Happy New Years Alum!!!

Next year is going to be a GREAT one!! As a chapter we have so many amazing events in the works!!! So keep an eye out for emails that will keep you updated!

We are so proud of Becca S. and Yasmin T. for becoming Peer Helath Advocates on campus!! Great job guys!!

Finally, Leadership Conference is coming up and all of E-board, including myself can't wait!

Hello Alum!

My Name is Mariel Pfister, #494, and I am the newly appointed Alum chair! I am really looking forward to getting to know all of you a lot better this year! Here are a few fun facts about myself! I am in my sophomore year here at UMBC, and I am a social work and psychology double major with a minor in gender and women studies. I work on campus in admissions and I am a Sondheim scholar. I also currently Gamma Pi's Bursar! I love to read (especially Harry potter and Jane Austen) and I love to cook!
Some really awesome Alum events are already in the works, so keep an eye out for emails!
LITP <3
Mariel Pfister

Phi Sigs in the Summer!

Many college students see their summer vacation as a time to relax. But to Phi Sigs, summer break is yet another opportunity to Aim High! Here are a few of our sisters who are making great strides for their goals in their downtime..

Revathi Chandra, our beloved Sisterhood Development Chair, is in Belgium! She is interning for Times Warner Public Policy Office in Brussels. Her office works with the European Commission and the European Parliament on a number of different issues. She is having a great time, and we are so happy for her!

Sophie Cazarez, our wonderful Social chair, is in her hometown of Los Angeles, California interning for KTLA, a local television station. Within that department, she working mostly for Sam Rubin, a journalist who reports for the KTLA morning entertainment news, and "Hollywood Uncensored," a show on ReelzChannel. Sophie is a Media and Communication Studies major, so this is right up her alley. We are so proud of her for Aiming High!

Last, but certainly not least, our awe-inspiring Archon, Rachana Haliyur, is spending her summer at New York University's Summer Undergraduate Research Program. This is a highly prestigious program for juniors and seniors aspiring to attain M.D. or Ph.D degrees. Each student enrolled in this program is given a specific research project and are expected to perform at a graduate level. Rachana will be applying to medical schools in the fall, and we know that her participation in this program will impress every admission committee she meets! Keep up the great work, Rachana!

Maria Satyshur was in the Baltimore Sun!

Maria Satyshur, recent alum of the Gamma Pi chapter, was recently featured in an article in the Baltimore Sun! The article discussed Harry Potter, and Maria was quoted on the topic of the importance of the series in her own development as a writer. Way to go, Maria!

Here is a link to the full article:

http://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/movies/bs-ae-harry-potter-impact-20110713,0,31098.story?page=2

Baltimore's Dog Whisperer!

Our Sisterhood chair, Becca Steinbach, has recently taken classes to become a fully-certified Dog Whisperer! In the meantime, she is offering her services to any dog owners in need! Becca has received training to work with dogs that have problems with barking, jumping, aggression, and more!

We are so proud of Becca! Through hard work and dedication, she is turning one of her lifelong passions into a reality. Keep aiming high, Becca!

If you have a "problem" dog and think you need professional help, please refer to Becca's Dog Whisperer facebook page for additional contact information: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150309611843455&set=a.484022893454.279103.687368454&type=1&theater

National Kidney Walk

Summer is in the air and once again it is time to start planning for the National Kidney Walk. Since Fall 2008, the Gamma Pi Chapter of Phi Sigma Sigma has participated in the Kidney Walk; that year we set a goal for $1913 and raised almost $3,000 in just a few weeks!

Last year, many alumnae joined the Gamma Pi team and together raised funds to support the Foundation. In hope of encouraging more ladies of Gamma Pi to participate in the event and creating some friendly competition within the chapter, a Gamma Pi Alumnae team will participate in the Walk this year alongside their collegiate sisters.

For those of you who do not know...the NKF's Kidney Walks are designed to help people understand the need for early detection of kidney disease. There are over 26 million people that have chronic kidney disease and another 20 million are at risk. The NKF's Kidney Walk presents an occasion for dialysis patients, organ transplant recipients, donor families, living donors, the medical communities, and the general public to celebrate LIFE and support the Foundation's mission. In addition to raising funds for research and help for patients and their families, the Kidney Walk is a great way to raise awareness about the National Kidney Foundation and bring the community together. This would also be a wonderful opportunity to meet collegiate members of the Gamma Pi chapter and other Phi Sigs that will be participating.

If you are a Phi Sig Alumnae, join the team or make a donation! If you are unable to make this event on October 15, please consider joining the team as an "online walker" and participating in the team's fundraising efforts. If you have any questions or would like to talk about the team or the event, please feel free to contact Katie Dix at kdix23@gmail.com.

