NOITIDE 0202 LLAF

RETTELSWEN

In The Know
OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER OF
IOTA KAPPA CHAPTER OF TBS

INSIDE
THIS
ISSUE
PG. 10 Introduction
Find out new music that our Written By Meg Dunkum
sisters are loving this

semester on our Spotify Fall 2020 follows last Spring's semester as the COVID
Playlist Pandemic continues to place more restrictions on academic

and social events. Despite the pandemic guidelines starting

PG. 11 last Spring, this semester seems even more limited as this

See how Color Guard
during COVID with practices,
performances outside
President Ryan's front yard ,
and more.
looks semester marks many firsts: first time to have all classes be
taught online with a few exceptions, first time since the CMB
was formed where there was no marching band season, first
time there's a limit of 5 or less people in a group setting, and
many more firsts. With these changes along with the fall

semester being shorter, our Chapter had to think on our feet

PG. 12 and make the best of the cards we were dealt.
Take a look what a full year
of Online Classes a n d
With this issue of In The Know, find out how our Chapter pulled
Virtual Band L o o k s l i k e .
together to make this semester as normal as possible while

also accomplishing new feats despite the circumstances!

Disclaimer: Although this organization has members who are University of Virginia students and may have University

employees associated or engaged in its activities and affairs, the organization is not a part of or an agency of the

University. It is a separate and independent organization which is responsible for and manages its own activities

and affairs. The University does not direct, supervise or control the organization and is not responsible for the

organization’s contracts, acts or omissions.

 Table of Contents

MEET THE OFFICERS......................... PG. 3

TBS SOCIAL EVENTS......................... PG. 4
Written by Seth Hoisington

Introduction: Social Events During COVID

TBS Family Feud

CMB Trivia Night.............................................PG. 5

CMB Pumpkin Carving Competition

TBS Escape Room Night

Joint PowerPoint Night with Eta Rho...................PG. 6

CMB First Year Bash

TBS/KKPsi Book Club Written by Meg Dunkum

Closing Remarks From VP of Social Affairs

TBS SERVICE EVENTS........................PG. 7

Written by George Taliaferro

CMB Pop Tab Competition

TBS FUNDRAISERS............................ PG. 8

TBS Boo Grams Written by Jack Harrington

First Year Letters Written by Avrie Sauer

OTHER EVENTS................................. PG. 9

Nu Class Virtual Degrees Written by Avrie Sauer

Social Identities 101 Workshop Written by Meg Dunkum

TBS-IK SPOTIFY PLAYLIST................. PG. 10

COLOR GUARD IN A PANDEMIC.......... PG. 11
Written by Becca Hall

PANDEMIC SEMESTER....................... PG. 12

Written by Maria Parnell

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS........................PG. 13
 PAGE | 3

Meet the Officers

IOTA KAPPA EXECUTIVE BOARD

MARIA PARNELL BECCA HALL MICHELLE KIM

VP of Special Projects President VP of Membership

Mu Class Mu Class Lambda Class

GEORGE TALIAFERRO JACK HARRINGTON SETH HOISINGTON

VP of Service Treasurer VP of Social Affairs

Mu Class Lambda Class Mu Class

MEG DUNKUM PAUL BARTENFELD AVRIE SAUER

Corresponding Secretary Recording Secretary History and Traditions Officer

Mu Class Nu Class Lambda Class

 PAGE | 4

TBS Social Events

TBS SOCIAL EVENTS BROUGHT TO YOU BY

THE PROGRAMMING COMMITTEE

INTRODUCTION: SOCIAL EVENTS DURING COVID

Written by Seth Hoisington

We never knew how good we had it before. During my first year in TBS, we had

multiple opportunities every week to hang out with our sisters. From chapter dinners to

TBStudy to impromptu meetups, we had plenty of opportunities to interact and form

close bonds. This past semester unfortunately missed all that. Without normal dining

hall or Pav access, Chapter dinners weren’t possible. While an online TBStudy was

attempted, without point incentives, people rarely came. Thus, we had to find new,

more engaging ways to interact with each other.

I have never found myself further away from my sisters, and being the Vice President

of Social Affairs made it even harder. COVID-19 ensured that practically none of our

social events could be carried out in their traditional form without putting people at

risk of exposure. That being said, I am quite proud of the work that the Programming

Committee did to ensure that the staple TBS social events of the fall season could

happen in spite of COVID-19.

