May 1, 2006

Biannual Newsletter

Alpha Kappa Kappa built in 1925 is located at 339 Teeters Court, Iowa City, Iowa 52246. It currently has 25 single rooms.

Greetings Alumni!

This is the first newsletter of what we hope will become a biannual newsletter tradition. We hope to keep past AKK alumni up to date on what is going on and to develop a continuity between students and alumni similar to the relationship other fraternities enjoy in hopes that the 81 year tradition will live on here at AKK. The national Alpha Kappa Kappa fraternity was formed in 1889 at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. The University of Iowa Chapter (then the State University of Iowa) was founded in 1921 with the AKK house being built in 1925. The Alpha Kappa Kappa national chapter went defunct around 1962 but many chapters, including the one at the University of Iowa, survived. Although a majority of residents of AKK continue to be medical students, in recent years AKK has become home to many health science students, including dental students and public health students. AKK is also proud to be home to many visiting students. Throughout this past academic year AKK has been home to Charlotte Haguan a biomedical engineering student from Karolinska Institute, Sweden,

Jon Rodger, a fourth year medical student from the University of Texas on a rotation in Child Psychiatry, and Simon Fung, a student from Oxford participating in a rotation in ophthalmology. The community of AKK continues to be strengthened by a diverse array of students.

Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine or Hogwarts?

                 By Bryan Steussy, M1

The Medical Education and Research Facility (MERF) was completed in 2002.

If you haven’t been to Iowa City in the past four years the College of Medicine has a new home. The Medical Education and Research Facility (MERF) houses the College of Medicine as well as the four learning

communities which have become nationally renowned, just like Harry Potter. When students arrive at Hogwarts for the first time they are assigned into a specific house in which the remain for the duration of their education at Hogwarts, similarly each medical student is assigned to a learning community upon entrance to the college of medicine in which they remain for the duration of their medical education. The learning communities have student governments as well as mentor programs and community service activities. There are four identical pods for each community located in MERF as well as physical exam rooms complete with video cameras so students can critique their own examination and history taking skills, small group rooms, atrium, café, computer lab, and student lounge with plenty of couches to nap on.

Physical exam room located in MERF complete with a video camera (above the cupboard in this picture) so students can self evaluate their own history taking and physical exam skills.