Now that you are home...

Regional Conferences are over and you are back home - settled in, relaxed, and - I hope - INSPIRED!
So, what's next?  How do you keep the momentum going?

• Share what you have learned with a friend or professional peer.
• Inspire someone else to attend an international event - International Convention will be held in Austin, Texas, in July of 2018.
• Volunteer to make it a chapter program - share your photos, your experiences and your greatest "take away" with your chapter members.
• Visit DKG.org frequently and share information with your chapter at each meeting.
• Review the DKG Constitution and consider the role it might play in designing the future of DKG. Proposed amendments are due October 1. 

Our Founders were courageous and forward thinking women - mavericks in their time.  They risked their professions and, in some ways, their lives to found and grow this great organization we know as DKG.  What a gift to us as members!  Pay it forward and share membership with other key women educators in your corner of the world.  We CAN and WILL make a difference but only if we continue to grow and thrive.  Let's honor our Founders in the greatest possible way by being the same progressive, brave and innovative women they were!

HAVE YOU HEARD THE GREAT NEWS? Now, It's All in ONE Place!

COMMITTEE BLOGS (AND A BLOG FROM ANNIE WEBB BLANTON) ARE NOW PART OF THE DKG "UNIBLOG"!

SUBSCRIBERS TO THE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE BLOGS (C&P, MEMBERSHIP, EEC, FINANCE, CONSTITUTION), PLEASE NOTE: 

In response to members' suggestions, DKG is now posting all international committee blogs in a "uniblog" accessed from the home page at dkg.org (look for the "Blog" button just above the survey!). In this way, members will be able to find all blog messages quickly and will be informed about all areas of DKG. A new feature is included, as Founder Annie Webb Blanton will be blogging as well!

 

Note: 

Tabs at the top of the blog will allow quick access to specific committee posts if one so desires. 

All committee posts will now be done through the uniblog rather than through individual blogs on committee pages.

If you wish to continue following the your favorite committee's blog, please subscribe to the uniblog at http://dkgsi.blogspot.com/   

CTAUN 2017 - A Wonderful Experience!

What is better than a weekend in New York City? A weekend in New York City attending the CTAUN conference at UN Headquarters!  DKG members from around the country attended the conference to gain a new perspective on the challenges faced by refugee families around the world.  The focus of the 18th annual conference was Refugees:  The 21st Century Challenge.  We enjoyed presentations from speakers affiliated with the United Nations, UNICEF, and agencies that work with refugee families.  However, my favorite presentation involved students who grew up as refugees and are now studying in the United States.  They captured our hearts, stretched our minds and broadened our perspectives.

DKG Members at CTAUN 2017

Start making plans to attend the next conference -  will I see you at CTAUN 2018?

Did YOU Hear?

We have a joke at our house - my husband often leaves me out of the loop when he is buying things. You know, like horses, tractors or even property!  So, I really do know how it feels when everyone else seems to be "in the know" and you're not.

Don't miss out on the communication of important information!  DKG is now emailing members regularly to keep you informed about events, opportunities and benefits of your membership.  We send Focus on DKG:  International Highlights to every member for whom we have an email address. Unfortunately, we do not have an email address for almost half of our members.  And of those email addresses to which we send the Focus on DKG, approximately 10% are "undeliverable" due to server security programs or inaccuracies.

What can you do to "stay in the loop?"

• Sign in to the DKG Website and update your profile to include your correct email address and indicate your desire to receive DKG communications by email.
• Use a personal email address for DKG communications (many educational institutions do not accept ".org" emails) or "whitelist" the dkg.org domain with your email server as "not spam."
• Be sure your state organization officers have your correct email so that you can receive communication from them as well.
• Read your DKGNews and, if you are a chapter president, your Presidents' Page.  Share the information you learn with your chapter members. 
• Visit www.dkg.org frequently to stay up to date on DKG news and events.  

Be informed.  And spread the news!

The Happiest Holiday of All - to You!

What an exciting time of year!  Almost magical.  And yet, while the busy-ness and bright-ness can be alluring, we sometimes find that time becomes short and we become frantic.  Too little time to shop for all the presents. Too little time to make all the connections.  Too much time wrapping up the year and not enough time to think about the New Year to come.

So, take a little time for you.  If it is cold outside in your part of the world, build a fire in the fireplace and read a book for the evening.  If not, enjoy an few moments on the porch with the sun in your face or with a good view of a starlit sky.  Whatever your preference, stop and "smell the roses" as they say.

Celebrate the life you have and the folks in it.

It is with gratitude that you are in mine that I wish you the Happiest of Holidays.

We are Listening to You!

Your international leadership and Society Headquarters staff are always seeking feedback from members.  Do you have something you want to say about your membership experience and how we could help make it better?  There are a variety of ways you can easily make your voice heard:

• The survey on the Homepage of the DKG Website is designed for quick feedback from members and changes every month.  So keep an eye out for topics that interest you and answer the poll.  You can also see what others are saying by clicking on "Results."
• The contact information for the members of the International Administrative Board is available under the "About Us" tab.  Email them with your thoughts and recommendations. 
• The contact information for Society Headquarters staff is available under the "Contact Us" tab. Email us with your concerns and recommendations.
• You will also find the phone number for Society Headquarters under the "Contact Us" tab.  Feel free to call us between 7:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. CST.  

So, log in, email us or give us a call - we want to hear from you!

Ready, Set, Initiate!

Have you made plans for your chapter to grow this year?  If you have not already considered using the new Membership Recruitment Plan, you might check it out!  Find an overview and sample documents under the Resources tab at www.dkg.org.

The plan preserves the integrity of the invitation to membership (honor) and the initiation ceremony (tradition), but allows for a more effective way to present the Society to prospective members.  By changing the order of the process, prospective members are oriented to the organization before being invited to join.  And the chapter has already approved the list of prospects, so initiation plans can be made easily and quickly.

And one really exciting part is that the plan also engages chapter members as mentors to the new members - a simple, effective and purposeful way to keep new members active in DKG for life. In fact, mentors can be a great way to engage transferred and reinstated members in chapter activities as well.

For assistance or more information, contact us at mem@dkg.org.