Diokete Hupsala!

Click here to view the Gamma Pi Alumnae Team Page.

Congratulations Seniors!

We are so happy to congratulate Maria, Hannah, Samantha, Kelsey, Leanne, Gina, and Tash on graduating from UMBC on May 23rd, 2011. There are no words that can express our pride and joy to see each of our amazing seniors go out into the world and embody our core values and lessons learned through Phi Sigma Sigma. Each of these women have truly exemplified our open motto, Aim High, in their own unique way, and will be dearly missed. However, there is a saying amongst Phi Sigma Sigmas that once a Phi Sigma Sigma, always a Phi Sigma. We are sure we will see you all soon at upcoming events in the fall as alum. We love you all and miss you so much already. Diokete Hupsala!

Greek Week 2001: We're In It To Win It!

Every year, UMBC Greeks from every chapter participate in a wonderful weeklong event known as Greek Week. This is an opportunity to learn about the amazing men and women that make up the different chapters of our unique Greek Life at UMBC, as well as a time to flaunt our pride as powerful, dynamic women of Phi Sigma Sigma! The week was jam-packed with an event per day; most of these events were competitions and all points earned by each chapter were tallied up at the end to decide the Greek Week Winner. Phi Sig particularly dominated at an event called Greek Games, which was an event composed of competitions and races. We won every competition! Many sisters also enjoyed Service Day, an all-day long event in which every chapter was awarded points quantified by amount of service done! Here are some pictures of sisters participating in Greek Week!

Sisters participating in a Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich-making event. All sandwiches were given to a local homeless shelter!

Phi Sigs celebrate greek unity with the lovely sisters of Delta Phi Epsilon at our Greek Week Social. The brothers of Phi Kappa Sigma and Phi Beta Sigma were also in attendance.

Gorgeous Phi Sigs at the end of Greek Week celebration, the Greek Ball!

Sisters participating in Service Day of Greek Week, picking up trash at the local Arbutus Middle School!

Sisters throwing up Phi Sig gang signs with the brothers of Phi Beta Sigma, the fraternity we teamed up with to organize "Pie a Phi," during Relay for Life!

Steph Pully: Service Extraordinaire!

In early April, Steph Pully, our amazing Vice-Archon, was awarded the Student Award for Civic Engagement! This is a monumental accomplishment as Steph is the very first person to receive this award. Through this award, the Shriver Center recognized her never-failing devotion to service and she was able to give the monetary portion of the award to College Gardens, a program where she previously volunteered last year. Steph is an amazing representation of one of core values, Leadership through Service, and she is constantly aiming high! Steph, you are an example for us all.

Here is a link to the announcement on umbc.edu:

http://my.umbc.edu/groups/umbcnews/news/6138

Congratulations, Beta Upsilon!

Beta Upsilon and their bigs after Initiation.

New sisters and the chapter!

Beta Upsilon with their SDC!

On April 1st, Gamma Pi was proud to initiate 9 new sisters! We are so proud of the Beta Upsilon class! Congratulations to Chelsea, Julie, Jen, Brittany, Maggie, Mansi, Mariel, Erika, and Taylor!

Rock-a-thon!

New members Taylor (left) and Jen (right) study with their SDC Revathi! (middle)

Some of the sisters of Gamma Pi huddling close to keep warm during a late rocking shift.

On March 15 and 16, we held their bi-annual Rock-A-Thon- rocking nonstop for 24 hours to raise money for the National Kidney Foundation. Phi Sigs from all chapters across the country organize and participate in Rock-a-thon every year.

Patients going through dialysis, a treatment for kidney failure, are encouraged to rock in rocking chairs to promote blood flow throughout their bodies. We rock in rocking chairs to raise awareness of kidney disease.

This year, our philanthropy chair, Sayeh Saidi, organized a penny war between the fraternities, in which each fraternity was given a jar to fill with money. Pi Kappa Phi was our winner! We will be holding a potluck dinner for the brothers very soon to thank them. Thank you to all the fraternities that donated!

Our chapter raised $454.82! Thank you to everyone that donated during Rock-A-Thon! We appreciate all of your support.

On Her Way to Success!

Sophomore Alexandra Del Barco was recently admitted to the University of Maryland Nursing School! The nursing program offered by the University of Maryland is rated 7th best in the nation! We are so proud of all of your hard work, and will miss you dearly when you leave us next semester! Diokete Hupsala!