That being said, the events had to have anywhere from subtle rewrites to drastic

revisions of the traditional plans. As has become familiar to us students, we

transitioned to an online platform. At the suggestion of Nico Barton and Mo Harrison,

we decided to facilitate our social events with a dedicated Discord. This allowed us

to seamlessly and safely host events like trivia night, which has historically drawn 30-

50 participants.

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TBS FAMILY FEUD

Written by Seth Hoisington

We started in the summer with a chapter event: TBS Family Feud. This was our first event

online. We worked out how best to facilitate it and wrote the rules. We had a lot of fun

writing questions and the end product was something we were quite proud of. We only had

a small group of contestants which included some recent alums, but it still managed to be

a lot of fun and the work totally paid off. I am dying for the opportunity to try this event

again.
 PAGE | 4

CMB TRIVIA NIGHT

Written by Seth Hoisington

We then got into the semester with our first big CMB-wide

event. Trivia night had become a staple event for the TBS

social team over the past few years. Given that we had to

move the format online, we had to make a few changes to the

rules that deviated from the traditional Mellow-Mushroon-style

model. This included a revised answer form and changed the

rules of the halftime and final rounds. That aside, we were

able to produce five rounds of trivia topics, ranging from

Women in Stem to Pop Culture to Geography & History. The

halftime and final round involved a lengthy survey process

asking questions of the directors for CMB members to answer,

and asking questions of the members for the directors to

answer. It was a big undertaking, but thanks to not only the

help of the programming committee, but also thanks to Ellie

Prober and Parker Lazear from the KKPsi social committee, we

had a largely seamless event with ten teams participating and

over 60 participants. In the end, the team of directors and

CMB staff members reigned victorious.

CMB PUMPKING CARVING COMPETITION

Written by Seth Hoisington

To celebrate Halloween, we hosted the CMB pumpkin carving competition. For this event, any small groups of

CMB members could sign up. Then, TBS would provide a pumpkin and carving tools to each group. Then, each

group carved a pumpkin, following CDC and UVA social distancing and mask-wearing guidelines, and took

pictures of their finished products. Then, a panel of judges composed of CMB staff and directors chose the

top pumpkins. The winning pumpkin was a majestic piece by the drum majors of our very own drum major Andy

Nguyen on a horse, reminiscent of our very own CavMan.

TBS ESCAPE ROOM NIGHT

Written by Seth Hoisington

Next came a chapter-wide Escape Room night. At the

suggestion of Meg, we found a website with all sorts of fan-

made online escape rooms. This time around, we drew over

half the chapter and even had a visitor from the IK Beta class,

Allison Light! We broke up into smaller teams, and while one

person shared their screen in the Discord chat, the teams each

collaborated to navigate through the various puzzles and

trials. This event is a definite repeat as well; it was a whole lot

of fun with very little planning or behind-the-scenes work to

operate.
 PAGE | 6

JOINT POWERPOINT NIGHT WITH ETA RHO

Written by Seth Hoisington

As part of Focus on Five, Meg, our Corresponding Secretary, and Sarah Foster, the Corr Sec of

JMU’s Eta Rho, organized a chapter meetup, where each member of each chapter prepared a

powerpoint slide about themselves. Then we all went down the line and presented our slides as a

way to meet our sisters from our Mother Chapter at JMU. It was a lot of fun and a great way to

see a bunch of fresh faces, at a time where fresh faces are hard to come by.

CMB FIRST YEAR BASH

Written by Seth Hoisington

The last Fall semester event was orchestrated for CMB first

years by the social committees and the VP’s of Membership

from TBS and KKPsi: The First Year Bash. While traditionally in

person with ice cream and pizza, we found a pretty neat

alternative. Using Discord, we hosted small groups to play

various online games like Among Us and Skribbl.io. We had also

paired the games with a raffle for Bodo’s gift cards.

Unfortunately, not as many first years attended as we would

have hoped, but nonetheless, we met a few new faces and had

some good old fashioned Brother/Sister bonding online.

TBS/KKPSI BOOK CLUB

Written by Meg Dunkum

Our latest and on-going social event is the TBS/KKPsi Book

Club. After our last joint event with KKPsi (Trivia at the end of

Spring Semester), many brothers and sisters showed interested

in reliving their childhood and reading the Percy Jackson & the

Olympians series by Rick Riordan. Since academic semesters

are very busy, Ellie Prober (KKPsi Corr Sec) and I decided to

start the Book Club during Winter Break. With COVID this year,

we have a longer winter break which is perfect to squeeze the

Book Club in. We are starting with the first book in the series,

The Lightning Thief, and hopefully will continue the book club

for upcoming academic breaks since there has been a great

turn out of people so far!

