Alpha Chi Omega - University of Kansas

T hroughout her time as an Alpha Chi Omega, Johanna maska '00 has been an example of what it means to be a real, strong woman. The four years she spent at Phi Chapter gave her a chance to grow and learn from a group of driven, inspiring women. That mentorship helped Johanna become who she is today and develop a successful career, including eight years as an aide to President Barack Obama in his campaign and the White House. "When I participated in recruitment, it was Alpha Chi Omega women who led a real conversation—about my major, what I wanted out of college, what I was hoping to do," Johanna says. "I was lucky to join a phenomenal group of women who inspired me to believe in myself and the change I could bring about with hard work and dedication." During college, Johanna studied journalism and history and got involved as an officer in Phi Chapter. Some of her favorite memories are of times spent talking with the chef, Mark, and Mom Pat. Alpha Chi Omega gave Johanna the opportunity to learn from her sisters, and she remembers working on a student body president campaign with one of them and learning about hard work and facing setbacks. "I learned that all of these women were fantastically strong and all had something to offer," Johanna says. "It was a respectful, supportive community that made me stronger, and I'm still proud of the success of many of my Alpha Chi Omega sisters." After Johanna left KU, she spent eight years working for President Obama as a White House aide. She traveled with him to 40 countries and more than 40 states, managing his public image for both elections. Johanna moved with her family to California, first joining the Los Angeles Times as a marketing executive and then making the transition to technology where she's an advisor to Karmic Labs, Percena, and Fairygodboss. She consults on other initiatives and lectures at USC. "I knew technology was changing the world, and I wanted to see change in that sector from the ground up as I had in politics. With Karmic, I joined an early-stage venture-backed company and it opened my eyes to entrepreneurship and innovation. I cofounded the Women's Advisory Council with executive women in San Francisco to give more women more opportunity to find mentors in technology, which led to our upcoming launch of Percena.com," Johanna says. "I'm loving this life of optimism, finding ways we can make our communities stronger. But I'm also really enjoying having time with my son. The richness of having a life outside of work has made any other accomplishments worth it." Although it has been difficult to stay in touch with Phi Chapter, Johanna still believes the mentorship she found there is the core to her success. Being a role model to other women is important to her. "I believe in being a good mentor and learning from others. Alpha Chi Omega was central to that," Johanna says. "My advice is to dream big dreams and know that it's a lot of work to get there. If you believe in yourself, nothing can stop you." Johanna is married to Henry "CJ" Jackson, fellow Jayhawk and author of Politico's Daily Blast. They have one son. Her e-mail is johanna. maska@gmail.com. Johanna maska '00 thankful for lessons learned at Phi Chapter I believe in being a good mentor and learning from others. Alpha Chi Omega was central to that. " " A s another year draws to a close, I wanted to tell you a little bit about what Phi has been doing over the last semester! PHILantHroPy anD CommunIty ServICe effortS This year's Mr. Alpha Chi philanthropy event was very successful, and we raised over $5,000 to donate to our local domestic violence center, The Willow. It was held on April 5 at the Lied Center. We had 14 men from different fraternities on campus compete in rounds of talent, outfit of choice, and question. In addition to hosting this event, we have also held several drives to collect products such as toiletries to donate to the shelter. On top of the funds and items raised in these events, we paired with Phi Delta Theta to decorate cookies and make cards to bring to the shelter for Valentine's Day. memBerSHIP uPDate This spring, our recruitment team participated in informal recruitment and extended bids to six women who were initiated on March 30. We were so excited to welcome them into the sisterhood! Our recruitment team is already in full swing preparing for fall formal recruitment with workshops and dress checks, and we are all gearing up to recruit our 102nd class. CHaPter aCtIvItIeS This semester has been filled with a lot of fun events, the most recent being our Mom's Weekend on April 8-10. The brunch was at the Oread, where we did a slideshow of events from the past year, an auction of items donated by the mothers, and a photo booth! Thank you to all the moms who came out and donated—the women really enjoyed the event! This semester, we also celebrated Hera Day by having a sisterhood event at Sunfire Ceramics, where members picked out different ceramic pieces and got to paint them. In addition to these events, a few of my favorite outings included roller skating and attending a Royals game together! Phi has had such a great semester and year, and a lot of what we do would not have been possible without your support. The women, and myself, cannot thank you enough! Phi's doors are always open to alumnae—we love to see sisters from previous pledge classes come back to visit. Loyally, Brittany Biel '14 Chapter President axophi.chapterpresident@gmail.com (913) 271-0758 Phi Chapter Proud of successful semester members raise over $5,000 for Philanthropy Jessica Cohen '15 and her mom enjoying our Mom's Day activities in April.

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