Revelation

From Left to Right: Becca&Jen, Chelsea&Jess, Brittany&Negar, Taylor&Emma, Mansi& Rachana, Erika&Alex, Julie&Ali

The most exciting time in the new member period is Secret Sapphire week! During this week, the sapphire sisters of the new members secretly shower their little sisters with gifts. At the conclusion of the week is Revelation, when the new members find out who their bigs are! Here is a picture of the new members with their big sisters.

Rachana Aims High!

Rachana Haliyur, our wonderful Archon, has done it again! Out of all the women in PHA sororities in the Baltimore area, Rachana was chosen to receive the 2011 Undergraduate Scholarship from the Baltimore Panhellenic Alumni Association! We are so proud of you!

Congratulations, Maria!

Brava, Maria!

Some of the sisters of Phi Sigma Sigma celebrating with Maria after her recital!

On March 3rd, 2011, one of our sisters, Maria Satyshur, performed a number of elegant and impressive opera pieces at her Senior Recital at the Recital Hall at UMBC. Maria was introduced by her teacher, Cantor Thom King, who also performed a duet with Maria. Maria did an amazing job and impressed everyone in attendance! We are so proud of you!

Welcome to the Family!

Gamma Pi welcomes our new members to the family!

Three of our new members! (Left to right: Julie, Mariel, and Taylor)

Six out of our 9 new members with their SDC! (From left to right: Erika, Jen, Brittany, Revathi-SDC, Maggie, Mansi, and Chelsea)

We are ecstatic to welcome 9 new members to our chapter! We cannot wait to guide you through your new member period and show you how amazing it is to be a Phi Sigma Sigma!

Leadership Conference 2011

Bursar Rachael Kelly speaking on behalf of the Finance Advisory Board.

Sisterly bonding in between workshops and meetings! (Top left to right: Revathi, Steph, Rachana; Bottom left to right: Rachael, Emma. Not pictured: Sayeh)

Gamma Pi executive board members, Rachana Haliyur (Archon), Steph Pully (Vice Archon), Revathi Chandra (Sisterhood Development Chair), Emma Skallerup (Member-at-Large), Rachael Kelly (Bursar), as well as Sayeh Saidi (Philanthropy Chair), recently attended Phi Sigma Sigma Leadership Conference in Reston, Virginia. Chapters from all over the country, including a chapter from California, gathered to work together and learn about Leadership. All girls attended two days full of team-building activities, goal-setting exercises, and inspirational speeches given by none other than members of the Supreme Council. In down time between workshops, the members of Gamma Pi were able to discuss everything that they learned and come up with ideas that will improve our chapter!

Also, our very own Rachael Kelly was chosen to be a member of the Finance Advisory Board, a group of three Bursars from different top-performing chapters around the country. She spoke at Leadership Conference about different options for fundraising for Phi Sigma Sigma without raising dues. Our Vice Archon, Steph Pully, was also selected to speak in front of other vice archons about all of Gamma Pi's hard work for our philanthropies. We were very proud of how well both sisters represented Gamma Pi!

We'll miss you, Christina!

One of our sisters, Christina Ross, is leaving us to study abroad in Naples, Italy this semester! Christina is a Humanities scholar and an Ancient Studies major. In Italy she will be studying Latin and Italian archaeology! Christina, we will miss you terribly, but we will be excited to hear all about your trip! Aim high over there!

Alumnae Plunged!

Alumnae Katie Dix about to plunge!

On January 29, alumnae, Katie Dix (2010) and Sam Sadtler (2009) committed to grin and “bear” it for the athletes of Special Olympics Maryland by taking a chilly dip into the Chesapeake Bay at the 15th Annual Polar Bear Plunge.

Special Olympics is founded on the belief that people with intellectual disabilities can, with proper instruction and encouragement, learn, enjoy, and benefit from participation in individual and team sports. These must be adapted only as necessary to meet the needs of those with mental and physical limitations. Special Olympics believes that consistent training is indispensable to the development of an individual’s physical skills and mental health.

Katie had volunteered at Special Olympics events before and participating in the plunge is something she has always thought about doing. When she found out that the UMBC Chapter of Young Alumni (CYA) was creating a team, she was the first person to sign up.

On the other side of the beach, Sam plunged with members of the University of Maryland, Baltimore- PT team.

Both Katie and Sam doubled their fundraising goals due, in part, to donations made by sisters Maria Satyshur, Melissa Bernero Rachana Haliyur, and Stephanie Layne.

"Its one of of those experiences that takes your breathe away. If the water doesn't give you goosebumps, the energy and excitement surely will. I can't wait for next year," Katie Dix.