Name: Austen Peterson
Major: Urban Studies
Hometown: Rancho Palos Verdes, California
Year: 2017
Involvement on Campus: Kappa Kappa Gamma Philanthropy Chair, Admissions Tour Guide
Describe your role as philanthropy chair.
As the philanthropy chair for Kappa Kappa Gamma I organize and oversee both on-campus community service events as well as alumni fundraising. We are currently putting on the Kappa Kisses event that is taking place in Mather! Part of my role will also include planning a new event next fall called Girls Academy. We are one of only a few Kappa chapters accepted this year to host this event, which will take place in East Hartford. It is a weekend long event that will bring young girls together to engage in a values-based curriculum with the goal of building self-worth and confidence. I am really excited about that event!
What types of philanthropic events is Kappa Kappa Gamma involved with?
Like I mentioned, we have Girls Academy coming up next fall, which will be an amazing event. I am hoping to plan a new event this spring that will involve a variety of organizations on campus (both Greek and non-Greek). Spoiler: I’m thinking kickball or flag football!
What is Kappa Kisses for? How can the student body help out with this event?
Kappa Kisses is an event centered around Valentine’s Day and spreading a little bit of love. We are selling candy grams in Mather ($3 for 1, $5 for 2). You can send a message to anyone at this school and they will receive a bundle of Hershey’s kisses in their mailbox! A lot of people walk away from us because they think the prices are so high, but I promise the proceeds go to a good cause.
How does Kappa Kisses help support the local community, as well as KKG’s overall mission?
The proceeds from this event will go to the Connecticut Alliance to End Sexual Violence—an organization that raises awareness while also providing services for the affected by sexual violence. We believe very strongly in this cause, as statistics prove that nearly 23% of women experience unwanted sexual contact while attending a college or university (CNN). As an all-female organization we intend to raise awareness about this issue on our college campus while helping our community at large.
How do other chapters of KKG support this same cause? Is this a national event?
Kappa Kisses takes place at other campuses as well; however, the proceeds tend to benefit other groups. Many chapters donate to Reading is Fundamental, which is also an organization that we work closely with on other events.
How can the Trinity community get involved?
The Trinity community can get involved in a couple of ways. Buying Kappa Kisses will benefit the cause in terms of money, but more importantly, we hope to spread awareness about sexual violence. Reading about Connecticut Alliance to End Sexual Violence will help spread the word, but we are also hoping to just spread the idea of kindness this Valentine’s Day.
Anything else you want to add!
We have set up a GoFundMe page for those who want to learn more about this event, whether you’re on campus or across the country (or world…missing all of our abroad sisters!). Visit www.gofundme.com/kappakisses2016. Wishing everyone a happy Valentine’s Day. And thank you to everyone for the support!