Meet Trustee Vicki Ryan, Zeta Pi
During this summer’s virtual Foundation Business Session, three new members joined the Foundation Board of Trustees and we’re excited for you to get to know them better. Wrapping up our #TrusteeTuesday series to showcase these fantastic leaders is Trustee Vicki Ryan!
There are many incredible organizations that are worthy of your time and talents. Why is it important to you to serve on the Phi Mu Foundation Board of Trustees?
I’m very grateful to Phi Mu and the Foundation for its hand in my education with a graduate counselor scholarship and for early leadership opportunities to serve in Fraternity and Foundation Board offices. I want to support the Foundation’s grant work to fund leadership programs and women speakers that teach Phi Mus about building self-confidence and developing the courage to speak up in work settings. We need more women at the table, making decisions in career fields and it’s critical to develop the leadership skills that empower women to express their voices.
What is your favorite Phi Mu Foundation fundraising campaign and why?
The annual Day of Giving or as I like to think of it ’18 Hours and 52 Minutes’ of fun! It’s so interesting to see the different Challenge Gifts that are created. Tuesday, October 27th will be the fourth year for this program and the Challenge Gifts get more creative each year. I like that the program targets one day with lots of advanced communication for us to get ready, then fun social media reminders during the event, followed by the successful results of the day which are known immediately!
On top of many Phi Mu accomplishments, each of you has also experienced remarkable professional success. Tell us more about your career and how experiences from Phi Mu and your professional life have overlapped.
As a Chapter President and Greek leader on my university campus, I learned how to plan projects, motivate others, manage budgets, interact with university officials, and have a voice. Every one of those experiences was put to use as I grew my career in marketing and product management in a large technology corporation. In particular, forming connections with Phi Mus and building friendships with a variety of people were the groundwork for learning how to network and build partnerships in the working world.
Picture this: you’re on the TV show Shark Tank and have the opportunity to pitch the millionaire panel for 30 seconds on why they should invest in Phi Mu Foundation. What do you say?
If you are not yet contributing to a nonprofit Foundation that empowers the women in your life you are missing the boat. If you are looking for a well-established philanthropy that supports your sister or daughter or granddaughter to learn lifelong leadership skills, you should look no further. Through Foundation grants to Phi Mu Fraternity, the women in your life will become educated for the real world about what it takes to be a leader and even have a chance to experience those opportunities at an early age. And those lessons become the first step towards successful careers!
What do you hope will be the headline for the Foundation’s progress for 2020-21?
Phi Mu Foundation Breaks a Record for the Number of New Donors to our Giving Programs!
Phi Mu has given me so much through the years, beginning as a collegian and continuing through today. From leadership opportunities to emphasizing the importance of service and philanthropy to providing a supportive place of community in the Beta Eta chapter and as I’ve moved around the country in the years that followed. As well, I was a Phi Mu Foundation scholarship recipient while at Miami. I believe in the purpose of Phi Mu Foundation and I am passionate about giving back to our sisterhood that I love because of all it has given me.
I have worked for over 27 years at one of the world’s leading entertainment companies. I have held leadership positions of increasing responsibility spanning operations, workforce management and project management. The professional experiences and business acumen, acquired during this time, have aligned nicely and complimented my volunteer roles within Phi Mu including my current service within Phi Mu Fraternity National Council as a National Vice President. Leadership skills including team collaboration, influence, communication, delegation, sound judgment, financial management and strategic planning have been applicable in both worlds!
We live in unique and difficult times. We are challenged as individuals and as Greek organizations. Maintaining and enhancing the financial strength of Phi Mu Foundation during this next year is critical so that we can best serve our members now and in the future. I encourage all Phi Mus to make a contribution during one or more of our annual fundraising campaigns. As well, if not a member of a Giving Program, joining Rose & White ($20 monthly) is a great place to start. If already a Giving Program member, please consider enhancing your gift by increasing your program level. Your gifts today ensure that together with Phi Mu Foundation, our legacy will remain strong for generations of Phi Mus to come!
Although I am proud to have shared time and talent with other worthy organizations, nothing compares to the love I have for our sisterhood. Professionally, I believe Phi Mu led me to a career in public relations/community relations with non-profit agencies and corporations because I wanted my work to be meaningful and helpful to others.That desire to make a difference led me to my current job as a writer. Personally, Phi Mu has given me so many gifts, especially in the form of truly special sisters. Whether serving on the Phi Mu Foundation scholarship committee, Fraternity ritual committee or as an alumnae department officer or chapter adviser, I have been tremendously blessed and inspired by my Phi Mu sisters. I can think of no better way to show my gratitude, my love and appreciation to Phi Mu than to serve as a Phi Mu Foundation Trustee. Sisters helping Sisters wraps my desire to help others and my love of our sisterhood into one special package with a giant pink bow on top!
I left my career temporarily to homeschool my daughter, Jillian, EN, and senior at Oklahoma State, due to her vision problems. During those elementary years, we discovered a successful treatment for her in the form of vision therapy. I wondered why there was so little information available for a lay audience and decided to write about her experience. Jillian’s Story: How Vision Therapy Changed My Daughter’s Life and Dear Jillian: Vision Therapy Changed My Life Too were published in 2011 and 2014. I currently work for Bristol Marketing Group in Los Angeles, from my home office in Oklahoma, supporting the optometric community. Phi Mu sisters around the world reach out to me with questions about vision therapy and for help in finding an optometrist for someone they know in need. My absolute favorite, unexpected Phi Mu professional overlap took place at an optometry conference in Birmingham, England. I was introduced to a Phi Mu sister/optometrist by a mutual friend. You will be thrilled to know, although neither of us knew this opportunity was coming, we were both wearing pink!
