Striving for Excellence: How to Become a Chapter Key Award Recipient

The Chapter Key Award was established by the honor society in 1991 to honor chapters that excel in activities such as membership recruitment and retention, professional and leadership development, and local, national, and international collaboration.  The Pi Gamma chapter was officially chartered in 1998 and was presented with its first Chapter Key Award in 2001.  The chapter has continued to receive the award every biennium and is a seven-time award recipient.  Most recently, Pi Gamma was praised for their methods used to connect with chapter members, collaborate with other organizations, and provide leadership opportunities for chapter members. Greatest commendation was given for the number of scholarships awarded to chapter members.

 Pi Gamma leadership would now like to assist other chapters to be successful in the Chapter Key Award submission process. One item that has been crucial to our chapter’s continued success is the development, revision, and implementation of a functional strategic plan. The strategic plan is reviewed annually by the chapter board of directors. As the chapter key award criteria changes, we update our strategic plan to ensure we are meeting the requirements as best possible to receive maximum points. While a set number of points are necessary to receive the award, we strive to meet the criteria most important to our chapter members. To do this, we survey our members annually to determine what type of activities they would like to see our chapter involved, from community service to professional development activities. Each board member is assigned a specific section of the strategic plan to evaluate and revise based on member feedback. Most recently, we have worked to improve our leadership development of new members.

 This poster presentation will provide an overview of the eligibility criteria necessary to apply for the chapter key award. We will share how the strategic plan may be developed to ensure that the chapter is targeting the identified categories of leadership development, membership engagement, chapter operations, and publicity and recruitment. Specific examples from our strategic plan will be shared with the audience. Lastly, we will identify how we engage our members to provide feedback that guides the refinement of our plan. With a detailed strategic plan and a commitment to implement said plan, chapters may consistently meet the requirements necessary to be a Chapter Key Award recipient.