President’s Report
What a year it has been for the Kappa chapter! OTS has been very busy this semester, and we are looking forward to doing it all again next year! While we have hosted many events this semester, there are a few that really put us in the spotlight: Axe throwing, Disney trivia, Highway clean-up, 4th-year discussion panel, Senior send-off, and an honorary member induction. We had the honor of inducting Dr. Rodney Bagley as an honorary member this spring; he was extremely helpful with our current 4th-year class, and they really wanted to ensure that he was given the proper recognition for all his input. OTS has continued the study sessions, and they have been a huge hit for our first years. The second years have been sharing study materials, and we hosted an Objective Structured Clinical Exam (OSCE) prep where Dr. Brian Collins and Dr. Jennifer Langel helped with questions and skill preparation to be successful on our OSCEs. Recently, OTS has opened up bids for officer positions in the club and is very excited to host elections in the coming weeks.
Next year, we plan to focus on recruitment, fundraising, and the overall sustainability of this organization. We have experienced explosive growth this semester, and now we are looking at how to continue the various events and benefits that we have implemented this year. I am so very proud of what our executive team has accomplished, and I look forward to the exciting new ideas and experiences we will have moving forward.
Fraternally yours,
Rachel Voigt (ravoigt@iastate.edu)
Vice President’s Report
We officially held our 2024 annual Dr. John Greve Lecture and were honored to host Dr. Alexandria Baltes from Des Moines, IA, Blue Pearl. Dr. Baltes gave a stirring presentation on the shortage of veterinarians with some fascinating research that has surfaced regarding numerous factors that lead to burnout, among other topics. The meeting overall was a success, with the majority of members in attendance, most notably Dr. Greve himself. Coming up this semester, we are in the final stages of planning our spring initiation ceremony. This year we are planning on hosting it at a member's house that has graciously offered her house, allowing us ample room and privacy.
For future projects, the executive team has mentioned designing a “VM1 Survival Guide” to sell for a fundraiser and a way to alleviate some of the stress and pressure that most feel coming into their first year. Additionally, I and some other members have been discussing reaching out to alumni and other chapters to gain additional insight into the history of Kappa chapter and what we can do to ensure its longevity and prosperity.
Fraternally yours,
Jake Jenson (jajenson@iastate.edu)
Advisor's Report
It has been a while since we sent out one of these mailings! During the pandemic our membership became so low the chapter became inactive for one year. A small group of determined students were able to restart everything.Over the last several years the chapter has been able to slowly rebuild, and we are now in a good position to resume the newsletter! I hope that you have been well over this period of time and are interested to see what we have been up to!
Fraternally,
Eric W Rowe, DVM, PhD
Kappa ‘99
Secretary’s Report
The Kappa chapter has 55 members this spring semester with 17 new members joining us this spring.
Below are the executive members for the 2023-2024 academic year.
President: Rachel Voigt ‘26
Vice President: Jake Jenson ‘26
Secretary: Rachel Brungardt ‘26
Treasurer: Rachel Moseley ‘26
Publicity Chair: Gus Peterson ‘26 Social Chair: Katelyn Belding ‘26
Historian: Ragain Hatfield ‘26
Study Session Coordinator: Kat Dalzell ‘26
Fundraising Chairs: Vanessa Lennon-Milian, Alison
Wendenhof & Alex Webster ‘27
VM1 Representative: Neena Lynton ‘27
Fraternally yours,
Rachel Brungardt (rcb19263@iastate.edu)
VM1 Representative Report
Spring semester has been a great semester for the VM1s! The semester started as a mini-interest week for first-year students to learn more about Omega Tau Sigma and to have a chance to join in on the weekly study sessions hosted by the second-year students. Since then, many new and familiar VM1s have shown continued interest and involvement with the fraternity. I knew I joined OTS for the sense of community amongst like-minded professionals. As the VM1 representative, it’s been encouraging to gain positive feedback from my classmates who enjoy being a part of the organization, wanting to participate in community service and outreach opportunities, being initiated, and even holding future exec positions! I am excited to finish my semester as a rep and excited for the new adventures next semester and the academic year will bring for OTS.
Fraternally yours,
Neena Lynton (nllynton@iastate.edu)
Treasurer’s Report
The Kappa chapter has been busy fundraising money for various social events coming up in April. Those events include our annual Disney Trivia, Senior Send-off, initiation, and our John Greve Lecture.
A new policy being implemented next year is to have no dues for executive members serving a position. In return, there will not be lunch provided at executive team meetings as it is our largest cost.
We look forward to the end of the semester!
Fraternally yours,
Rachel Moseley (rmoseley@iastate.edu)
Social Report
In the Spring semester, we held our RUSH week in the month of February. We held a scavenger hunt in the school, General Trivia, Ice cream floats, and Ax throwing for all of CVM. Each event was held on a separate day of the week. There was a great turnout at all events! As the semester continues, we are excited to host a Disney Trivia night at the Elks Lodge in Ames on April 19th.
Fraternally yours,
Katelyn Belding (kbelding@iastate.edu)
Service Report
The Spring semester is ramping up with many volunteer opportunities for members. March 30th is our annual highway clean-up. We adopted a highway and make a trip out to keep it looking nice every year. April 13th is our collaborative Dog Wash with SAVMA. We offer washes and nail trims to community members who need their pets groomed. April 16th is our Annual American Red Cross Blood Drive. This is set up in CVM for convince to allow all students the opportunity to donate and save lives! Finally, the week of April 22nd, we plan to host one more volunteer opportunity for members. We will make dog toys from old fabric to donate to local shelters.
Study Session Coordinator Report
This semester we drew in more first years with our high in demand student-led study sessions. This semester, we are covering large animal anatomy, second-semester histology and physiology, immunology, and my personal favorite, neuroanatomy! This has been a great opportunity to support students in academics as the course load ramps up over the Spring semester. Given the success of this program, we are looking to continue and expand the study sessions next year, including support for second and third-year veterinary students. So far, we have received great feedback from the VM1s who are attending study sessions, and as one of the VM2s leading study sessions, it has been a great way to review my neuroanatomy and get others excited about the subject!
Fraternally yours,
Kathryn Dalzell (kdalzell@iastate.edu)
Fundraising Report
This semester, we have completed numerous fundraisers.
Crumbl Cookie Valentines day sale - $26
Culvers - $709 profit
Orange Leaf - $60 profit
Root beer floats - $161
Stethoscope charms sale - $36 profit OTS/SAVMA Dog wash - $332
Still in the works/currently running are our Iowa State glassware sale offering pint glasses, stemless wine glasses, and shot glasses.