CLOSING REMARKS FROM VP OF SOCIAL

AFFAIRS
Written by Seth Hoisington

I really want to emphasize how grateful I am to be involved in social programming, and

I have you all to thank for rewarding my time and effort by showing up and helping out.

I also really want to thank the programming committee: Meg, Charley, Nico, and Mo for

really making it all possible. I think we all know how difficult it has been, but I’m happy

with the work we’ve done. There’s a lot of things we’re going to miss this new year, but

I can’t wait to find out what we don’t have to miss.

 PAGE | 7

TBS Service Events

TBS SERVICE EVENTS BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE

SERVICE COMMITTEE

TBS SOCIAL EVENTS AND CMB POP TAB COMPETITION

Written by George Taliaferro

This year, many traditions were lost due to safety concerns surrounding the

Covid-19 pandemic, and the service side of the Iota Kappa chapter of Tau Beta

Sigma was no exception. We were not able to participate in many of our usual

service activities, such as helping uniform crew, painting Beta Bridge, and

unloading trucks after game day; but one tradition I would not let us go without

was the annual pop tab collecting competition. In order to hold this competition

in a safe and socially responsible way, we had to determine how to account for

social bubbles and prevent a congregation of people donating all at once. Due

to these restrictions, collecting inside the band building was immediately out of

the picture. Thankfully, some very gracious members of the band were willing to

host a collection bin for their section at their off-grounds housing locations. This

allowed us to separate social circles, as members of the same section are likely

to already be seeing each other. Furthermore, the hosts were able to schedule

with the members of their section when to drop off pop tabs, allowing the hosts

and section members to do so in the safest manner possible. This system worked

perfectly, and over the two weeks of the competition the band was able to

collect almost 18 gallons of pop tabs to be donated to the Ronald McDonald

House Charities. It has been a tough year on us all, but I am glad we were able to

keep this one tradition running.

 PAGE | 8
TBS Fundraisers
BOO GRAMS AND FIRST YEAR LETTERS

BOO GRAMS
Written by Jack Harrington

As tired as it sounds by this point, this was truly an unprecedented year. It was no different for us at TBS.

Among several obstacles we were faced with was the challenge of generating revenue for the chapter with no

rehearsals or games to work with. Even more than that, almost all in-person events were done away with. We

could run virtual events but most CMB members were unable to attend many of them, much less pay money to

do so. In the end we were able to provide the band a service and make some much-needed income by running

a modified version of our normal Boograms fundraiser. For those unfamiliar, typically this fundraiser consists of

people buying personalized bags of candy with personalized messages inside around Halloween. The difficulty

with executing this fundraiser in these circumstances came with assembly and distribution. How could we put

together hundreds of bags without gathering together? How would people get their Boograms without any

rehearsal or game to pick them up at? How could we do this safely?

In the end, a very small group of members met up and spent hours assembling over 300 Boograms while

maintaining strict health standards. Those addressed to off-grounds members of the CMB were dropped off

contact-free at their front doors. Those addressed to on-grounds members were distributed at the HSBB at

carefully assigned times to prevent crowding and maintain social distancing. The entire operation was safely

executed in around three days, and generated over $400 in revenue for the chapter. We hope to keep

exploring further ideas for safe activities in the Spring semester, including deliveries of CMB merchandise for

current and former members and their families.

FIRST YEAR LETTERS

Written by Avrie Sauer

In a normal year TBS writes letters to all first years and distributes them on the first Gameday. However, as we

all know, this was not a normal year. But that did not stop us from welcoming the first years to the CMB!

This year First Year Letters looked a little different. We debated for a while how we wanted to deliver them

whether virtually or in-person. By the time we decided to deliver them in person it was about October-- just in

time for Boograms! We decided to deliver the letters alongside Boograms, so we had to decorate accordingly.

