Fuel Around the Fountain

In order to help keep students energized through Dead Week, Mortar Board sponsored their annual Fuel Around the Fountain event on Wednesday, December 10th.

The free donuts were quite the hit, drawing many students throughout the morning.

Mortar Board members took different shifts to help pass out donuts, hot chocolate, and apple cider to students as they walked to and from class.  The members also had information available for students who were interested in applying for Mortar Board membership for the next school year.

Mortar Board members Sarah Maginnis, Morgan Kristensen and Maggie Jackson converse with a friend as she stops by for some delicious hot chocolate.

Once again, the event was a success and many students found their morning walk to class a little more enjoyable.  

Christmas Party Finishes the Semester

Members (from left) Matt Lenagh, Jon Hess, and Dan Carlson
enjoyed the delicious  soups Dr. Messersmith had prepared.

On Wednesday, December 3rd, Mortar Board members gathered at Advisor Dr. Amber Messersmith's house for their last meeting of the semester.

The Christmas Party was a way to celebrate all the success Mortar Board has had so far this semester, as well as say farewell to a few of the members who will be graduating, studying abroad, or student teaching after December.

In tune with the holiday spirit, each Mortar Board member also brought a children's book to donate to a local charity in support of the national philanthropy, Reading is Leading.

After dinner, the members gathered for a short meeting to discuss plans for the upcoming semester.

Second Department of the Month Recognized

On Friday, November 21st, Mortar Board members Katie Liberty and Tessa Mannlein delivered donuts to the second Department of the Month winner, the Office of Facilities Management and Planning.  The monthly award was given to the Facilities department for their continued service to provide high quality living, learning, and working environments across campus. Their work truly keeps UNK safe and looking beautiful. 

Xi Phi Chapter Receives Recognition at Final Football Game

Several of the Mortar Board alumni were able to join current Mortar Board members for the recognition ceremony during half-time at the last football game of the season on November 15th.

UNK's Xi Phi Chapter of Mortar Board was honored during half-time at the final football game of the season.  During the ceremony, Mortar Board was recognized for the awards they recieved at the national conference in August (see earlier post). 

In addition to the half-time recognition, past and present Mortar Board members were invited to a special pre-game lunch hosted by Chancellor Kristensen and the President of the University of Nebraska system, Dr. James Linder. 

Thanking our Veterans and Active Service Members

Veteran's Day was celebrated on Tuesday, November 11th.  Mortar Board members celebrated the national holiday by hosting letter writing stations where students could write short notes thanking veterans and active service members for their sacrifice and dedication to our country.

Two booths were set up, one in the Student Union, and another in the Health and Sports Center, and staffed by Mortar Board members from 10:00am to 2:00pm.  Each booth was able to collect thank you cards from many different students throughout the event.

Members Morgan Kristensen and Jon Hess display some of the creative thank you cards that were created as part of the Veteran's Day event.

Professors and Mentors Honored at Faculty Appreciation Dinner

Mortar Board members hosted their annual Faculty Appreciation Dinner on Wednesday, November 5th at the UNK Alumni House.  Each member invited a professor or faculty mentor who has helped form them into the leader they are today.

Mortar Board member Kelsi Post is pictured with her faculty mentor,
Dr. Amanda Glass,  an assistant professor in the Chemistry department.

The evening started with a welcome by Brette Ensz, the Junior Advisor for Mortar Board, and then moved into the dinner hour.  Afterwards, President Maggie Jackson provided an overview of the events Mortar Board has planned for the 2014-2015 school year, as well as some of the national recognitions Mortar Board has received over the past few months.

Historian Jessica Albin then provided a brief history of Mortar Board, as well as some of the updates recently made to the Xi Phi Chapter's blog.

The hi-light of the evening was when each Mortar Board member was able to introduce their faculty guest and detail how much their mentor has meant to them throughout their years in college.

Mortar Board member Jon Hess introduces his faculty mentor,
Dr. Krista Forrest,  a professor in the Psychology department.

Senior Advisor Dr. Amber Messersmith made the closing remarks for the evening, further thanking all of the faculty members for their dedication to their students. 

The Mortar Board members and their faculty honorees were as follows:

Members                Guests

Haley Gunnink        Heather Wolf
Kelsie Post              Amanda Glass
Billie Kunzman       Chris Jochum
Katee Rocheford     Amy Nebesniak
Britt Jensen             Brady Bonsall
Carly Wollman        Tom Knott
Jon Hess                  Krista Forrest
Tessa Mannlein       Jan Moore
Katie Liberty           Miechelle McKelvey
Sarah Maginnis       Jennifer Harvey
John Gibbs              Brad Green
Heidi Hostert          Todd Bartee
Rachel Wemhoff     Paul Twigg
Kelly Messbarger    Janet Steele
Lindsey Eubanks     Liz Stout
Bethany Lueck        Chris Exstrom
Matt Lenagh            Rod Flanigan
Maggie Jackson       Joseph Carlson
Morgan Kristensen  Peter Longo
Jessica Albin            Jake Jacobsen
Rachel Nozicka        Denys Van Renen
Summer Liu             Jason Combs
Cole Manhart           Beth Wiersma
Megan Brown          Patys Bruner
Chesany Eberle      Theresa Wadkins
Connor Schulte        Amber Messersmith
Dan Carlson             Chuanyao Zheng

Mortar Board Honors First Department of the Month

On Friday, October 31st, Mortar Board members Katie Liberty and Tessa Mannlein delivered donuts to the first Department of the Month winner, the College of Education.  The monthly award was given to the COE for their outstanding service to their students and their contribution to developing teachers and other service professionals.  Members of the COE were surprised at the award and were very grateful for being recognized.