Zeta Kappa - University of Minnesota

At the Zeta Kappa Chapter (Minneapolis) of Psi Omega, we ended the year with a send-off party for an exchange student, Mette Christensen, who came for the fall from Denmark. She exchanged places with one of our house residents who studied abroad in the Netherlands for the semester. She was a great addition to the house and kept us interested with her stories from back home and how the world of dentistry differs there.

January brought with it our annual trip to the ski slopes of Lutsen Mountains. Each year we rent a townhouse on the hills for a weekend. Lots of socializing, as well as a bit of skiing and relaxing kept our crew of 15 busy.

Then in March, a snowstorm shut down the Dental School for the afternoon, sending patients and students home. So, off to the yard we all went to relive our younger years. Many hours later, a ten-foot igloo, snow chair, and snowman stood proudly in the front yard of the Psi-O house. We had quite the time.

This spring we reformed our Psi-O kickball team from the fall, the “Playground Bullies” and joined the Minneapolis adult park and rec league. Although our record may not have reflected it, we had a great time!

In April, Krista Roquette, one of our house managers, and alumni Dr. Bob Kochenderfer, attended the National Conclave meeting in St. Louis. They came back with some great stories, new friends, and lots of new ideas for fundraising, social events, etc.

For fundraising this spring, we again sold Happenings books, which are filled with coupons for local businesses. We also set up a table at school and sold safety glasses, thanks to the idea of a fellow Psi-O that Krista talked to at the Conclave! And they were a hit. We have already ordered more and plan to sell them in the fall when the new first years arrive. All proceeds from the Happenings books and safety glasses went to the Union Gospel Mission, a local indigent dental clinic where members volunteer their services.

The Dental School just recently finished its year-long facelift of the preclinical labs. The new Simulation Clinics opened in April and come complete with virtual reality-based simulators that display 3-D images and numeric measurements that change in real time as tooth structure is removed. They also plan to use these new clinics for the senior typodont portion of the Boards this fall.

As we move into the summer, we look forward to a new year, and anticipate the move-in of 4 new first year students into our fraternity house!

Our kickball team, the Playground Bullies,
as we psych ourselves up for a big game

A March snowstorm closes the Dental School
and sends house residents out into the yard
for some snow fort building.

Psi O members from across the country gather in St. Louis for the National Conclave Meeting in April

The new Simulation Clinics are up and running after a year of construction

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