UMKC held its annual Student Organization and University Leadership (SOUL) and Fraternity and Sorority Affairs (FSA) Excellence Awards with a night of festivities on April 24 in the Student Union.
The purpose of this award ceremony was to acknowledge and honor the hard work of UMKC’s student organizations and their community impact.
Some of the recognitions awarded were the FSA Excellence in Philanthropy and Excellence in Scholarship awards, presented to Alpha Delta Pi Sorority and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.
Lynne O’Dell, Assistant Director for Fraternity and Sorority Affairs beamed with pride as she handed out awards at the ceremony.
“I love these awards because I think it’s a great time to celebrate our student organizations and our fraternities and sororities,” said O’Dell. “It’s great to see all these students come out and want that recognition and feel a part of our community.”
Guests enjoyed a spread of complimentary hors d’oeuvres, an assortment of drinks and a buffet of desserts. With such an excellent turnout, event coordinators had to bring in extra seats to accommodate the crowd.
“It’s time to recognize the work they do on campus. I think they cultivate a space for a lot of our UMKC students to belong,” commented Carrie Schmalz, UMKC Coordinator for Leadership and Student Organization Development.
UMKC has over 330 different student organizations, including 16 fraternities and sororities. With such a wide variety of ways to get involved, there was plenty to celebrate at this ceremony.
“To have all of our students in one space, to be able to celebrate is just a great accomplishment for them and us,” said Schmalz. “We get to see all of them in one space and award them for the work they do in a year.”
UMKC junior Jocelyn Vang accepted several awards on behalf of and alongside Sigma Lambda Gamma National Sorority. This group took home the awards for Excellence in Community Service, Chapter of the Year, and Excellence in Greek Relations.
In between walking the stage to accept numerous awards for the Sigmas, Vang also received the award for the Sorority Member of the Year.
“I felt empowered as a student leader,” said Vang.
Vang admitted that she felt a little overwhelmed getting up so many times but she was proud as she and her sorority sisters were recognized for their dedication.
The core values of UMKC’s Greek Life are scholarship, philanthropy, fellowship leadership, and service. The FSA organizations and members recognized at the ceremony uphold this standard as they represent UMKC.
The UMKC FSA and Student Organizations work year-round to give back to the community.
For more information about student involvement opportunities at UMKC, click here.
