The Executive Board is so excited to receive your chapter yearbooks for the 2024-25 P.E.O. year. Reminder: Yearbooks need to be submitted electronically to each state officer, the executive secretary and the executive treasurer by October 1. If your chapter wishes to submit a printed copy, they must request an exception from the secretary of Kansas State Chapter before October 1.
We enjoy looking at your interesting programs, discovering how you have incorporated Adain’s theme into your yearbook and admiring your clipart and captions.
Please be sure to check the Constitution when listing your dues information. At the 2023 Convention of International Chapter, a dues increase was approved. The dues for International Chapter increased to $36 for the 2025-2026 fiscal year. Please change your bylaws to reflect this increase and include the following proviso in the 2024-2025 yearbook:
PROVISO: The increase of dues to International Chapter of thirty-six dollars ($36.00) shall be implemented in two steps; an increase of five dollars ($5.00) to thirty-one dollars ($31.00) for the 2024 – 2025 fiscal year; and an increase of five dollars ($5.00) to thirty-six dollars ($36.00) beginning the 2025 – 2026 fiscal year. The total annual dues of Chapter ___ shall be ___________ dollars ($___.00) for the 2024 – 2025 fiscal year and ____________ dollars ($__.00) beginning the 2025 – 2026 fiscal year.
Please insert your own chapter letters into the proviso, along with the total dues for 2024-2025 and 2025-2026. Please remove this proviso in the 2025-2026 yearbook.
The link to the 2024 Kansas Chapter Review Form is below.
Have a fun P.E.O. year!
Lovingly in P.E.O., Joyce Smith Kansas State Chapter Secretary
The Leadership Team is made up of 11 different committees. These committees, along with the executive board, help shape and lead Kansas State Chapter P.E.O. It takes many hands to launch and steer this rocket ship. We need your ideas and input to reach our stars.
Have you considered using the talents you have in a P.E.O. leadership role? This is a great opportunity to try something new, make new friends from across the state, and have a lot of fun. Leadership Team applications are due December 1. If you have any questions about applying or what service might look like for you, please reach out to Jan Guevel, KSC Vice President, kscpeojanguevel@gmail.com or 913-660-6071.
We look forward to riding to the stars with YOU! Through P.E.O. you can be a star.
If you’re familiar with P.E.O.’s Educational Loan Fund, but your chapter hasn’t sponsored a candidate, now is the time to find that woman (or those women since chapters may sponsor multiple ELF loan candidates in a calendar year) who can benefit from P.E.O.’s financial support and encouragement!
The P.E.O. Educational Loan Fund trustees evaluate each application and determine the specific amount to be approved. Their decision is based on the program of study and availability of funds. A student may apply for a loan up to the amount recommended by her sponsoring chapter.
ELIGIBILITY A woman is eligible to apply and receive consideration for an ELF loan if she:
Is recommended by a local chapter of the P.E.O. Sisterhood with a favorable vote on the amount of the loan
Is a citizen or legal permanent resident of and resides in the U.S. or Canada
Submits an application within six to 24 months prior to the stated graduation or course completion date
Has been accepted by or is enrolled full- or parttime in an accredited U.S. or Canadian postsecondary institution
Has a high school diploma or the equivalent
Demonstrates the academic ability to remain “in good standing”
Meets the minimum credit score of 625
Does not exceed the indebtedness limit for the degree level
Has a qualified cosigner for the loan
Does not have an outstanding ELF loan (A student who did not borrow the maximum amount with her original application and has not completed the program or degree for which the original loan was awarded may apply for an additional loan such that the total of her loans would be no more than the maximum loan amount for the degree level.)
Demonstrates financial need
The applications of individuals who satisfy the eligibility criteria will be evaluated on a nondiscriminatory basis without consideration of race, national origin, religious affiliation or disability.