With a brilliant idea by sister Meg, we bought orange envelopes and black wax to keep the s p o o k y spirit

alive. While sisters Jack, George, and Maria were working on Boograms at Harmon Original House, across the

street Michelle, Meg, Mandi, and I were putting together the first year letters, with a little help from alumni

sisters Summer and Jessica. Michelle and Meg worked on writing the letters, accommodating them for the

unique year we were experiencing. Afterwards, Meg and I struggled with printing the letters until finally

Jessica came to the rescue. With the letters hot off the press, Michelle began addressing the envelopes in her

stunning calligraphy. They were then passed onto Mandi and I to carefully drip hot wax onto them. Finally, they

were stamped with a seal of approval by Meg. It was an entire assembly line process complete with the moral

support of Jessica and Summer as they watched (a terrible) rom com in the background.

Just because this year was different did not make First Year Letters any less exciting! They were passed out the

next day outside the band building along with the Boograms. There, we were finally able to meet some of the

first years mask to mask and officially welcome them to the CMB!
 PAGE | 9

Other Events
NU CLASS VIRTUAL DEGREES AND

CMB SOCIAL IDENTITIES 101 WORKSHOP

NU CLASS VIRTUAL DEGREES

Written by Avrie Sauer
When COVID struck near the end of last spring semester, we were unable to

perform Second and Third Degrees. Throughout the end of the spring semester

and start of the fall semester, the Nu class became an integral part of the

chapter. It only felt right to hold the ceremonies as soon as possible. Luckily,

Nationals provided an online Second and Third Degree for the Nu Class to

officially become sisters!

As we have seen with any normally-in-person-event-turned-virtual, online

degrees had their advantages and disadvantages. The most obvious advantage

was that the Nu Class was finally inducted as sisters of Tau Beta Sigma! Along

with this, virtual degrees allowed us to interact with Nationals and other

chapters, which we do not get to do often enough! Nationals offered a very

special setup for the degrees. After the official ceremonies we were put into

breakout rooms with people from all different chapters and one National or

District leader. While in these rooms the leaders facilitated a discussion about

the values of the sisterhood that were presented during the ceremonies. It was

a great opportunity to reflect on the reasons we joined this sisterhood and

remind us of what we stand for when we say we are a member of Tau Beta

Sigma.

The disadvantages were the same with any virtual event. It was a disappointment for us older sisters to not get to

perform the ceremonies ourselves. It felt incomplete without ending the ceremonies with Bigs showering Littles in

presents and taking many, many pictures. For third degree it was even more disappointing not to end it with a

spectacular Special Ceremony put on by the Nu Class. However, our disappointment did not last long. The Nu Class’s

Special Ceremony is planned to be held as soon as it is safe to do so! Littles will be showered with gifts and many,

many, many pictures will be taken. Though it may not have looked like what we imagined it to be, virtual degrees were a

huge success! And the celebrations are not over yet! We have many things to look forward to once it is safe to be

together once again!

CMB SOCIAL IDENTITIES 101

Written by Meg Dunkum

Kappa Kappa Psi, Tau Beta Sigma, the CMB Committee

on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (CDEI), and the

Multicultural Student Services (MSS) organized a Social

Justice Education Collective workshop (SJEC), called

Social Identities 101, for the entire CMB this Fall. This

workshop aimed to provide an introductory conversation

around social identities by learning about different

categories of identities and their relevance to their

everyday lives. With Black Lives Matter and social justice

issues brought to the forefront this year, these

discussions matter more than ever. We will continue

discussion and education on these important topics.

 PAGE | 10

TBS-IK Spotify Playlist

SONGS, ARTISTS, AND ALBUMS WE LOVED THIS SEMESTER

Songs
Lasting Lover-Acoustic
Sigala, James Arthur

Falling
Harry Styles

Heart of Glass (Live)

Miley Cyrus

Artists

Lullatone Saint Motel

Royal Blood Phoebe Bridgers

Portugal. The Man Harry Styles

Frat Mouse Microwave

Talking Heads The Zombies

Albums
folklore
Taylor Swift

Wonder
Shawn Mendes

evermore
Taylor Swift

*All Spotify Codes on the right can be scanned on

Spotify to go to the corresponding song, artist, or album
 PAGE | 11

Color Guard In A Pandemic

WRITTEN BY BECCA HALL

When our lives collectively began to spiral at the beginning of the pandemic this past

year, I sincerely believed color guard would not be severely impacted in any way. The very nature

of the sport lends it to being quite pandemic-safe. The majority of the time practices are held

outdoors and the fear of being brained by another member of the guard’s six-foot-long flag pole

