed. – she is an entrepreneur and owner of InterviewSnob, a thriving career consulting boutique in Atlanta, Georgia. Ms. Jackson has been featured in U.S. News and World Report and she has won awards in résumé writing. Ms. Jackson spoke of how young individuals can accomplish their goals and that they should not be afraid of taking risks. Her tagline challenges its readers to “passionately pursue your purpose!” Her lecture also focused on the value of networking, as well as helpful anecdotes on how to network effectively. Regions 2 and 3 formed relationships with one another and with their respective Golden Key chapters.
We took candid pictures and had a successful icebreaker session lead by Mariko Antonacci, the chapter president of Georgia State University and U.S. Region 3 CoSM, and Pedro, the chapter’s service director; we all then seemed to loosen up. After that, it was time to eat! We had a wonderful mixer and we again had a chance to network with other chapters. There were chapters that traveled a lengthy way to attend our Regional Summit, such as members from the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico chapters. We even had a chapter member from Nebraska attend! Although he is not in Region 1 or 2, he chose to attend our Summit. We thank him and all of our members who attended our Regional Summit!
Saturday, 1 March 2014
Our big day was just that: big. We started the morning with a breakfast and late registration. We then had our HQ update from Mr. Rainey in the Speaker’s Auditorium of Georgia State University’s Student Center. Shereen Ashtiani, Region 3’s Associate Director, and Traci Gordon, Region 2’s Associate Director, then gave us important tips on our deadlines, informed and reminded us of event assessment completion, and relayed other pertinent facts related to Golden Key.
At that point, it was time for our workshops! The content of Workshop Session I ranged from chapter fundraising tactics to GIN System navigation to how to successfully conduct community service projects. There were new officers in the midst of transitions to different positions within Regions 2 and 3 and the workshops aided the transitioning. Workshop Session II informed the chapter officers and members of how to market Golden Key on campus and the University of Miami, a Key chapter, discussed how to “Be Good, Be Well, Be Golden.” Golden Key officers and members also learned about officer retention, increasing member participation, business etiquette, marketing plans and the Golden Key 101 basics. The workshops were the excellent and we were only halfway done!
Of course, we needed sustenance and we had Subway sandwiches in the Student Center Lobby to satisfy this! chapters did not relegate themselves to sitting with people they already new— everyone mingled. We then attended our afternoon workshops and roundtables, which were just as informative as the morning sessions.
Workshop Session III consisted of a GK 101 discussion, an informative Billhighway session, virtual chapter engagement, and an educational workshop about Women, Leadership and Professional Development. The final session, Workshop IV, boasted of the power of collaboration, service event planning, fostering or continuing a relationship with Better World Books and discussions at the Advisor Roundtable. This session shared information on conducting a successful service event and the roles of officers, advisors, and collaborators, as well as information about Better World Books and how a chapter can successfully conduct a book drive.
Our sessions ended with officer roundtables consisting of building a strong Golden Key chapter– one for the chapter Presidents and Vice Presidents and one for officers and general members. Chapter leaders at the Presidents’ and Vice Presidents’ Roundtable shared ideas on engaging honorary members, high school students, and college freshman. Chapter leaders at this roundtable also discussed scholarships, the point system and signature events! The chapter officer and general member roundtable discussed components of building a strong Golden Key chapter that involves member engagement, service activities and keys to leadership.
The workshops and roundtables were highly informative and engaging. And, our host chapter, Georgia State University, was most gracious. We posed for a group photo at the Unity Plaza, had chapter meetings with our respective Associate Director and then looked forward to the closing dinner!
Our closing dinner was held at Veteran’s Memorial Hall. We enjoyed a southern cuisine of turkey, dressing, sweet potatoes, collards and macaroni and cheese. We also enjoyed an introduction from Mr. Brad Rainey of our Keynote Speaker, Dr. TJ Murphy. Dr. Murphy is a faculty member of Emory University and he has guided many students to successful careers.
Dr. Murphy shared his insight on Graduate School and taking the thoughtful approach of seeking a post-baccalaureate degree program that is aligned with a student’s qualifications, as well as a school that can adequately cultivate a student’s passions and qualifications. Of this passionate approach to helping students unlock their best potential, was gradschoolmatch.com created by Dr. Murphy. We ended the closing dinner with a candy bar, photo booth, dog-tag pressing, networking, laughter and dancing.
Sunday, March 2, 2014
The morning of the last day of Summit consisted of breakfast and our chapter meetings with our respective Associate Directors. We also participated in our service project: donating toiletry items for the Metro Atlanta Task Force! We said our farewells and wished everyone a safe trip back to their respective states and territories. Here’s to a successful Regional Summit 2014 from the school where Golden Key was founded: Georgia State University!
