The strong stance on sexual misconduct prevention is in line with Phi Delta Theta’s organizational commitment to cultivate responsible young men on college campuses. Nearly 15 years ago, Phi Delta Theta implemented its Alcohol-Free Housing policy, a policy that has both championed responsible behavior and resulted in safer environments for its members and guests. The implementation of Taking a Stand will further develop Phi Delta Theta chapters as valuable assets to the campuses and communities where they exist and empower them to fight the battle against sexual assault.

The Taking A Stand workshop is a half-day program that will be conducted at each campus with all members in attendance by the Fraternity’s staff and a selected group of volunteers during 2015 and then every other year moving forward. Additionally, the Fraternity has committed to provide additional prevention components to all of its in-person educational programs moving forward.

For more information on the implementation of this important initiative contact Associate Executive Vice President Sean Wagner.

The post Phi Delta Theta “Taking a Stand” Against Sexual Misconduct on College Campuses appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

Dr. Kent J. Gardner is a member of Kappa Alpha Order, Order of Omega and Omicron Delta Kappa. He served the international Greek honorary organization, Order of Omega, as Executive Director for over 40 years, and now holds the title of Executive Director Emeritus. He was also a very active, long-time member of NASPA, the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators.

Dr. Gardner has committed over 50 years to fraternity and sorority life through his leadership in his own fraternity, Kappa Alpha Order, and throughout his professional career. Through those years, he has not only mentored many students and young professionals in his role as Dean of Students, and later as Vice President for Student Affairs, but inspired countless young men and women throughout the country to challenge themselves to be the best Greek leaders they could possibly be. He has been a visible and vocal advocate for the benefits of the entire fraternity and sorority community.

Through hundreds of workshops and seminars and countless conversations with undergraduate students and FSL advisors, he focuses on leadership and ethical behavior as he continues to be an advocate for fraternity and sorority life. He has played a vital role in establishing an international organization to honor other outstanding men and women for their leadership and commitment to Greek communities and recognizing the positive aspects that come from their contributions to their communities.

When Kent was given the charge of overseeing Order of Omega, he was given a file with seven folders representing the total number of chapters and a checkbook with a balance of $50.00. Today, the national Order of Omega has 548 chapters in the United States and Canada and initiates over 11,000 members annually. Through his leadership, the organization established a scholarship and fellowship program, chapter awards program and programming grants for individual Omega chapters. Since the first program was established in 1984, Order of Omega has awarded $1.2 million in scholarships, fellowships and award monies.

Just a few of Kent’s accomplishments include:

• Robert H. Shaffer Award – 1993
• NASPA Pillar of the Profession Award – 2005
• North American Interfraternity Conference Silver Medal – 2008
• SEPC Distinguished Service Award – 2009
• NGLA Guenzler Award – 2013
• AFA Kent L. Gardner Award – 2013

For his lifelong and continuous support of the Greek community, it is with great pleasure and appreciation that Phi Delta Theta International Fraternity honors Dr. Kent J. Gardner with the Order of the Sword & Shield.

The post Phi Delta Theta Presents Order of the Sword & Shield To Order of Omega’s Dr. Kent Gardner appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

By Robyn Brock

Eight years.  That’s how long I have been working in Greek Life at Florida State.  Eight years.  Where did the time go?  How is it that I am still working with fraternities and sororities?  I came to FSU for graduate school after serving my sorority as a Leadership Consultant.  Fast forward about two and half years to the time when my now mentor, Dr. Adam Goldstein, asked me to work in Greek Life for six months in an interim capacity.  After two weeks of thinking about it, I decided to do it.  After all, I could do anything for six months, right?

At the end of the six months, I wasn’t ready to be done with Greek Life.  Here I am eight years later and still not ready to be done.  In our field, we see professionals changing jobs every few years.  We often see professionals burn out of working in fraternity and sorority advising.  I have colleagues on campus and in the field who tell me that they would never want my job.  Well, I’m glad they don’t want my job because as difficult as it is and as hard as we work, I still love what I do…most days.

I certainly do not have all the answers.  I can only share with you some of things I have learned—often the hard way—and hope that they offer some insight.  Some of the strategies I use to manage expectations, time and my life are as follows:

Redefine burn out for yourself.  As new professionals, we often throw ourselves into our work.  We immerse ourselves in meetings, events and committees.  Part of this stems from an eagerness to learn and prove our worth as professionals.  Part of it is that many of us were leaders and overly involved as undergraduates so we continue the same pattern.  While our intentions are generally noble, we often fail to recognize that we are investing too much emotionally and physically.  Yes, we should give 100%.  Yes, we should work hard.  No, we should not work to the point that we cannot be effective.  As a new professional, my image of burn out was a bitter, grumpy, ineffective person who had worked too long in the profession.  Much to my surprise, I have had to redefine this for myself.

