CHAPTER PROGRAMS: EXEMPLIFYING VIRTUAL EXCELLENCE

The October 16 Town Hall entitled, “Cracking COVID – Lessons from the Pandemic,” hosted by Mu Pi Chapter during SkeeWeek at Spelman College was executed with excellence under the leadership of Basileus Jordan Barefield and Global Impact Chairman Lydia Laramore.

CHAPTER OPERATIONS

As COVID-19 cases continue to spike around the country, the Directorate has made the difficult decision that Alpha Kappa Alpha will continue to operate in a virtual mode through at least the end of the calendar year. Many chapters have fully complied with this virtual mandate and continue to operate completely virtually as mandated. We continue to see too many chapters, however, that have not heeded the virtual mandate. Sorors are reminded that virtual means no in-person activities, programs or events no matter how well intentioned the service project or activity, how few sorors there are or how effectively you plan to social distance. In-person gathering in any context for any reason is not authorized and is a violation of the virtual mandate. Please consult the Guide to Virtual Program Activities and Resources for ideas to bolster your virtual programming. Thank you for your understanding and adherence and for exemplifying virtual excellence!

CONNECTION

As we continue our GOTV efforts for the two U.S. Senate runoff races in the State of Georgia, please be reminded that the Political Activities Guidelines and the Election Dos and Don’ts are available as resources to you. You also can peruse important deadlines for the Georgia Senate Runoff here. If you elect to engage in any GOTV efforts in your individual capacity, please remember to be safe and to wear a mask at all times.

MEMBERSHIP INTAKE PROCESS*

The Directorate has authorize membership intake 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. This International MIP Committee has designed a modified process in consultation with both the International Risk Management Task Force and the International Technology Committee which minimizes in-person activities and outlines strict health and safety protocols that must be followed. The Directorate is considering whether it will be safe to permit membership intake to resume on a broader scale to include graduate chapters in 2021.

RISK MANAGEMENT/FACE MASKS AND COVERINGS

Alpha Kappa Alpha implores sorors to continue to adhere to the CDC guidelines regarding the use of masks and face coverings. We encourage sorors and chapters to donate N95 masks to healthcare professionals who continue to be in need of those protective medical masks. We also applaud sorors who made face coverings for personal use or to be shared with family members, close friends and sorors. Please refrain from placing the sorority crest or any other Alpha Kappa Alpha marks, brands or insignia on face masks and coverings. This prohibition includes chapter names in any form including Greek letters. Please also help protect the Alpha Kappa Alpha brand by refraining from purchasing any type of Alpha Kappa Alpha-branded face coverings or masks from vendors as this merchandise is not authorized for sale by our Corporate Office. Face coverings and masks are not authorized to be made and/or distributed in the name of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. We thank you for your cooperation and adherence. Remember, each of us is a risk manager and must do our part. Click here to view the Wear A Mask: It’s A Serious Matter video created by the Program Committee in collaboration with the International Risk Management Task Force and the Pandemic Task Force and here to see the ways in which you can assist in getting the Wear A Mask message out.

RITUALS

The International Rituals Committee is currently finalizing a Virtual Memorial Service in which we can honor and celebrate our departed sorors until we are able to gather in person for the Ivy Beyond the Wall Ceremony. The Rituals Committee also is finalizing a Virtual Officer Installation Ceremony to assist chapters as outgoing officers retire and incoming officers take office. Both resources are expected to be available for distribution in early December.

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, recent storms and flooding, 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 in the face of a rising infection rate. Let us also continue to pray for justice and equal protection under the law for African Americans in this country.

Should I Stay or Should I Go?

As millions of Americans contemplate how they will spend the Thanksgiving holiday in this season of pandemic where the spike in cases nationwide is higher than it has been since the pandemic was declared and the number of recorded deaths reaches a new high each day, traditional gatherings with family and friends around the dinner table now invoke serious considerations. In the face of conflicting advice from state and local officials and no national guidance, how do we know if we should hunker down for the holiday or aim for a smaller gathering this year? The CDC is recommending that no one travel for this Thanksgiving holiday. Medical experts also caution that there will be more than 400,000 deaths from December to February marking the deadliest period during this global pandemic. So, as you contemplate whether you should stay or go for this holiday and whether you will engage in your regular Black Friday shopping, consider some of the things medical and public health professionals believe should guide your decision-making by clicking here.

