This semester, Boise State has recognized and introduced a new Non-Panhellenic sorority on campus, Kappa Phi Mu. Founded Oct. 1, 2015, we've seen their numbers slowly but surely grow within the academic year. With now two classes initiated and one new class of pledges, we see a promising growth of women within this sorority. There has been some question as to who they are and what they're all about. Privileged to interview some of the members, we see how Kappa Phi Mu has impacted their college experience and what Kappa Phi Mu really is.
The current President and Founder of the sorority is Kendra Eidam. Kendra is a Pre-Law major. She is also a transfer from University of Idaho, a former Kappa Delta (AOT to all my KDs out there, ya hear!), and is an executive board member as well as part of the Alpha Class in Kappa Phi Mu.
Q: Why start Kappa Phi Mu? Why not talk to Kappa Delta's Nationals and request for them to come to campus?
A: I spent a while trying to get Kappa Delta on campus at Boise State with no luck due to Boise State and Kappa Delta's nationals. I realize it was going to be so much easier and more rewarding to start my own organization to build off of the amazing things the Kappa Delta and Panhellenic taught me, but also, at the same time, fix a lot of problems that I saw within Panhellenic as a member.
Q: Like most people who set goals or have dreams, I'm sure you had a vision of what your sorority would look like if it was successful. Did these last two semesters beat your expectation?
A: Starting Kappa Phi Mu was the best decision in college I have made so far. I honestly never thought that we would reach so many people and give those people the many opportunities that it has. I didn't realize how many women wanted to be a part of the Greek community but didn't get the opportunity. I'm glad that I could share this opportunity with all of them. So I guess it completely out shined any expectations that I had or could've ever hoped it would become. It's amazing that it's already such an amazing thing and we aren't done growing yet.
Q: What is one memory with Kappa Phi Mu women that you will remember for a lifetime?
A: It's hard to narrow things down to just one memory because I have so many with these amazing women. One that stands out to me immediately would be during initiation when our executive board got to initiate all of the new members. I looked at each of them and felt incredibly proud of how far we had come as individuals and as a sisterhood.
Q: What did being president of a sorority teach you?
A: Being the president taught me so many things that I never thought it could. I learned how to be humble, how to be patient with others, how to be understanding, and how to better myself as an individual so I could represent our chapter and our women.
Abbie Cheeseman is on the Executive Board for holding the positions of Public Relations and Scribe. Abbie is a Senior majoring in Psychology, class of 2016. She graduated high school a year early. Because of her hard work and determination, Abbie will graduate college two years early as well. (Snaps for you, you little overachiever, you!)
Q: Why be a part of Kappa Phi Mu? Why not join a Panhellenic?
A: I rushed freshman year and just didn't click with any of the (four at the time) panhellenic sororities. Then, I got busy in future years and didn't give rush a chance. I also really like our ability to set and enforce our own rules, whereas a panhellenic sorority has to listen to a national headquarters.
Q: What is your position within Kappa Phi Mu?
A: I run all of the social media accounts for Kappa Phi Mu, as well as create graphics and images for the sorority. I own my own Etsy shop and blog (www.angelicabbiedesigns.com) where I design websites, create logos, and design other things for clients. With that the sorority has allowed me to be creative in my favorite way possible.
Q: How has Kappa Phi Mu impacted your life?
A: Kappa Phi Mu gave me a home at Boise State that I was missing. Joining Kappa was the absolute best thing for my college career, because it gave me an opportunity to meet my absolute best friends.
Q: What is one piece of advice you can give to a member who is considering to run for a Executive Board position?
A: I would say be prepared for a lot of hard work. I didn't realize just how much work went into being in a sorority, and in addition, I took on an executive board position my first semester. It's super rewarding to have helped found a sorority and to be on the executive board, but I would definitely be prepared for work.
Courtney Kemp is a member of Beta Class. She is a freshman and is a Mechanical Engineer major, class of 2019. (YAY, little Miss Smarty Pants!)
Q: How did you hear about Kappa Phi Mu? Why Join?