Don’t miss the Golden Key 2014 International Summit from 31 July – 3 August in Boston. For more information and to register, visit www.is.gd/summit14.
—This post was written by Helen Luck from the Golden Key chapter at the University of Toronto— On February 14-16, the 2014 Golden Key Canadian Regional Summit (CANCON) took place in Toronto, which is Canada’s largest city. Over 100 GK members across the nation joined us […]
Many people question the value of a college degree. In recent years, the “sticker prices” for college tuition have soared, and recent graduates have struggled with unemployment due to the rough job market. However, research has shown that bachelor’s degree recipients did not lose nearly […]
In 1988, Youth Service America, an international leader in the youth service movement, came together to start Global Youth Service Day with the goal of engaging young people ages 5 to 25 years old to participate in service activities. Youth Service America wanted to target this age group because young people are not usually asked to serve so, by bringing them together to help serve their communities, this event would allow the global youth to take an early step towards a lifetime of civic engagement and social consciousness.
Since service is one of the three pillars of Golden Key International Honour Society, we strongly encourage our members to participate in service activities and make a difference in their communities. In light of this, we hope that all Golden Key chapters will be advocates of Global Youth Service Day and take part in the event this year from 11-13 April. With your help, we can show the world that Golden Key members are special- that they can Stand Out, Stand Up and Stand Together!
If you are having trouble coming up with a fun service activity that your chapter would enjoy, check out our 2013 Make A Difference Day Chapter Awards blog or go to the Global Youth Service Day website. There are no limits as to which your chapter can help your community, and we implore our chapters to participate in this incredible service event! Chapter officers should register their projects on Golden Key’s website. Find out more by clicking here. Golden Key will be awarding a total of $1,000 to the most outstanding chapter initiatives. And remember to take plenty of pictures and videos of your event to share on Facebook and Twitter with the hashtag #GYSD!
On Thursday 27 February 2014, the University of Canterbury in New Zealand hosted “Clubs Day”, which is a part of the university’s Orientation Week. On this day the many student clubs and organizations set up tables to attract prospective members; in fact there are over […]
Did you know that the most commonly listed skill on LinkedIn the past two years has been “Creativity”, and for good reason, too. “The reality is that to survive in a fast-changing world you need to be creative,” says Gerard J. Puccio, chairman of the International Center […]
Will university life soon become a concept associated with the past? For now, this is probably not the case, but physical educational institutions could experience trouble in the future due to the emergence of MOOCs. Massive Open Online Courses, or MOOCs, are short, online courses offered with the intention of drawing in large-scale interactive participation. They provide shared user forums that consist of videos, readings and problem sets to help build a community amongst students and professors.
Could this infringe on traditional universities, though? Many say “no”. The United States Studies Centre at the University of Sydney believes that MOOCs will be non-threatening to physical universities, and, in fact, be beneficial in that they could offer opportunities to better utilize technology, thus gaining a greater global profile.
Other proponents say MOOCs are the “iTunes of higher education” in that degrees from universities are like attending live shows- they are expensive and only a limited number of people can participate- but MOOCs can reach out to an infinite number of participants in a cost efficient manner. Just as iTunes does not make live shows less desirable, MOOCs are not designed to reinvent education. Rather, just as iTunes changed the manner in which music is consumed, MOOCs will revolutionize the education scene. An example of the successful utilization of MOOCs is evident in McAfee, the wholly owned subsidiary of Intel.
Not everyone is optimistic about the future of the online classes, however. Many skeptics believe that MOOCs will have no influence on existing physical universities because they are merely a trend. Instructure CEO Josh Coates and Dennis Yang, President of MOOC provider Udemy, believe that MOOCs are merely going through a “hype cycle”, as shown below.
These critics believe this to be true due to the high non-completion rates of MOOC participants and the preference amongst employers for skills and education gained at tangible institutions. Another criticism is the idea that bigger is not always better. While MOOCs emphasize the capability of capturing thousands of students virtually, they do not mention the quality of this form of education. Rather than reveling in the augmentation of education as though it is the main goal, relationships between instructors and students lead to greater understanding of the material because the students’ progress can be tracked on more of an individual basis. There is also the idea that large lecture classrooms are widely considered to be ineffective. This is evident in an experiment done by a physics professor at Harvard, which has led some to say that MOOCs should be limited to first year courses or courses that are considered to be more basic.
Could Massive Open Online Courses be the future of education, or is it merely a phase in the education system?
The rise in college tuition is no new affair- most people have accumulated quite a bit of student debt. In the past decade, the published prices of universities have increased by more than 20%. In fact, universities are starting to worry about possibly approaching the […]
GK SCHOLARSHIPS: Ather Sharif
GK Scholarships: Logan Thornton