CHAPTER OPERATIONS

The Directorate is continuing to meet frequently to consider ways to safely resume in-person activities. Progress has been made to gradually bring sorority operations back on line and additional developments are in progress. However, the virtual mandate prohibiting in-person chapter and related meetings and foundation and related meetings remains in effect. This means that chapter and related meetings along with foundation and related meetings must continue to be conducted virtually until further notice.

MEMBERSHIP INTAKE PROCESS*

As you know, the Directorate authorized a modified Membership Intake Process on a limited basis for undergraduate chapters only that either were in process in the Spring of 2020 or had been approved to proceed with MIP in the Spring of 2020 when the virtual mandate was imposed. Based on the success of this pilot effort, the Directorate has now authorized expansion of this modified process to graduate chapters. The modified Membership Intake Process has been developed in consultation with the International Risk Management Task Force and the International Technology Committee to ensure the health and safety of all participants. Undergraduate Chapters must conduct MIP subject to university authorization. Graduate Chapters are strongly encouraged to conduct MIP.

MEMBERSHIP

The International Membership Committee is pleased to report that this year’s Reactivation Workplace initiative entitled, “A Race to the Finish,” was a tremendous success. The cornerstone of this initiative was the goal of reactivating 5,000 sorors. Reactivation is observed simultaneously with Founders’ Day. The significance of our 113th Founders’ Day coupled with the celebration of our Vice President, Soror Kamala Harris, has resulted in historic numbers of reclaimed pearls. As a result of the collective efforts of chapters and sorors around the globe, the Membership Committee exceeded the 5,000 reactivated sorors goal. The Membership Committee is grateful for your commitment and engagement to help us cross the finish line! Keep up the great work, Sorors.

PROGRAMS

The Directorate has continued to meet regularly to assess the effect of the pandemic on all aspects of sorority operations, including our programs of service. The Supreme Basileus, Regional Directors and other Directorate members have heard from sorors across Alpha Kappa Alpha who have petitioned to resume in-person service programs. Given the continuation of the pandemic with no end in sight for the foreseeable future, there is a need to determine how we can safely resume in-person service programs. To that end, the Directorate recently approved the recommendation of the Pandemic Task Force to begin phasing in in-person program initiatives at the discretion of the Regional Director subject to CDC guidance and adherence to strict safety protocols. The Directorate has approved safety protocols and the International Program Committee has developed a list of approved program service initiatives to guide chapters as they work to safely resume in-person programming. It is important to bear in mind that this phased-in rollout applies only to service initiatives and projects. All other activities, including, among other things, chapter meetings, committee meetings, foundation meetings and fundraisers will continue to be virtual until further notice. The Directorate thanks sorors for their commitment to proceed cautiously and to observe all of the health and safety guidelines as we gradually resume in-person activities.

RISK MANAGEMENT/FACE MASKS AND COVERINGS

Alpha Kappa Alpha continues to implore sorors to adhere to CDC guidelines regarding the use of masks and face coverings. We thank sorors for their cooperation and adherence over the past several months since the pandemic was declared. In light of the ongoing nature of the pandemic, the Directorate recently voted to relax the prohibition against certain AKA trademarks on masks and face coverings. Authorized vendors were recently informed that they may now manufacture and sell masks and face coverings bearing certain AKA trademarks subject to approval by the Corporate Office. Authorized vendors may not manufacture or sell masks bearing the sorority shield or any parts thereof. We would urge sorors to assist in the enforcement of this prohibition by only supporting authorized vendors and by reporting any vendor who violates the licensing agreement and prohibition on use of the sorority shield by submitting the Vendor Infraction Form to the Corporate Office. We thank you in advance for your support and vigilance as we work together to preserve and protect our brand.

RITUALS

The International Rituals Committee has released a Virtual Memorial Tribute Guide to assist chapters in honoring and celebrating Ivies Beyond the Wall until we are able to gather in person for the official Ivy Beyond the Wall Ceremony. Access the resource by clicking here.

Thank you for continuing to join your region’s Day of Prayer calls. Let us continue to pray for our sorors and all of the families impacted by COVID-19, healthcare workers, first responders and other essential workers, our sisterhood, this nation and our world. Please also pray for leadership and wisdom for national, state, and local leaders as they continue to make important decisions regarding our communities, businesses and schools. Let us also continue to pray for justice and equal protection under the law for African Americans in this country.

HOW SOON WILL THE JOHNSON & JOHNSON VACCINE ARRIVE?
By Isabella Bridie DeLeo

Johnson & Johnson submitted an emergency use authorization application earlier this month from the Food and Drug Administration, and in a few weeks, on February 26, the FDA is set to meet with advisors to discuss the application and potentially approve the vaccine. A decision will likely follow very shortly after that. Based on the speed with which the Pfizer vaccine began distribution after being approved, that could mean that the Johnson & Johnson vaccine might be beginning to ship in a matter of weeks, not months, but only time will tell. The [single dose] vaccine is 66% effective overall in combating severe and moderate cases four weeks after the dose has been administered. This translates to a 72% effectiveness in the U.S.