Holiday Gathering & Travel Tips

The safest way to celebrate is with only your immediate family (those currently residing in your household).

If you’re considering gathering with others from outside your household (anyone who does not currently reside in your home: extended family, college students returning home, friends, etc.), review this guidance to responsibly celebrate as safely as possible:

	Limit group size	Limit the number of attendees and do not attend large gatherings. More attendees present more risk Check the places of origin of guests (anyone coming into your home) in advance. Guests visiting from areas of high virus prevalence can bring more risk: COVID-19 Risk Levels Dashboard (US & global interactive maps. In US, can view by county, state, or congressional district) Tracker: Colleges with Outbreaks (for families with college students returning home)
	Reduce risk; wear masks	Consider shorter, socially distanced events with masks and without food Avoid consuming a meal with people who live outside your household if possible. Meals require guests to remove masks, thus increasing risk
	Agree to quarantine	Consider asking all guests to strictly avoid contact with people outside of their households for 14 days before the gathering, per the CDC
	Outdoors is best	Outdoor gatherings where guests wear masks and can physically distance (6 ft) are safer
	Know the high-risk areas	Practice social distancing in your home for any guests visiting from "high-risk areas" or colleges with outbreaks

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.

Virtual Talent Show

Alpha Mu Omega Chapter, under the leadership of Basileus Miriam Hornbuckle Grays, located in the Charmed Central Region hosted a fun sisterly relations activity entitled, "The Masked Soror.” This engaging activity was a creative way to discover hidden talent in the chapter. Sorors were given an opportunity to submit a 2-minute recording of them singing a song. The song could be acapella or with the background music track. Sorors were given a masked identity and a couple of clues in the description. The key to this engaging activity was the hostess who kept the program moving and continually checked with chapter members throughout the program. Sorors were given an opportunity to guess in the chat. After all submissions had been played, sorors voted online for their favorite Masked Singer. The votes were tabulated, the Masked Singers’ identities were revealed and the winner was announced. The Chapter delighted in discovering hidden singers and sorors with “divatude.” This activity provided an opportunity for sorors to spend an hour together laughing and getting to know each other a little better.

Virtual Sip-n-Say

Under the leadership of Basileus Donna Joseph and to keep in the spirit of their usual chapter Thanksgiving Feast and Fellowship, the Eta Omega Omega Chapter Sisterly Relations Committee hosted a virtual "Sip-n-Say Hour of Gratitude with AKA-tude." Immediately following chapter meeting, sorors were able to grab their favorite beverage, snack and/or meal and engage in an hour of fellowship to share personal words of gratitude and love they have during this season of Thanksgiving in the midst of COVID-19. Through tears and laughter, the one hour turned into two hours as sorors expressed gratitude for the many joys and happiness they have experienced being part of the sisterhood in the Eta Omega Omega Chapter and our great sorority at large.

Top Tips for Hosting Virtual Events:

1. Select a platform to accommodate the type of activity and get familiar with the platform.
2. Use features to engage the audience - the chat feature, the hand raise to ask a question, reaction buttons to show approval, etc.
3. Encourage Sorors to show themselves on screen. If we were together, we would be looking at one another.
4. If sharing a medium, test it prior to launching to ensure the movie or music will be heard, played uninterrupted.
5. If utilizing a speaker, please ensure that all participants are muted so that everyone can enjoy the speaker without interruption.
6. If you are able to help a technologically challenged Soror, please do so in order to be inclusive of all who wish to participate.
7. If you will be utilizing break out "rooms" for small group discussion, please select ahead of time so that Technology can assign prior to the event - or use a platform which allows the participant to select the breakout session themselves.
8. Schedule a run-through prior to the event for all participants to ensure they are familiar with the platform.
9. Send a reminder to the Chapter or registered guests a day before the event to increase attendance.
10. Follow up with a thank-you or a survey to obtain feedback from the participants.

RECENT EVENTS

AKA Mobile Mammography Unit On the Road Again

Even in the midst of COVID-19, Alpha Kappa Alpha is finding a way to serve during Breast Cancer Awareness Month using our signature AKA Mobile Mammography Unit. Yes, our coach is back on the road again! The coach is currently in the Southwest providing mammograms in Arizona while adhering to all of the COVID-19 safety guidelines. Peruse the AKA Mobile Mammogram Unit Virtual Guidelines as your chapter considers ways to safely resume mammography testing.

UPCOMING EVENTS

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