Maximum loan amounts for a qualified woman are: $12,000 for an accredited non-degree program or an associate degree
$15,000 for bachelor’s degree programs
$20,000 for master’s degree programs
$25,000 for doctoral degree programs *$5,000 increase over previous years!
These funds have a 2% interest rate and no origination fee.
*Kansas sisters helped obtain loans approved for 14 women between April 1, 2023, and March 31, 2024, for a total of $175,300.00.
Questions? Excellent resources on candidate eligibility, the application process, and the local chapter recommendation process, including answers to ELF’s most frequently asked questions, can be found on the International website (www.peointernational.org), by clicking on the “Educational Support” menu and then selecting “Educational Loan Fund.”
Fundraising at the local chapter level not only brings sisters together in a social setting, but it also supports our P.EO. projects. Many chapters have already scheduled activities for the year, but it is not too late to add some FUNdraisers to try something new and spread the message of P.E.O.
Your Kansas State Chapter Finance Committee has a few easy fundraising ideas, presented at the Convention of Kansas State Chapter in June, which can be implemented as part of the social time at chapter meetings:
Calendar Game: Have a calendar available at a chapter meeting. Pick a day of importance to you (i.e., birthday, anniversary, child or grandchild’s birthday, graduation, etc.). Sign your name on that square on that calendar. (You may opt to choose more than one day. Multiple people can choose the same square.) Donate the amount equal to the calendar date. For example: someone choosing September 23 would donate $31 (9+23=31). Share why you chose this date. This quick and easy fundraiser is an opportunity to learn something new about a sister as well as raise funds for P.E.O. Projects.
Happy Dollars: After the close of each business meeting, members can share special news or moment by donating a dollar.
Dollars for Desserts: Each meeting, members donate $3 to $5 for coffee or dessert.
Bring a Book to a Meeting to Share: Instead of purchasing a new book at the bookstore, sisters can borrow books for a donation to P.E.O. projects. Bring the book back at a future meeting for the next sister to borrow.
Increasing our membership also increases our opportunities to support our projects. Activating our inactive sisters and seeking new sisters adds to our resources and fundraising abilities.
Most importantly: do not forget to sponsor project applicants since that is what FUNdraising is all about.
When sisters reach 50 years of membership, they are celebrated as Golden Girls in their local chapters and at a luncheon at the Convention of Kansas State Chapter. Their pictures are also posted on the P.E.O. Kansas Facebook page to mark this milestone. But what about sisters who have been in P.E.O. for 60 or more years?
Kansas State Chapter celebrates all of you reaching the milestone of 60+ years in P.E.O.! It is quite an accomplishment to be a long-time member of this wonderful sisterhood. You have seen a lot of changes in P.E.O. and have a multitude of stories to share. We hope you will be willing to share some of the stories with your chapter sisters and with all of us.
Happy anniversary and we celebrate YOU.
Click on the link below for a list of sisters who have been members for 60+ years. Please ask them to tell their P.E.O story and share it with Kansas State Chapter.
Did you know that your Executive Board sisters are required to attend training sessions with International throughout the year? Some are by Zoom and others are in person. KSC President Aidan Koster and KSC Organizer Mary McGehee traveled to Des Moines, Iowa, in July for a conference called LEAD (Leadership Education And Development). They spent Thursday evening through Sunday morning with the other presidents and organizers from P.E.O. state, provincial, and district chapters (S/P/D). Read on as your Kansas State Chapter Organizer and President give you a little peek inside LEAD:
Only a handful of the organizers attended the 2024 Convention of International Chapter (CIC), so LEAD was the first time many of them had met face to face and spent quality time together. Mary had a great time getting to know many new sisters. The fellowship and love shared during meals, social hours and riding in the bus to the home office are memories she will hold dear forever. Mary’s head is swirling, but now that she is home, rested, and has decompressed, it’s clear the best thing she took away from LEAD was we are not alone in the work we are doing for our sisterhood and we belong.