Read more here.

VACCINE ROLLOUT

The federal government is overseeing a centralized system to order, distribute, and track COVID-19 vaccines. All vaccines will be ordered through CDC. The CDC reports more than 27 million Americans have received a first dose, and more than six million have been fully vaccinated. Early predictions were that all Americans who wanted the vaccine would be able to get vaccinated by May; however, more recent projections suggest the fall is more likely. Whatever the date, the questions of whether you qualify and how and where to get the vaccine in individual states persist. The American Academy of Family Physicians has compiled a useful resource to assist in navigating your state’s vaccine distribution plan. Learn about your state’s plan by clicking here.

VACCINATION UPDATES

Many Americans are determined to get vaccinated as soon as the vaccine is available to them. Others are conflicted about whether to take the vaccine. The vaccine decision is a personal one. However, as the death toll approaches half a million Americans who have died from this deadly virus, please be reminded of the three (3) Ws:

Members of the Pandemic Task Force also want to share their personal vaccine stories with you:

10 MYTHS ABOUT THE COVID-19 VACCINE THAT ARE NOT TRUE

Almost a year after COVID-19 was first seen in humans, vaccines to protect us from the virus are here. (The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines were the first to be approved for emergency use by the Food and Drug Administration, but more are surely coming.) Scientists and researchers worked quickly and thoroughly to find effective, safe vaccines that could be given to the public in record time.

But as happens with everything that’s new, rumors have been circulating about these vaccines. To set the record straight, Dennis Cunningham, M.D., medical director of infection control and prevention with Henry Ford Health System, debunks 10 vaccine myths.

Read more here.

Notification Protocols

The integrity of sorority impact data is directly tied to the information collected. Who should I notify?

• Notify your Chapter Basileus if you test positive for COVID-19.
• General Members should notify your Regional Director if you test positive for COVID-19.
• Undergraduate Members should notify your Graduate Advisor if you test positive for COVID-19, and the Graduate Advisor will notify the Basileus of the supervising Graduate Chapter.
• Chapter Basilei should notify the Regional Director.
• Inform your Chapter Basileus if you have been in close contact with other chapter members or sorors and where the contact occurred.
• Chapter Basileus will notify only sorors who are at risk for possible exposure without divulging the infected soror's name.
• Chapter Basileus will remind at-risk sorors to regularly monitor their symptoms and immediately notify their doctor if they become symptomatic.
• Chapter Basileus will remind at-risk sorors to quarantine themselves and STAY AT HOME for 14 days to stop the spread of the virus in the event they become symptomatic and test positive.

How has COVID-19 affected Alpha Kappa Alpha?

Visit https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/ for up-to-date worldwide COVID-19 statistics.

GIRL TALK — PAINT ‘N’ SIP FROM TOKYO

Sorors from Psi Beta Omega located in Tokyo, Japan (International Region) gathered for some “Girl Talk” and to create beautiful works of art . The chapter also used this time to check on one another during a time when the country of Japan and the sorority remained under social distancing guidelines. Under the leadership of Basileus Katrina Jarrett, sorors participated using Zoom and tuned in from across the biggest island of Japan. Members joined from the Tokyo metro area, four military installations in the Kanto Plain, and the southern part of Japan called Iwakuni. Sorors had intimate and challenging conversations that exposed their vulnerabilities and propelled their strengths. They enjoyed the challenging questions with laughter and humor that often made them paint outside of the lines or stop painting all together. Sorors had introspective moments and reconnected with other chapter members. Everyone learned something new about another chapter soror that night. The Sisterly Relations activity was made complete by painting a portrait in reflection of an Alpha Kappa Alpha woman. Virtual operations have ushered in a different method of how we engage each other, but it is always with a smile and with that AKA Spirit!

Soror Glenda Glover
Supreme Basileus

Soror Joy Elaine Daley, International Regional Director (Chairman)
Soror Kimberly Esmond Adams, Special Assistant & Risk Management Task Force Chairman (Co-Chairman)
Soror Danette Anthony Reed, First Supreme Anti-Basileus
Soror Jasmyne E. McCoy, Second Supreme Anti-Basileus
Soror Cynthia D. Howell, Executive Director of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.
Soror Martha Perine Beard, Chief of Staff to the Supreme Basileus
Soror Ora B. Douglass, Program Committee Chairman
Soror Cynthia J. Finch, MIP Committee Chairman & Healthcare Professional
Soror Jasmine Adkins Moore, Disaster Relief Committee Chairman
Soror Kasey D. Coleman, Leadership Development Committee
Soror Carol R. Dixon, Corporate Strategic Partners Committee
Soror Kaylen D. Long, Membership Committee
Soror Hollye J.V. Weekes, Program Committee
Soror Robyn R. Jones, Physician & Medical Director for Women's Health