Extreme Makeover: College Edition

Be the Change Day is an event that takes place annually and is organized by Hands On, a Bay Area organization. There were 21 projects all around the Bay Area at locations like parks, homeless shelters, and schools on this day. PTK choose to volunteer on the project site Transform First Step for Families on this day. Our group helped paint apartments, move furniture, and painted outdoor sheds in a shelter that provides housing to families that are trying to transition to permanent housing. Because of our volunteering this day two families were able to move in that weekend. We also saved the shelter network $7500 and 25 gallons of paint. We were able to give back to our community while doing this project and helped families in need. By beatifying the First Step for Families’ shelter, families would feel more like they are living in a home not just a shelter.

Kiva Project

The project was introduced by our adviser Paul Roscelli. After his suggestion we watched a video that explained how Kiva works.



Kiva is the world's first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend directly to unique entrepreneurs in the developing world.

After doing a little more research the chapter decided to lend $700 dollars to two entrepreneurs.


So far we have lent $350 dollars to Bifotima Kimsanova in Tajikistan.
For more information about Bifotima and view her profile you can go to
http://www.kiva.org/app.php?page=businesses&action=about&id=58950

Bifotima will take 6 months to pay us back, during those six months we will be able to see updates about her and her business in Kiva's website!
The remaining $350 dollars will be lent to another entrepreneur.

Recruiting of Under Represented Students

In collaboration with our college's CEBT program, a program design to get first generation non English speakers into school, our members worked a Saturday afternoon in May in the community . The chapter talked to the group of potential honor students.

Save the Bay

August 16th, 2008 Astrid, Rene and Isaiah volunteered to help weed and restore the bay at San Frascisquito Creek. They learned that by removing non-native plants, native plants could grow and other native plants can be planted. Three main reasons why weeding and restoring the bay is important are to prevent flooding, help restore wildlife habitat and help filter the water before it reaches the bay. The cleaning of non-native plants also creates a better habitat for endangered species in the marsh, like the salt marsh mouse. First, they went to a nursery and planted some native plants and learned that after those tiny plants grow, they were going to be planted in that area. They planted around 700 tiny native plants of all kinds. After that they proceeded to another part of the marsh to start weeding. They collected a lot of bags full of non-native plants, which were going to be given to the Rangers of the park. Sometimes the weeds are made into fertilizer for plants. This was the second time that PTK participated in one of these events with save the bay. On June 28th 2008, Denise and Rene participated in the event for the first time. However, the first time they participated they did not get to go to the nursery. They only helped get rid of non-native plants and collected 45 bags full of non-native and invasive species. The clean up helps protect native species, and keeps wetlands restored. We were not only able to help in our community but also in creating a better environment for all by participating in this event.

Save the Bay Research

In order to made our Save the Bay Project a scholarly event, Kayla, our Vice President of Scholarship, did research on animals common to the area we would volunteering at. She discovered that there were two native species in danger of extinction and lived only in these marsh lands. The two animals were the Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse and the California Clapper Rail.

Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse:
• Tiny, nocturnal rodent that lives in San Francisco Bay wetlands and only along the bay
• Among the smallest rodents in the US
• Bodies are less than three inches long and weigh less than a nickel
• Tails can be as long or longer than their bodies and they have grooved teeth
• Eat seeds, grasses, pickle weed and insects
• Bodies specially adapted to tolerate high concentrations of salt in food and water
• Known to drink and survive on salt water for long periods of time
• Live in dense pickle weed for hiding from natural predators like the California Clapper Rail
• Very good swimmers and climbers, but can live as long as a year
• Don’t reproduce quickly
• Most females bear only four young in a litter and have only one litter in their lifetime.

California Clapper Rail:
• A shy and elusive bird
• Endangered species native to San Francisco Bay
• Males and females look almost identical and are 1 to 1.5 feet long
• Once lived in coastal marshes throughout central and northern California but now are only found along the San Francisco bay
• Live in salt water and brackish marshes and tidal sloughs
• Prefer a habitat of card grass and pickle weed
• Use bright orange beak to obtain in their favorite foods, including worms, mussels, fish and crabs from the mud during low tides during long tides
• Known to munch on an occasional small bird or mammal like the Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse.
• Compared to Chickens in size, shape and maneuverability
• Often seen at very high or low tides
• Rely on wetlands for protection and isolation from predators
• Lay their eggs on the ground in a shallow nest of dead marsh grasses

Summer Planning Session

This was the last summer planning session that was used to set the day and time of our weekly meetings and finalize what we were doing in the fall semester. We left the session excited for the start of the semester and a good foundation of what we wanted to do in the semester. The summer planning sessions allowed the officers to come together and make decisions for the upcoming semester.

Leadership Summer Planning Session

This summer planning session was dedicated to leadership. We spent the session learning more about what leadership is and how to better incorporate it with all the events we put on. This session was run by our Vice President of Leadership, Victoria. It was a great session that only taught us more about Leadership, but helped bring all the officers closer.