For Aidan, LEAD felt like a homecoming. Now in her fifth year of board service, having attended LEAD two years ago with the organizers and CIC in 2023 as a vice president, being with the other S/P/D presidents felt like a weekend getaway with dear, beloved friends. The presidents spent their sessions discussing leadership styles, delegating, breaking out of “we’ve always done it that way”, handling conflict, and the ins and outs of convention requirements. They shared countless ideas, some of which may find their way into Kansas P.E.O.!
The focus of the combined and separate sessions was clear, and it’s a message that applies to local chapter officers, too. We must lead with kindness. We must do what we promise to do. We must be willing to ask for help. We must be good listeners. Mary and Aidan vow to try to do all these things, especially during official visits and in their individual connections with P.E.O. sisters.
We leave you with these thoughts. Our new P.E.O. mission statement is: “P.E.O. Where women, Motivate, Educate and Celebrate Women.”
Cathy Moss, our fearless leader, reminded us of her theme, “The Art of Sisterhood: Believe*Belong.” If we believe we can accomplish our mission and feel we belong, then as Aidan’s logo says: we can go “To The Stars Through P.E.O.”.
Will your chapter be visited by one of our executive board members this fall? How do you find out? Read all about it…
Starting this August, KSC Organizer Mary McGehee’s Board Buddies will be visited. (To find out if you are one of Mary’s Board Buddies, click here.) As much as Mary would like to visit all 48 of her board buddy chapters, she cannot physically do it, and the other executive board members are helping her by visiting some of her chapters. If your chapter will be visited this fall, a board member should have contacted your chapter president with information about when they will visit.
For Mary’s Board Buddy chapters, it has been five years since they were last visited and might wonder what to expect.
DO NOT be nervous!!
Fill out the forms that are sent to the chapter president and return them to the board member who is visiting.
Each of the chapter’s seven officers are required to be at the Officer Meeting.
The visiting executive board member will ask each officer some questions but are not there to inspect the chapter’s books.
This is a good time to address concerns and to celebrate joys.
The visiting executive board member will meet and join the officers in the chapter meeting.
During the chapter meeting, the visiting executive board member will share information and news from Kansas State Chapter and International Chapter. A good time for her to do this is during “Remarks from Visitors.”
The visit should be a nice time where we can all enjoy each other in sisterly love.
The executive board looks forward to the Official Visits and meeting new sisters. So, get ready to go: To The Stars Through P.E.O.
NOW is the time to identify and assist a young woman (currently in her final year of high school) in applying for the non-renewable $2,500 STAR scholarship! A common denominator among successful Kansas STAR applicants is their sponsoring Kansas chapters started early searches and assisted their candidate with navigating the application process well before any impending deadline. Still, there is time to find that young woman and help her reach for the stars!
Chapters have between August 15 and October 15 to complete and submit the online recommendation form. Applicants then have 30 days from notification of nomination from the International office to complete their portion of the application. While it is recommended to think about women in our communities who exhibit excellence in leadership, academics, extracurricular activities, community service and potential for future success, it IS possible to sponsor a candidate not living in the same town as your chapter. Some successful candidates have had a P.E.O. connection outside their home area and were identified through sisters in chapters elsewhere.
Questions? First check the P.E.O. Projects/STAR Scholarship section of our International website for valuable information on policies, procedures, step-by-step instructions, etc. all of which can be downloaded to share with your sisters and candidates:https://www.peointernational.org/educational-support/star-scholarship/
Should you have additional questions, contact the Kansas P.E.O. STAR Scholarship Chair:
A woman is eligible for consideration for a STAR Scholarship if she:
Is recommended by a local chapter of the P.E.O. Sisterhood
Is a citizen or legal permanent resident of the United States or Canada
Has a minimum cumulative unweighted GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale
Exhibits excellence in leadership, academics, extracurricular activities, community service and potential for future success
Plans to attend an accredited postsecondary education institution in the United States or Canada full time or part time in the fall of the academic year following her high school graduation
The applications of individuals who satisfy these eligibility criteria will be evaluated on a nondiscriminatory basis without consideration of race, age, national origin, religious affiliation, disability or P.E.O. connection.
