Minnesota-Dakotas District of Key Club
The Minndak Quack
Official Publication of the Minnesota Dakotas District of Key Club International
Read more about Stephenie on page 6!
Pg. 5 Pg. 2 District Convention
District Changes!
Pg. 11 Awards & Contests
Don’t miss your District!!! MinnDak District Convention 2011 Spring Convention is right around the corner. It will be held April 1st – 3rd in Willmar, MN. There will be many informational forums as well as a fun keynote speaker, Scott Greenberg. As well there will be the Governor’s project, packing food for Kid’s Against Hunger. So not only will this be an informational and board training weekend, but a weekend to get in service hours. Also there will be many contests to be presented and awards to be given that weekend. Some of these contests need to be completed before arriving and some will be presented there so check the forms for the contests. Saturday night there will a “Luau” themed dance to go along with the year’s theme “Surfin into Service.” So bring appropriate attire to show off your spirit for the weekend. Another note is that there will be elections for the new District Board, so if you want to run make sure you have all the paperwork. I
hope to see all of you and your friends there! This year instead of having a competition at Spring Convention for the best Divisional cheer, we are asking clubs and divisions (regions) to come up with new and creative District cheers. The District has had the same cheers for many years now and we are coming up short when we try to compete at the International Convention. We are looking for cheers that show spirit and fun in our division. We would like the cheers to be original and have our District somehow represented. A lot of the cheers relate to our District’s mascot, Milford the Duck, but the cheers do not have to include that. Please come with ideas or cheers ready so that when you are in your divisional (regional) meetings, it will be easier to come up with them.
g r e b n e e r G t t Sco For Spring Convention this year, we again have invited Scott Greenberg to come speak. He tells motivational and inspirational stories about his own experiences. He uses his humor to portray his message and uses simple examples to get the students to understand. He provides messages to help students believe in themselves and make good choices. He will be doing three different sessions at
Spring Convention. He will be running an advisors forum, a first timers forum for those Key Clubbers that have not heard Scott before, and an advanced forum for those who have heard him before. He not only will be running these forums, but he will also be doing a fun activity at night to get everyone to know each other and to have fun. Scott is such a great speaker and has many stories of how he has
3
Tom P. Horan Distinguished Member Award The Tom P. Horan Distinguished Member Award is used to recognize an outstanding member who has gone above and beyond the call of duty. Our aim is to award someone whose achievements have gone unrecognized, but were not unappreciated. In order to nominate a Key Club member for this award, a club president or advisor should submit the application and an essay of 500 words or less explaining why the individual deserves to be recognized. Each club may nominate up to two members each year. Listed are a few of the criteria that the chosen member should meet: must have at least 50 hours of service completed, cannot serve on the executive board, must be a paid member, etc. To find all the criteria for the Key Clubber to meet, go to MinnDakKeyClub.org to view the application. The application, essay, and attached list of service projects completed should be sent to your Lieutenant Governor or Liaison to be reviewed. Attached to the application online is the contact information for your divisional representative so please get this information in as soon as possible for review.
Cha Cha Cha Cha Changin’ The New Year has brought change upon our ideas and future hopes. The Minn-Dak Key Club District Board has come up with revisions that will be discussed at the Spring Convention House of Delegates. Membership dues will be raised from $10.50 to $11.00. We feel that the extra 50 cents is a small amount of change that will have a huge impact due to the amount of members that we have. The new reserve of money will be used for improving conventions, and will hopefully offer a discount to Key Clubbers who plan on attending District Conventions. Early Dues should be in by November 1st of the current school year and Regular Dues should be submitted by December 1st of the current school year. A club is declared as suspended if they have not paid their annual club dues by February 1st of the current school year. A club is declared as inactive if they have not paid their club dues from the previous year by October 1st of the following school year.
Clubs that are inactive or suspended cannot attend conventions or obtain any type of award at the district level An inactive club may be re-activated if they do the following: a. Fill out a chartering form b. Pay their international dues c. Pay the $100 re-instatement fee A suspended club may become completely active again by paying their dues for the current school year The original by-laws say that we must match the Kiwanis Regions. We now have 7 Divisions to match the 7 Kiwanis Regions. Division 7 is split into 7A and 7B. So we will now have a total of 8 Lieutenant Governor positions. We will also be discussing club by-laws in the Officer Forum at Spring Convention. Officers and administrators will be receiving a template that can be used to organize their personal club bylaws.
