Katelyn Moorman – Staff Writer
Making sure university bands are cared for is key for Kappa Kappa Psi and they have been caring for UW’s since 1935.
Kappa Kappa Psi – Alpha Nu, a fraternity on campus, is dedicated to serving the university bands. The UW chapter was first chartered in 1935 before becoming inactive and then starting back up in 1967. The organization itself, which originated at Oklahoma A&M University, was founded Nov. 27, 1919.
Emily Loos, Vice President of Membership, said Kappa was founded by “men who saw a need to serve the bands at their university. So they banded together—no pun intended—to serve them.”
Caitlyn Mlodzik, the chair of the Ritual and Regalia Committee, said Kappa is “an organization for people who love music and want to add service to that component.”
Loos said while they do some outreach in the community, such as service projects for soup kitchens, Kappa mainly focuses on giving back to and doing “service projects for the university bands. We make sure the bands are taken care of.”
This includes cleaning the Buchanan Center for Performing Arts, assisting the marching band with some of its larger events, ushering for concerts, tightening music stands, and doing whatever else needs to be done to ensure that the bands can function as smoothly as possible.
Kappa has three core values: service, musicianship and brotherhood. Kaycee Stevenson, Outreach Chair, said because of her experiences with Kappa, she has been able to “meet a lot of great people that I’ve been able to call some of my closest brothers.”
Stevenson attended the national convention over the summer, where she said relationships were being established between chapters. In order to strengthen these relationships, Stevenson said she plans to send birthday and Christmas cards to chapters in the Midwest district.
Mlodzik said members “don’t consider each other friends—we think of each other as family. It’s a huge support system.”
Loos, similarly, said that members of Kappa have “a huge network of support across the country.”
Mlodzik said because of Kappa, she has learned how to be flexible when “working with different people—people with different experiences that come from different places.”
Loos said that working in teams with university faculty has given her a great experience she did not think she would have when she started college.
She said, “The most valuable things I’ve learned are professional communication practices and marketing for events.”
Stevenson said, “Kappa helped me grow as a leader,” and that she is more confident because of her membership with Kappa.
Loos said the Big/Little dynamic is “the cornerstone for what we do.”
When joining the fraternity, a student is assigned a Big, which is a person a “Little can go to to ask about Kappa or life in general,” Loos said.
Mlodzik said a Big helps their Little integrate into the chapter, and they act like a mentor to their Little.
Stevenson said she sees Bigs as “a guiding hand” during the initiation process for Littles. Because they so closely connect membership candidates to the chapter, Loos said that Bigs make Littles “feel like they belong.”
Mlodzik also said that the relationship between Bigs and Littles lasts longer than just initiation, with events such as Bro-vember where Littles and Bigs hang out together and try to win competitions between other pairs.
Stevenson said the dynamic is a great relationship for the fraternity.
“I like to think that we’re a little bit closer with our Bigs and Littles” than other Greek life, Stevenson said.
Kappa has a mascot, like several of the other chapters across the U.S. Stevenson said Wyatt (a black stuffed Build-a-Bear) is “very soft spoken. We call him quiet Wyatt for a reason.”
She said it is a tradition to give him to the member of the week, who is chosen by the previous member of the week.
She said, “it’s like a recognition.” Mlodzik said that “nobody knows where he came from,” and that Wyatt goes with the member everywhere—including classes and events. Wyatt’s Facebook page is Wyatt Nu, and his Snapchat is wnu1919.
Loos said, “Through Kappa I’ve been able to give back to band, which is so fulfilling.”
Students interested in joining can email Emily Loos at: membership.kkpsi.an@gmail.com.
To find out more about Kappa Kappa Psi, visit: https://www.kkpsi.org/ or https://www.uwyo.edu/music/undergraduate_students/student_organizations.html.