My view of burn out now is me after working too many evening events and meetings while also managing a crisis, departmental demands, and student politics.  This is not to say that I function as someone who is burned out; it is to clarify that I believe professionals need to recognize and acknowledge that burn out can be temporary and reversed.  I have learned and continue to learn how to recognize what the symptoms are for me as I continue working in this field.  When I find myself starting to be short tempered, irritated and not remembering why I do what I do, this is when I know I need some time.  Call it comp time or balance time or whatever, just learn to recognize when you need it.  Which leads me to my next point…

Take care of yourself.  This generally means something different for everyone.  For me, this means that I spend time with family and friends and also take some alone time.  I also love reading, baking, red wine, and shopping.  When I can combine any of these with friends and family, then I feel like I hit the jackpot.  We often spend so much time investing in others that we forget to invest in ourselves.  I try to do something every day to take care of myself.  It certainly does not always happen, but I do have a greater awareness of this need.

I also have to own that in our field this is not always possible.  As the Panhellenic Recruitment Advisor this past year, I can tell you with certainty that at least during the week of recruitment, I did not take care of myself as well as I could have.  I stayed at the hotel most of the week with our recruitment staff and slept nowhere near enough.  For me, I knew going into recruitment that I would not have as much time for myself so I made sure I took time for me after recruitment. I do my best to make this a priority before and after work intensive times like Panhellenic recruitment.  While I do not always make this happen, I have learned that I need to do this to be effective in my work.

Don’t let your job define your life. Seriously.  You are more than the work you do.  So am I.  Each person is a community member, family member, friend, colleague, and so much more.  It is important to have identities outside of your job.   Be intentional about cultivating your involvement outside the office.

The reality of our work is that we could be in the office 24 hours a day, 7 days week and there would still be work to do.  I think it our responsibility to help students maintain proper perspectives.  How many times do we see students needing to meet with us because there is a crisis?  Only to learn, when we move our schedules around to meet with them, that the crisis is they can’t find a venue for the chapter philanthropy.  If you are nodding in agreement now, then let me ask you: how do you maintain your perspective?

Inevitably, professionals in fraternity and sorority advising will work with students through some type of crisis.  I can list a number of crises I have worked with from student deaths to sexual assault allegations to charter suspensions.  I believe that if I allowed my job to define me that I would not be able to work through these issues within Greek Life with proper perspective.  If your job alone defines who you are, so can the student successes and failures.  We cannot be defined as professionals based on the student experience.

As I write this, I think about what I have learned and the people who have impacted my life.  I have thought about moments in my career that I will always keep with me—good and bad.  At the end of the day, I have found a profession where I continue to grow and learn while working with students, staff, faculty, advisors, headquarters staff and a variety of other constituents to enhance the fraternity experience.  As I continue to attempt to take care of myself while not burning out, I will do my best to remember why I do what I do: I believe in the positive potential of the fraternity/sorority experience.

Robyn Brock earned her Bachelor’s degree in Communication from the University of Tennessee and her Master’s degree in Higher Education from Florida State University.  She has obviously worked at Florida State for a combined eight years as the Assistant Director and now the Assistant Dean/Director of Greek Life.  In her volunteer life, Robyn serves as the Assistant Executive Director for the Southeaster Panhellenic Association and on the Kappa Kappa Gamma NPC delegation.  Robyn loves spending time with her husband and their four-year old son, Jackson.  She also enjoys drinking red wine, doing a little shopping, traveling with family and friends, and reading a good book. 

The post Eight Years and Counting appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

I’ve never agreed with the formal definition of ‘binge drinking,’ I think it limits the debate and understanding of what problem drinking really is. The CDC defines binge drinking as four or five drinks in two hours. A few weeks ago I went to a baseball game with my father. Throughout the game he and I had two 16-ounce beers each. After the game we went to a bourbon bar across the river and each had a glass of bourbon, maybe an ounce apiece. I’m sure that by official definition my father and I were both binge drinking that evening. My father is in his 50’s, and baseball, beer and bourbon is just an interest we both share. And I am not about to tell a successful, healthy, 50-year-old man that having some drinks during and after a baseball game with his son is a bad idea. Neither of us were reckless that evening. And it’s not like as soon as we crossed the threshold of that fourth drink that we all of a sudden were exponentially more likely to do something ridiculous, like heave hotel furniture off a fourteenth floor balcony. Even if we did decide to end our evening by throwing hotel furniture off of a fourteenth floor balcony, I can assure you that our decision to do so was heavily influenced by something other then the few drinks we had at a baseball game.

