Phi Kappa Psi - University of Iowa

A Generous Start A Generous Start David Theobald '98 on Receiving the First Kinnick Scholarship The hawkeye Iowa alpha Chapter of phI Kappa psI • fall 2023 INSIDE: BeComIng lIKe nIle pg 2 any Brother Can get Involved pg 3 save the date pg 4 David with his family. David (right) with Bill Newgard '98 in Kansas City for the 2023 NFL Draft. A s the first in his family to attend a four- year college, David Theobald '98 was applying for any scholarship he could find at the University of Iowa. He stumbled upon a new one called the Nile C. Kinnick Scholarship, offered by Phi Kappa Psi. David applied, got to know Iowa Alpha's recruitment leaders over the summer, and the rest was history. David not only became a Phi Psi Brother, but he was the first recipient of the Kinnick Scholarship, which earned him $500 to help with textbooks. "It was a great way to get incoming freshmen interested in the Greek system and to market the Fraternity," David said. "The scholarship was proof of Iowa Alpha's strong stance on being good students in addition to having fun, which was super important to me." ROOM TO GROW UI was much bigger than David's high school, and going through recruitment and joining Phi Psi seemed like the best way to broaden his social circle. He was right: while David was already confident in the classroom, the brotherhood helped improve his social skills and networking capabilities. "At the time it was a fairly small Chapter, and it felt like a place where I could immediately get involved and make a difference—both in the Fraternity and the broader Iowa Greek community," he said. STILL RISING TO THE CHALLENGE Professionally, David has been in the IT field for approximately 22 years from consulting to developing, product management, and more. He's spent over 15 of those years at Akamai Technologies, where he is currently a director of product management. "We design, build, and deploy cutting-edge technology to help our customers provide their end users with top performance and security," he explained. "Akamai serves over 30% of the world's internet traffic! It's very nerdy but addictingly challenging work at a global scale." WHAT'S NEXT? From weddings and golf trips to Iowa tailgates, David has kept up with multiple era Brothers through the years. He also loves playing golf and tennis, spending time with his wife, Jessica, and two kids, Addison and Morgan (plus in- laws and Brothers in the Des Moines area), and following his kids' many club sports. David can't wait to see Iowa Alpha's continued success and encourages Brothers to get involved on campus and live out the Creed daily. "Dream big, but keep taking small steps in the right direction each day." "I hope the Kinnick Scholarship continues to grow and expand into the future," he added. "It's a great way to find like-minded students who will provide additive value to the brotherhood." You can find David at dctheobald@gmail.com. Learn more about this year's Kinnick Scholarship on page 2! Have you visited with your Iowa Alpha Brothers? Submit your photos to our Dropbox here bit.ly/pkpiaphotoupload, and they may be featured in the next issue of The Hawkeye! SCAN ME

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