5
International Trustee
Stephenie Yuan Hey Minn-Dak Key Clubbers! These past few months have been quite busy on the International Board, but even more so in working with my three districts. As International Trustee of the Minnesota-Dakotas, Montana, and Pacific Northwest Key Club districts, I make it my priority to maintain consistent communication with each of my District Governors. More importantly, I make it a point to learn about my District Governors not only as Key Club members, but as regular peers. Through learning about their interests and the people behind the position role, I am able to further understand their leadership strengths. Starting in November, I have set up conference calls with Lieutenant Governors, Executive District Officers, and District Administrators/Asst District Administrators to discuss Key Club-related concerns, updates, and opinions that have immensely increased my awareness of divisional activities and statuses. The invaluable information that I am provided with is taken into consideration when deciding on new directives for the second quarter. Beyond obtaining new updates, I have enjoyed every single conversation with the people I communicate with. The phone conferences have bridged the gap between the International level and district level, allowing us to understand each others’ roles and move forward together. On the International Voice Committee, directives have been finalized for the second quarter. Several adjustments have been made at the November International Board Meeting, which have improved individual board member performance, communication among the International Board, and maintenance of strong
support for each district. In addition to working on directives and touching base on board performance expectations, the November International Board Meeting also served as a time for Leadership Committee members to review Youth Opportunities Fund applications. The Youth Opportunities Fund grants recipients will be announced this week, so if your club applied for this award, make sure to check for updates on keyclub.org! The Key Club International Convention 2011 in Phoenix, Arizona is coming up in just a few months, but preparation is key to making the most out of your experience. ICON is the place to be this summer. It is important that you plan ahead by making the dates June 29-July 3 available, so you don’t miss it! You can visit www.keyclub.org for updates on International Convention. Don’t forget to sign up for the e-mail updates! All in all, these past few months have been incredible. From filling out reports to meeting the three districts in person, I have been able to experience various aspects of Key Club International. The work load has been manageable and the personal experiences that my fellow Key Club friends have shared with me are truly inspiring.
7
Surfin’ Into Service
Come join us in Willmar, MN For the 2011 MinnDak District Convention Ask your advisor or club president for more information!
International Convention .Did
you know that every year key club international holds an international convention? Interested? This year’s convention will be held in Phoenix, AZ June/July 2011. Trip details are still being worked out but, we will most likely travel by plane.
and going white water rafting. It’s not too early to start thinking about attending International Convention. Hope to see you there!
Our district tour plans include visiting an old western themed ghost town, going to a desert safari petting zoo,
9
It’ s election season… for Key Club! With the end of the Key Club year coming on April 1st, club’s should start thinking about elections for new officers. Elections should be held during the month of February. Once elections are complete, please send contact information for the advisors and all officers to the current Lieutenant Governor for you area. This will ensure that the incoming Lieutenant Governor has that information and will make their job a lot easier. This information can also be added to the District directory so that your club can have other club’s information to communicate with them. Also new officers are
greatly encouraged to attend Spring Convention to get some training to help them out. There will be forums to teach them their position and learn other positions as well.
Contests There are many contests that your club can participate in at Spring Convention. They range from poster and video contests to distinguished officers to talent and oratorical contests. Many of these contests need to have forms mailed in previous to Spring Convention so make sure when your club is filling out the form, that they make sure when it needs to be submitted. Some of the contests are presented at Spring Convention such as the variety talent show contest and the oratorical contest. There are forms for these as well and special information that needs to be considered. Please take a look at these forms and submit them. These forms can be found on the District’s website, MinnDakKeyClub.org. If you have any other information please feel free to
11
District Theme: Surfin’ Into Service
Upcoming Events
1.Wacky Wild Waves 2.Terrific Tiki Torches 3.Sassy Surfers 4.Bouncing Beach Balls 5.Beach Party Crashing Pirates 6.Splendid Serving Sharks 7.Majestic Mermaids 8.Super Sand dollars 9.Silly Seashells 10.Loveable Lifeguards
Minnesota Dakotas Key Club a Kiwanis-family member
minndakkeyclub.org
District Convention: April 1st 1st--3rd