lends to a healthy amount of distancing between all members. Additionally, there is a noticeable

lack of excess spit and breath usually seen in most sections of a marching band. When we

received the news that marching band as a whole would not be occurring this past season, I was

wholly shocked. I was both relieved and heartbroken. Relieved I would not be standing outside

for a week in the hot August sun. Heartbroken because this meant one of the main mechanics

giving me purpose would not be there. Color guard (and marching band by extension) takes up

so much of my life. The people I have met, the friendships I have formed, and the

accomplishments I have made in the past seven years have been the direct result of being a part

of a color guard. I live in a guard house and some of my closest friends are in guard; its absence

left a hole in me this past semester I never anticipated feeling.

Despite the inability for the whole marching band to practice and perform, the guard was able

to continue holding practices (albeit in a manner drastically different from past years). Socially

distanced practices were held; everyone stood at least ten feet apart, wore masks, and used

personal equipment. In past years we regularly shared flags and other equipment with one

another; everyone was given a personal flag and carrying bag in order to minimize contact. I

actually found this to be an unexpected delight, I never had to worry about accidentally picking

up the oddly weighted and loud flag (it also prevented the unique scent a silk acquires through a

season of constant use and sharing). In addition to these practices, the guard was also able to

practice and perform a short piece that was recorded in Jim Ryan’s front yard; a fun (and

somewhat unsettling) experience. Despite these small practices and performance, it still felt as

though something significant was missing from my life this past semester. It really made me

realize how important color guard and marching band is to me. In the past, I thought I knew the

full impact color guard had in my life. I even remember coming to the bittersweet conclusion that

I most likely will not be able to continue guard in graduate school. After not having it for a year,

I now see just how much guard has impacted my life. Looking forward, I know I only have another

year left being in a color guard and I plan on relishing every moment.
 PAGE | 12
Pandemic Semester
WRITTEN BY MARIA PARNELL

Virtual Chapters Virtual Band

The year of 2020 has brought massive changes on so many levels - the world, the UVA

community, the marching band, and even our local Iota Kappa chapter of Tau Beta Sigma

are not the same as years past! UVA students experienced 100% virtual learning for their

first full semester ever this fall, with the exception of a few in-person labs. Many students

felt as though a lack of daily interactions with classmates and professors had an adverse

impact on their learning; it can definitely be more difficult to retain information, keep up

on work, feel like part of a community, and stay motivated online. However, remote

learning wasn’t entirely negative. Many people loved the increased flexibility in

scheduling, and nobody can deny the joy of extra sleep gained by rolling out of bed two

minutes before a Zoom class. While large group gatherings were hugely discouraged,

many students were able to find support within their roommates, contained social

bubbles, or families at home.

The marching band was not an exception to the virtual learning rules. Many members

continued playing their instruments remotely for virtual band, and several others took the

semester off from music or colorguard, but the sisters of Iota Kappa found ways to keep

running the chapter despite the difficult circumstances! Instead of being held after band

practices in the HSBB, chapter was instead held virtually over Zoom every other Monday

evening. While it’s not quite as gratifying seeing everyone’s smiling faces on a computer

screen instead of in person, members were still able to connect as we shared relevant

business, snaps and grievances, workshops, and other shenanigans during chapter.

While post-chapter lounging, Cookout runs, and other spontaneous hangout sessions were

greatly missed this semester, our officers and committees did their best to fill those gaps

with fun virtual activities. The social committee hosted an entertaining trivia night for the

entire CMB, and there was a high attendance rate from most sections in the band,

including the directors! We’ve joined with KKPsi over winter break to form a joint book

club, and running annual service and fundraising activities like pop tabs and Boograms

during the semester has allowed us to continue following our mission statement safely.

Despite all of the challenges that came with the Fall 2020 semester, the sisters of TBS

still found ways to stay connected and maintain a sense of fun!

 PAGE | 13

Acknowledgments
Thank you to everyone who wrote for this issue of In

The Know! I always appreciate everyone that helps

make this Newsletter happen. Thank you for all the

active and alumni sisters of this Chapter for

reading and dedicating part of their lives to this

organization. The Chapter wouldn't be the same

without each and every one of you guys. I also want

to give a huge shoutout to the Executive Board this

year for pushing to make this year as normal as

possible despite the challenges involving the

pandemic. Here's to a brighter future and many

more memories!