SHELLS

To allow you, our wonderful Sisters of the Southeast, to contribute more and to voice your thoughts and views on your time as a Sister the issues of SHELLS that will be published twice in the Fall and twice in the Spring will contain a featured article. The idea for these featured articles is for it to not be simply a chapter progress report or an update on where your chapter is, but to be more of a story or opinion piece.  Examples could be your growth as a Sister or things you have observed since you first heard of Tau Beta Sigma. This is really a chance for the floor to be yours and to write about anything. I request that articles be no less than 500 words with a maximum of 2,000. I also encourage you to submit photographs (with captions) along with your article to help better illustrate your article. All submissions should be submitted to [email protected] and include your name, chapter, and when you crossed. If your submission is not selected for publication for the article you first submit for it will automatically be considered for the next issue. Deadlines for Submissions Fall Issue 1: September 1st Fall Issue 2: November 1st Spring Issue 1: January 1st Spring Issue 2: March 1st

As many of you know there will be a “Dear Shells” section in each of the SHELLS articles. Here is the first set of questions. In the future if you have any questions that you would like answered; submit them to [email protected] at any time! You can choose to identify yourself and chapter or remain anonymous! Question 1:

Hi Shells, I really want to be on the list serve but not sure what to do, can you help me? - Anonymous Answer 1: Hi Anonymous, What are great question! There are actually TWO different list serves that our district uses. The first one is for presidents only. All that your chapter president needs to do it send an email from the address that you wish to use to [email protected]. Once admitted to the group emails can be sent by sending to [email protected]. Remember that it would be better to use a chapter email address, this way when your chapter gets a new president they will already have access to the list serve. The second list serve is open to all members of the district and is THE BEST WAY to receive information, therefore all are encouraged to use it. To join any member must send an email from the address they want to receive emails to [email protected]. Then like the Presidents List Serve once you are admitted to the list serve you can send an email to the group by composing your email to [email protected]. This group is open to all alumni, active, and conditional members! If you aren't already on it then please hurry! If you have any questions pertaining to the listserv, please contact Sarah Lowery (List Moderator) at [email protected] LITB, Shells Question 2:

Dear Shells, How do I update my chapter’s information for the Chapter Directory? -Anonymous Answer 2:

Greetings Anonymous, To update the National Listserv go to www.tbsigma.org, Chapters & Districts, Chapter Directory and search your chapter, click View and from there you can click “Change Form” to update your officer roster, sponsor, director of bands and address. Make sure you do this each time your chapter holds elections! Also! To update the SED Chapter Directory e-mail the Secretary the President’s name, phone number, e-mail address and preferred contact method. Please do this even if your President has been re-elected! MOTS of Love, Shells

Question 3:

Dear Shells, Where can I go find copy of national forms and TBS letterhead? -Anonymous

Answer 3:

The Southeast District Council is proud to announce two new additions for the Southeast District Council. Lindsay Meyers will be serving as our district Historian and Stephen Richards will be serving as our district Parliamentarian.

Lindsay is an active member of the Zeta Psi Chapter of Tau Beta Sigma at The University of Central Florida where she crossed in Spring 2011. While at UCF Lindsay has studied history where she will be going into her senior year. Her favorite subject of history is British History. She also spends her time in the Fall marching with the UCF  Marching Band where she is in the color guard. Lindsay has been serving her chapter at UCF by serving as her Chapter’s Historian. Not only does she enjoy history, she also loves glitter, Disney, and reading. Lindsay’s love of history, archives and Tau Beta Sigma will most certainly be able to help preserve the integrity of our district. Stephen  Richards is currently a graduate student studying civil engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology, having just received his Bachelors of Science in Civil Engineering this past spring. His concentration is in structural engineering, with a focus on bridge and high-rise structure design. Stephen plays the tuba and is very involved in the Georgia Tech School of Music, having been a part of the Georgia Tech Marching Band, Pep Band, Concert Band and Symphonic Band. Stephen was initiated into the

Epsilon Theta chapter of Tau Beta Sigma in the fall of 2009. Since then, he has served as the chapter’s Corresponding Secretary, President, and currently, as Ritual and Regalia Committee Chair. Beyond just chapter involvement, Stephen has been active on the district and national level, attending 3 DLCs, 3 SED Conventions, and the 2011 National Convention. He is very excited and grateful for the opportunity to serve as the 2012-2013 District Parliamentarian and cannot wait to continue to try and give back as much as Tau Beta Sigma has given him.