A: My roommate, Kaitlin, came home one day and told me that her big sister just joined this great new sorority and had invited us to come check it out too. I was extremely reluctant to go, not considering myself the sorority type, but she dragged me along to the pumpkin patch and we both just fell in love with the girls and never looked back.
Q: What's the best part about being a apart of Kappa Phi Mu?
A: My favorite part of being a member of Kappa Phi Mu is the friendships I have built with all these amazing girls, and being confident that these people will be there for me for years down the road.
Q: What is one piece of advice you can give to the incoming pledge class?
A: My advice to incoming pledges is 'I know that coming in and meeting all of us can be really overwhelming, and it's perfectly okay to be shy. And as cliché as it sounds, just be yourself, and you'll be fine!'
Q: I know being with a group of women constantly can has its ups and downs. What is one way to destress yourself for women who feel overwhelmed by their sisters?
A: When I'm feeling overwhelmed with sorority stuff, it usually helps to just take a step back and think about what I love about my sisters and why I wanted to join in the first place. It also never hurts to just take a break and be silly together.
Selena Arredondo is one of our newest pledges Kappa Phi Mu has gained. She is a Elementary Education major, class of 2019. Super shy and nervous about joining, we hear a little of her testimony as to why she took a leap into Kappa Phi Mu.
Q: How did you hear about Kappa Phi Mu? What made you want to join?
A: My friend literally called me the night before rush and told me to do it with her; I was kind of hesitant but then I remembered how difficult it is for me to make friends right now. When I went on the first day I realized how awesome the Kappa girls are and immediately made my decision to join their sorority.
Q: Kappa Phi Mu's values are Honor, Grace, and Strength. What do you hope to learn with these values within the sorority?
A: I am a very shy and quiet person, I don’t trust people quickly, and between my friends and I, I am probably the most awkward one when meeting new people. When I told the girls that I was really quiet and reserved, they didn’t believe me. I hope to learn to be more open and easygoing when meeting new people. I know that being in this particular sorority will help just because these girls are open and easygoing and really easy to get along with. It’s hard for me to consider someone a friend when I just met them, but as the days go by I am really starting to see them as my family. I love my Kappa sisters already!
Q: Would you define yourself a "typical sorority girl?" Why or why not?
A: No, not at all. I feel like a typical sorority girl is more outgoing and more involved while I still live at home with my parents and don’t have a job. *sigh* However, I do see myself becoming the more outgoing typical sorority girl now than I am part of Kappa Phi Mu.
Gabriela Pedraza is also one of the newest pledges of Kappa Phi Mu. Gabriela is a freshman, class of 2019. Changing her major five times this semester, she's currently chosen to follow Respiratory Care.
Q: What made you want to join Kappa Phi Mu compared to the other Panhellenic sororities on campus who are more popular on campus?
A: I wanted to join a sorority that wasn’t going to be too expensive and was still going to allow me to experience the sisterhood sororities are meant to offer. After going through Kappa Phi Mu’s Facebook and Instagram pages I saw that they didn’t only seem like a group of close sisters but a group of girls giving back to the community, which was another thing that really drew me to join this sorority.
Q: You're in Kappa Phi Mu's newest pledge class. Rumor has it that you are one of the newly elected social chair! Congrats girl! What do you hope to gain with this position?
A: As this being my first semester in a sorority and being elected as social chair, I hope to gain leadership, communication, and social skills that I will take on with me in my future endeavors. I know it will be time-consuming but this will also link into improving my time-management skills, which as a college student will be extremely beneficial.
There you have it fellow students of Boise State. We can see that Kappa Phi Mu holds qualities similar to Panhellenic sororities but are their own entity within the sorority community. With a lot of dedication put into this sorority, we can see a promising input number of women, and a great amount of output within our local Idaho community. We look forward to seeing the amazing things Kappa Phi Mu puts forth in the future.
To inquire more information about Kappa Phi Mu and their COB events, follow them on their social media outlets.
Email: Kappaphimuboise@gmail.com
Instagram: kappaphimuboise
Twitter: KappaPhiMu_
Tumblr: kappaphimubsu.tumblr.com
