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Personal Reflection/Anecdote

DKG Visionary Networks:

Connecting Members and

Adding Value to Membership

By Janis Antonek and Becky Riebeling

As an organization, DKG has a goal to recruit key women
educators as early in their career as possible and to retain
them as active members as long as they are physically
able to attend meetings—after which they are encouraged
to remain members with “reserve” status. This longevity
of membership creates a dual profile of members: women
who are professionally active and those who are retired.
Meeting the needs and interests of both cohorts can be
challenging for the organization.
In November 2023, The Delta Kappa Gamma
Society International (DKG) released the Avenue M
Implementation Research Report. DKG is committed to
recruiting, engaging, and retaining members and, like
many professional organizations today, is struggling
with retention in particular. The report, developed by
the 2022–2024 Administrative Board, provides an action
Co-facilitators Becky Riebeling (left) and plan to address recruitment, engagement, and retention.
Janis Antonek (right) share ideas at the 2024 Phase 1 of the plan began January 2024 and included
International Convention. a component to develop “thinking groups,” initially
called “DKG Masterminds: A Visionary Network.” Two
types of Visionary Networks were conceptualized: one focusing on a professional topic and the second
focusing on personal enrichment. The professional pilot network was focused on “K-2 literacy.” The
personal enrichment pilot network was focused on “cell phone photography.” The Visionary Networks,
with professional and personal enrichment strands, are one approach to
providing engagement options for DKG members at varying stages in
their personal and professional lives.
Both cohorts hosted an initial meeting for their respective
network participants and then were charged with hosting at least
four virtual meetings between April and June 2024. Prior to the
initial meetings, facilitators received a profile of participants
for their network, noting state organization membership, status
(active or reserve), and experience with the topic. In the initial
online meeting, facilitators and participants established group
norms, meeting times, and format for content delivery. The online
format made it possible for members from any DKG chapter to
participate. Herein, as co-facilitators of The Cell Phone Photography
Network, we reflect on our experience in this pilot program.

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