Greetings SED! My name is Salvatore “Sal” Parillo, and I am your current SED Treasurer. I am very excited for this upcoming term, and I look forward to helping everyone out in any way possible.

I am currently pursuing my undergraduate degree in Music Performance at the University of Central Florida. I have been playing the flue for 13 years, and look forward to continuing that part of my life forever. I became a sister of Tau Beta Sigma at the Zeta Psi chapter in December 2008, and I have held several positions at ZΨ (Corresponding Secretary, Social Chair, Treasurer) as well as originating the SED Historian position in 2009. I come to you fresh out of my term as Zeta Psi’s Treasurer, and I am excited to continue on in that area. I just gave ZΨ its most bountiful year, regarding funds, and I wish to help as many of you achieve that as well! So, please do not hesitate to contact me at any time, and I will respond at my earliest convenience.

Much Love in the Bond,

Greetings SED! I am so happy to greet you for the first time in SHELLS as your SED Treasurer. I hope everyone is having a wonderful summer, and for those of you who came to Florida Day, I hope you thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

As many may know, the summer is down time from your studies, band, and TBΣ. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean you have to stop participating in TBΣ. I know my home chapter remains somewhat active in the summer: hosting Florida Day, organizing social events, and, of course, fundraising! If you like the idea of fundraising over the summer, here are some helpful tips on how to get going. Find out if any sisters live near your chapter’s home town OR find out if there are handfuls of sisters who live near each other over the summer. If there is a good-sized group somewhere from your chapter, that is a great foundation for starting a fundraiser. Reach out to those sisters, and pitch them the idea (maybe a bake sale, or a car wash). The summer holds a lot of great opportunities in the Southeast to host fundraisers.

If you have tried to have fundraisers over the summer in the past, but it never materializes, let’s try some other ways of going about it. I know many are in the mentality that it’s the summer, and time for a break. I honestly, love to do fundraisers over the summer. It keeps me close to TBΣ, and reminds me where my heart lies. If you need a little motivation to get participants, try talking to your chapter president (or executive board) about an incentive system for those who participate in fundraisers over the summer. Perhaps offer a discount on dues for those who participate. I hope this was helpful, and if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at any time; I will gladly respond at my earliest convenience.

Hello Sisters of the SED!

 I hope this letter has found you tan and at the beach for the summer, but if not, whether stuck in classes or at various places of employment, I greet you as an excited member of your district council! My name is Belinda Baker and I represent you as Vice President of Special Projects for this term. I attend Auburn University, hoping to soon complete my Bachelor's of Music Education. I enjoy playing any instrument in the percussion family, and of course, I love Tau Beta Sigma with all of my heart. 

After SED2K12, we sat down as a council and discussed the many ways we can benefit our district. With our different talents and expertise, we made a game plan and began to focus our separate actions on our first goal of office. My first goal, decided at convention, was to create a new district project. After the decision to put the Young Composer's Competition on hold, our district showed interest in a performance competition, specifically a concerto contest.  Well, I am thrilled to announce that this year, the Southeast District will host a Concerto Competition for the first time! There will be details and exact dates sent out as we approach the Fall semester; over the list serve, to each school in the SED, and personally to as many sisters as possible so as to spread the word to any and every collegiate musician located in the Southeast District.  The Concerto Competition will be open to all collegiate musicians, affiliation with KKY and TBS is not a necessity nor will it give you a better chance of being chosen. The competition winner will perform at the opening concert of convention next spring and will receive a check for at least $150. I have been hard at work with the rest of council and all the other related parties to put together this competition, but we are not finished yet--- We need your help. Start spreading the word now! Tell your friends that exact dates will be sent out in August, but they can begin the process now. Help recruit performers for the SED! Remind them they do not have to be affiliated with KKY or TBS to enter. This is a wonderful opportunity for all musicians to build a resume, gain experience, and have some fun!