*In 2022-2023, 1,000 of the 2,186 women recommended to the P.E.O. STAR Scholarship Board of Trustees were selected to receive this highly competitive scholarship. Of the 87 recommendations received from Kansas, 43 were selected as recipients.
Kansas P.E.O.s have fun and exciting ways to connect with Cottey students. Through the Adopt Cottey program, chapters may adopt the Kansas Suite and/or a Kansas Cottey student. This year, the Kansas Cottey College Scholarship Committee has streamlined the process to make it even simpler to connect with our amazing Cottey students. These changes will give more chapters the opportunity to adopt either the Kansas Suite or a Kansas Cottey student.
SignUp Genius pages have been created for adopting the Kansas Suite and adopting Kansas Cottey students. A QR code and/or web page link will be used to each page. These can be found at the end of this article and will be emailed to local chapter presidents.
Kansas Suite:
Two chapters will be able to adopt the Kansas Suite each month from September to May. As in the past, it is up to each chapter what they wish to do for the suite.
Kansas Cottey Students:
Three chapters will be able to adopt each Kansas student. When adopting a Kansas student, you will sign up for a particular three-month period. As in the past, it is up to each chapter what they wish to do for the student.
Suggestions:
There are no set monetary requirements or goods requirements. We do ask that you send something once a month. Items can include, but are not limited to, cards, notes of encouragement, snack, drink mixes, Cottey cash, gift cards, decorations, etc. Please do not send cash as this can affect the students’ scholarships.
We are also asking that you include a self-addressed stamped thank you card, email or phone number so the suite mates or student can thank you for your gifts. As you know, today’s students don’t usually have access to thank you notes, stamps, etc., so an email or text will allow them to thank you in a timely manner.
Instructions:
Beginning on September 1, 2024, the Adopt the Kanas Suite SignUp Genius will be available. To access this signup, you can scan the QR code with your smart phone or tablet or click on the web link next to the code. You will then be able to sign up for the month you would like to adopt.
Beginning September 15,2024, the Adopt Kansas Cottey Students SignUp Genius page will be available. To access this signup, scan the QR code or click on the web link next to the code. You will then be able to select the student you wish to adopt, as well as the three month period in which you would like to send items to the student.
If you have questions please contact Meg Carte, chair of the KCCS Adopt Cottey program, atkscpeocotteyadopt@gmail.com.
SignUp Genius is an online software tool used to create sign-up sheets and organize volunteers. It does not require a volunteer to create an account in order to sign up for something. However, you must enter your name and email address in order to sign up for a specific spot on either of the Adopt Cottey pages.
Links and QR codes for the Kansas Suite and Kansas Students
How can a member of the Sunflower board connect with you or your chapter?
It’s actually pretty easy. You can find answers to your questions and all the forms needed to sponsor an individual on the P.E.O Kansas website (peokansas.org) by going to the “Projects” tab and selecting “Kansas Sunflower Grants” from the dropdown menu. Applications are due October 1, 2024, so there is still plenty of time to find someone in need and complete the necessary forms. Remember: it is open to any man, woman, or child who is a permanent resident of Kansas.
The Sunflower board members are more than willing to give a program about Sunflower Grants to your chapter or just do a brief project report. Members are located in Olathe (Debby Brewer, GR), McPherson (Debbi Eickbush, AY), Topeka (Margaret Jones, HW), Great Bend (Dee Holman, IV) and Ottawa (Rita Nienstedt, AU). The contact information can be found on the P.E.O. Kansas website by going to the “Leadership” tab, selecting “Leadership Team” and then clicking on the “Sunflower Grants” button. Please contact us to set up a date to share with your chapter!
Take time to look around you to find those who might be in need of our help and hope!