Sigma Alpha Iota

SAI-NATIONAL.ORG SPRING 2015 PAN PIPES 7 MUSIC EDUCATION easel out front to display a trivia question about SAI that was changed throughout the day. Sisters who were able to answer the question correctly received their choice of a decorative pencil or window decal. Badge stickers were provided t o any sister or distinguished member who stopped by. Our initial goal was to recruit for our own chapter, but very few sisters from Louisville stopped by. We were able to add 3 names to our own mailing list and several more for Lexington and across the state. We realized at some point during the convention that what we were really doing was increasing awareness of alumnae chapters and activities. Seventy-two percent of convention attendees are participants, which means that many of the people we talked to were of college age and below. We talked to these ladies about how SAI does not end aer college and how it is still possible to be active in the sisterhood throughout life. As I myself am visibly pregnant, I was periodically held up as an example of being active through all stages of life. Our treasurer was able to speak with the fundraising companies in attendance and get ideas and information from them. Because of this, we believe that we have found a unique and effective sales fundraiser for our chapter. Many alumnae expressed disappointment that there was not an active chapter near them. A few others mentioned that there was, but that their schedules did not line up with the activities the chapter planned. [Editor's note: Remember to promote the National Alumnae Association!] We also spoke with an alumna from Western Kentucky University who is advising a collegiate interest group. Many people were delighted to see us there. Almost every alumna who stopped by the booth mentioned that SAI had not had a booth in recent memory. We were located across the aisle from Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. is worked out well for us and we plan to ask for the same setup next year. We are also exploring the possibility of working together with them to increase visibility and possibly cut costs. ere are several things we plan to do differently next year. • Track visitors throughout the convention • Alter the map so that sisters can mark their chapter with a sticker • Bring a carpet for both decoration and comfort on the concrete floor • Find more magazine stands so that literature can be displayed vertically • Display a map of state counties for reference • Invest in a large banner, possibly vertical, with "International Music Fraternity." It was not clear from the booth design what we actually were. • Provide bottles of water instead of snacks for members, due to the large quantity of free food already available in the exhibit hall • Sell SAI products. Several people came looking for SAI merchandise to take with them. We think that generic SAI garments would be a success. [Editor's note: Check out SAI's new boutique line, to be introduced at the National Convention in St. Louis.] is grant was a huge help in making our presence known throughout the state and increasing awareness of SAI involvement beyond college. ank you so much for allowing us to be at KMEA! — Kathleen Bartels Louisville Alumnae Chapter President Kansas Music Educators Conference Feb. 26-28, 2015 T he Kansas Music Educator's Conference was held at the Century II Convention Center in Wichita from Feb. 26-28. ose assisting with the booth were Wichita Alumnae Chapter members Lela Jo Monger, Kimberly Caldwell, Faith McDaniel, Pat Boughton, Nadine Delhotal, Deanna Waggaman, Carolyn Stallard, Irene Shaw, and Donna Atkeson. is was our seventh year to host a booth at the KMEA annual conference, and we enjoyed seeing 57 SAIs from around the state who signed our guest list. It was delightful to see the KMEA members, when they looked up and saw the SAI booth name and the banner which adorned our booth table. We knew they were SAIs when big smiles came over their faces! e tradition of coming by to pick up an SAI sticker to put on badges was popular once again, and we encouraged them to pick up a PAN PIPES, an address update list, and the other forms that were furnished to us to put out on our table. ank you so much to the Fraternity for providing half of the funds needed to set up a booth at KMEA. We have asked the other collegiate chapters and the alumnae chapter at Lindsborg to help defray the cost of the booth which they reported to us that they would do so. We had an enjoyable time visiting with each other, and we loved seeing the smiles of the SAIs as they came by our booth. — Donna Atkeson, SAI Booth Coordinator Members of the Lexington Alumnae Chapter at the KMEA Convention in February: (from left) Lindsay Platt, secretary Sharon Murphy, president Kathleen Bartels, and treasurer Stephanie Murphy.

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