Thank you, sisters for this opportunity to serve you! My phone, email, and social media can always be used as an open line of communication for you to reach me with any questions or concerns!

MOTS O' Love and MLITB,

Hey Southeast District! I hope your summer is kicking off to an excellent start. I am home in Chicago for mine, and I can honestly say I really hate to be far away from all of you. But even though Tau Beta Sigma - SED may be rather out of sight for me this summer, it is certainly not out of mind. This summer, I hope to get started on some exciting things for the coming school year. My primary goal is to provide you with as many resources as possible to ensure that our chapters can be the best they can be.

 This past convention, part of the Committee on Membership meetings was spent discussing the creation of a Membership Education database. While I am still investigating the origins of this database, my current vision has a lot to do with posting resources on membership education and continuing education. Through the database, I hope to give insight on various topics that you all may want to hear about. But more importantly, I hope to see  contributions from chapters as well. It could be anything from a document to a diagram, or a PowerPoint presentation. Ideally, this will be another way for our district to come together,  combine our knowledge, and demonstrate our strengths to one another.

 Additionally, I intend to create a blog where I will periodically reflect on or respond to something that you will (hopefully) find informative and helpful, and provide opportunities for you to ask me (and each other) questions. The more we communicate, the more we can unify and solidify our identity as the Southeast District, and that is something worth striving for. Just like in any ensemble, we are best when we are together.

 Membership education plans is the final main area I hope to help our district in. After hearing from many of you this past convention, it is obvious that MEPs still need a lot of definition, and I will do my best to guide and assist the way we write out our membership plans through examples and feedback. I know membership is important to all of us because of the way we have talked about it in the Committee on Membership meetings; we all realize at some level that membership education ensures our future as an organization of high ideals, and the success of bands around the country, to name a couple. If you ever have any feedback, ideas, or suggestions, never hesitate to contact me! I love hearing what you have to say. I can’t wait to work with you to keep the future of our district and our sorority bright, and I hope you feel the same. May we become the best!

  MOTS of love,

Kevin Brenner

Greetings Southeast District,

Hi, my name is Lee Commander, I am a recent graduate of The Florida State University, and I am currently serving as your District President! I am exceedingly honored to have this privilege bestowed upon me. There are so many exciting things I hope for our district to accomplish in order to show that the SED truly is the best district!

The first thing I want to encourage for our district is to increase involvement among our members. It is not up to the Council alone to make the SED more productive, because without YOU, the active membership, we (the council) have no ground to stand on. If you are reading this article right now- CONGRATULATIONS!! You have begun the process of supporting our district and getting involved. Thank you!

That being said lets get to real reason for this article. If you have been on your social media outlets lately, you might have seen a new hash tag being posted by council members- operation 100% (#operation100%). If you are currently wondering what that is, well, let me tell you! Operation 100% is a SED campaign to have 100% percent of paperwork successfully completed, as well as being the 100% best sisters we can be on every level. This should help push us forward to have 100% of chapters in attendance at DLC and SED Convention, 100% of delegates being on time for convention seating, and 100% of chapters following all National and District guidelines. I strongly encourage you to join the council in implementing this hash tag on your own personal level and the chapter level. Together, as the Southeast District we can strive for this high level of excellence.

Again, I am honored and proud to serve the SED in this capacity. I want to do my part to help the district, however I can. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns. I look forward to watching our district grow even stronger.