Pi Chapter News February 2019

Camden, Chowan, Currituck, Perquimans

and Pasquotank Counties
Region 1, Eta State, North Carolina
The Delta Kappa Gamma Society International
Rachel Gragson, Editor Volume 10, No. 3

PRESIDENT’S COMMENTS

Here it is 2019 and February already. This is the month of “Hearts and Flowers.” Happy Valentine’s Day
to all! Since this is heart month, it is a good time to reflect on heart health. Many of you are working at
very stressful jobs so it is important to remember to take the time to de-stress. There are many ways to go
about it. Regular exercise, yoga, prayer, meditation, time with positive friends or family, hobbies, pets,
art, and music all can help balance your life. We all want to be the best educators we can be, but please
remember that a person cannot keep giving from the heart without taking the time to refresh and refill
her spirit. Running on a deficit can lead to a heart attack. So give yourself a Valentine’s gift of time to de-
stress!

Our next meeting will be on Saturday February 16th at ten o’clock. We will meet at Cann Memorial
Presbyterian Church. Our own Rachel Gragson will play the newly refurbished organ for us and teach us
a bit about how it works. We will also hear about what DKG is doing with Schools for Africa and have a
business meeting and lunch. Cann Memorial’s address is 311 West Main, but the entrance to the parking
lot is behind the church in the 300 block of Fearing Street. We will have the door from the parking lot
open for you. I am looking forward to seeing you again.

Please let me know if you are able to attend and your choice of box lunch. Call (252) 339-7801
OR email krisfabjohnson@gmail.com. Please respond to me by Tuesday, February 12.

We will have box lunches for $10.

For sandwich boxes, the choices of bread are white, wheat or rye; all come with lettuce and tomato.
Sandwich choices are Chicken Salad, Signature Apple Butter Turkey (turkey, cheddar, Swiss, Apple
butter, honey mustard) and Signature Just Peachy (ham, swiss, peach preserve). Sandwich boxes will
come with chips, fruit and brownie.

Salad box choices are Chicken-Apple-Strawberry (chicken, strawberries and apples, tomato, cucumbers,
onion, bacon) or Cobb (avocado, corn, egg, bacon, goat cheese). Dressing choices are Ranch, Caesar,
French, Thousand Island, Greek Vinaigrette, Blue Cheese, Honey Mustard or Raspberry Vinaigrette.

Kris Johnson, President Rachel Gragson, Editor

krisfabjohnson@gmail.com wrgragson@roadrunner.com
252.335.7108 or 252.339.7108 252.335.1849 or 252.337.4446
The Delta Gamma Society International promotes professional and personal growth
of women educators and excellence in education.
PI CHAPTER NEWS
Pi Chapter members continue to be active in community events. Gwen Bell and Rachel Gragson
participated in the annual Moravian Love Feast, and Rachel also accompanied the Albemarle Youth Choir
and singers Kelly Balmaceda and Sandra Krueger in their Christmas Concert, as well as accompanying the
Pasquotank County High School Women’s Chorus in its Christmas Concert. I know other members are
involved in the community too. PLEASE send me your information so we can highlight all our outstanding
members!

TAKE NOTE

A change is coming in the dues payment schedule. Beginning with the 2019-2020 year, dues and fees will
be collected by June 30, 2019. They will be sent to Eta State NC treasurer immediately thereafter. This
change was approved at the 2018 International Convention and will allow International and Eta State NC
to receive dues and fees by July 1, the beginning of each DKG fiscal year

ETA STATE NEWS

CONVENTION PROJECT
Every year for the past few years the Eta State Convention has collected funds for a worthy project.
This year the convention project will aid our own. Hurricane Florence devastated many schools in
eastern NC, and teachers are still trying to rebuild their classrooms and find necessary instructional
materials.

Fund$ for Florence, the Eta State NC 2019 Convention Project, will help DKG member-teachers.
Bring gift cards and show your support of our members!

LEGISLATIVE SURVEY RESULTS TO BE SHARED IN 2019 WHITE PAPER

By: Susan Phipps, Chair, ELP Committee

The Educational Law & Policy Committee has gathered the data from the Legislative Survey conducted
in the fall 2018 and is including it in the new 2019 White Paper on Legislative Priorities. The Paper will
be placed on the Eta State website (www.ncdkg.org) by January 15, where members can access it and
make copies to share with legislative Representatives and Senators. To find it on the website click on
"Leadership" on the upper right side of the homepage and choose the Educational Law & Policy
Committee from the drop down list of committees.
For those members who live close to Raleigh, the legislature begins its work near the end of January.
Delivering the Paper in person to members in the General Assembly is, by far, the most impactful thing
to do. Meeting with lawmakers back home and personally sharing the document is also most effective.
The EL&P Committee urges all members to disseminate our priorities to anyone who can possibly help
us achieve our goals. Won't you do your part? Our students are counting on us.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

Eta State is hosting the International Conference on Arts and Humanities in Asheville and we
need lots of volunteers! The Asheville area is a wonderful place to visit and extend your trip for a
day or so. Our good friend and former Region I director Tobey Worthington is the Volunteer
Coordinator. If you’re interested, contact her or President Kris.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
There is a wealth of interesting information in the January-February issue of DKG News. As we
read in the last newsletter, this is now only available in digital format. To read it, go to the
International Website: www.dkg.org You must sign in to read the Newsletter. Sign in with your
member number, available on your membership card. If you can’t find your card, contact Rachel
and she can give you that number. The password is dkg2014society

Especially interesting is the information about the change from Regional to International
Conferences in the odd numbered years. There’s been a change of emphasis so that each
Conference highlights a particular theme (see the calendar at the end of this newsletter for these.)
Any regional conference has always been open to any member; International covers the cost for
the conference, not the state. During the 2017 Conferences, members expressed a desire for
“themed” conventions, and this is now reflected. Training for new officers will now take place at
one conference, leading to a much more unified perspective of the Society and will help it truly
become a global organization in every sense of the word. Read the entire article!

Another interesting article describes the new collegiate chapter membership. This is something we
as a chapter might consider for our Grant-in-Aid winners.

And finally, Go Ahead Tours is offering a wonderful trip in October, 2020, of San Francisco and
the Napa Valley Wine County! See the website for more details.
 CALENDAR

PI CHAPTER MEETINGS

February 16, 2019 10:30 AM Cann Memorial Presbyterian Church, Elizabeth City

May 6, 2019 5:00 PM Nothin’ Fancy Café, Edenton

STATE AND NATIONAL MEETINGS

March 22-23, 2019 Eta State Leadership Seminar Caraway Conference Center

May 3-5, 2019 Eta State NC Convention Crowne Plaza, Hickory, NC

June 27-29, 2019 International Conference: Arts and Humanities

Crowne Plaza Resort, Asheville, NC

July 10-12, 2019 International Conference: Leadership Des Moines, IA

July 17-20, 2019 International Conference: Technology Costa Mesa, CA

July 25-27, 2019 International Conference: Professional Research Reykjavik, Iceland

July 30-Aug 1, 2019 International Conference: Global Awareness Mashantucket, CT

May 1-3, 2020 Eta State Convention Embassy Suites, Greensboro

July 7-11, 2020 International Convention Philadelphia, PA