Kappa Alpha Psi plays on the TV show “WandaVision” as a theme for their upcoming week-long list of informational and entertaining events. Credit: Courtesy of Ernest Moore
Although fraternities are typically organizations that bring men together, the brothers of Kappa Alpha Psi will host events this week celebrating Women’s History Month.
From celebrating women in the workplace to the Pie-a-Nupe fundraiser, “KappaVision” is Kappa Alpha Psi’s week of nightly events that are open to anyone and will run through Friday. The events will be held on Zoom and Instagram Live.
“This event will be beneficial to the community in that it’s an educational opportunity for one, and two, we provide things that are fun, and three, we just want to be able to give back to those who we appreciate the most with Women’s History Month,” Alex Ushry, a third-year in finance and strategus for the organization, said. “We’re just trying to provide back for campus as much as we can.”
The name “KappaVision” and the theme of the week was inspired by “WandaVision,” a TV show on Disney+. Ushry said Ernest Moore, a fourth-year in biology and historian for the organization, was the brains behind the theme.
“Without his creativity, we definitely wouldn’t be able to do that type of promotion,” Ushry said. “He’s mainly the one that thinks outside the box. He also thinks of things that are current versus like throwbacks. We try to do something that’s current and in the moment so people will be able to recognize what it is.”
The week kicked off Monday with “Krimson Table Talk,” the Kappa version of “Red Table Talk,” a series on YouTube hosted by Jada PinkettSmith, Moore said. The event will feature a discussion on current event topics such as COVID-19 vaccines and restrictions.
Tuesday will feature a presentation on financial literacy by Chris Taylor, assistant vice president of financial education and wellness at U.S. Bank and a Kappa Alpha Psi alumnus. Taylor will be speaking on topics such as credit and financial planning during and after college, Moore said.
Moore said he hopes students who attend the events find them interesting and informational.
“Our goal is that people come to our programs and take away something positive. So we’re not just trying to get people to come in, we want people to come in and take something away,” Moore said.
“Women in the Workforce,” presented by Courtney Johnson, an Ohio Staff member, and Sterling Clemons, an Equitas Health employee, will be hosted Wednesday. The presentation will showcase perspectives and experiences of working women while promoting inclusivity, Moore said.
“We feel like being a fraternity, a lot of things are focused around brotherhood and having that bond,” Moore said. “But we want to be inclusive of other people in the student body, so we would like women and any other identities of people to feel comfortable coming to our programs and feel like it’s not structured for our men.”
Moore said Thursday and Friday will feature more light-hearted events, including an open-participation talent show, “Koulda Been ReKords,” which will be lived-streamed on Instagram Thursday, and “Pie-a-Nupe,” a fundraiser for the organization, Friday. Pie-a-Nupe will allow anyone to donate money to see a Kappa Alpha Psi member get a pie in the face, Moore said.
“Because of COVID and being a Black organization [at Ohio State], you don’t really have many funders or anything like that. So all the money that we usually make comes from social gatherings or social events, and since we haven’t been able to have those, this is like our only way to make money this semester,” Moore said.
Other organizations within the National Panhellenic Council also hold their own themed weeks throughout the semester, but Ushry said Kappa Alpha Psi’s “KappaVision” stands out from the rest.
“We want to do programs that are very unique and different from what everyone else does, and we’d like to fulfill each and every day out of the whole week to do something,” Ushry said. “We don’t utilize just three or four days, we want to utilize five or six and get as much exposure as possible for each day and supervise something different for each day, versus organizations who may or may not do that.”