To often do I feel that Alcohol Awareness is accompanied by terms like “binge drinking” and other numbers and statistics used to describe the habits of college students. When we bombard students with these numbers it is easier to ignore them, then to try and decipher their meaning.

I think we need to change the way we think about what alcohol awareness is and what problem drinking really means. Alcohol Awareness is not shouting numbers and stats at students. And though that may not be it’s intent, as a recent college graduate I can promise you that’s what it can feel like. Alcohol Awareness needs to be used as a platform to facilitate some sort of internal dialogue with each individual student. The problems that students experience due to their alcohol consumption cannot always be defined by numbers, rather, they are defined by actions.

When I was in college I was a serious problematic drinker. But because of these numbers it was easy for me to watch the behavior of my peers and decide that my drinking, in fact, was not problematic. Everyone around me was drinking the same as I was. What I failed to recognize was that though I was drinking just as much as everyone else I knew, alcohol had a different effect on me than others. One particular quarter my behavior had gotten so out of hand that a friend actually sat me down and told me that he felt I had a drinking problem. I thought about what he was telling me and again I found myself going back to these numbers. Yes, by textbook definition I had a drinking problem, but, by text book definition so did he, and so did the rest of my friends. So why was I being singled out? Through some serious self-evaluation, I realized what he was actually saying. He wasn’t coming to me saying, “Jake, you have a drinking problem and if you’re not careful you could become an alcoholic and die.” What he was saying was “Jake, you have a problem, and when you drink you turn into a punk and a jerk and no one wants to be around you anymore.” If we think about what college students experience as a result of their excessive drinking–vomiting, fighting, drunk driving, drunk texting–we can all agree that these are problems that occur when we drink. Rather then trying to convince college students that problematic drinking is related to the number of drinks they have and the frequency at which they have those drinks, we need to get each student to ask one single question. “Do problems often occur when I drink?” The answer to this question is the definition of problem drinking.

My advice to everyone–students, parents, college administrators, siblings and friends–if there is an individual you are concerned about, do not approach them and use these terms. Because trust me, they’ve all heard it before. Speak their language and give them hard evidence, evidence they cannot ignore or deny. If they are the type person that ends up crying in the corner of every party as soon as they get drunk, that is a problem. If they continually get drunk and decide that it’s a good idea to punch something in the face, that is a problem. If they get drunk and embarrass themselves by trying to sleep with every person that crosses their path, that is a problem.

Alcohol Awareness is taking ownership over your own actions as well as the actions of your peers. It is about eliminating problematic drinking by utilizing the personal relationships we have with one another. And finally it is about creating a better, healthier, safer community on each individual campus. A community where individuals take an active role in the fight against alcohol related harm.

As a 2011 graduate of The Ohio State University, and a member of Delta Tau Delta Fraternity, Jake has just stepped out of unique world that is Fraternity and Sorority Life. Throughout his college career, Jake constantly found himself in harmful situations due to his alcohol consumption. Since graduating, Jake has given his time and efforts to figuring out why he continually put himself in harms way and how could he have prevented many of the tragedies he experienced. Jake is now a speaker for CAMPUSPEAK and has devoted his career to speaking to college students about their alcohol use and how to reduce alcohol-related harm.

The post A Deeper Look Into Alcohol Awareness appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

Happy National Ritual Celebration Week!  If I had to choose the mantra of the fraternal world in vogue these days, it would have to be “Live Your Ritual,” and there is no better time than now to focus on the ideals that our fraternal rituals espouse.

“Living Your Ritual” is a noble thought, but just how does one go about accomplishing this lofty goal?  We know that to be successful in achieving a goal, we must have a plan. One popular example is S.M.A.R.T.  – our goals must be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely.  Are they?

Simply by asking our members to “Live Your Ritual” defies the very first step of achieving our goal.  It is far too vague a command to know exactly what that means and when we have been successful., especially with such a moving, ongoing target.  A better option is to clearly define what our individual organizations ask of our members.  For some, those ideals may be expressed in a Creed; for others, the key concepts may be part of an Initiation oath or pledge.

I will share the example I am most familiar with as Phi Mu’s National Ritual Chairman.  Phi Mu’s Creed sets a standard for members asking them to strive to live loving, honorable, and truthful lives.  We all have a certain idea of what each of these means, but the concepts are still far too vague to be measurable.

What does it mean to be loving?  Phi Mu’s Creed spells out the expectations: “to lend to those less fortunate a helping hand; to think of God as a protector and guide of us all; to keep forever sacred the memory of those we have loved and lost.; to be to others what we would they would be to us; to keep our lives gentle, merciful and just.”

And to be honorable?  By “guarding the purity of our thoughts and deeds; being steadfast in every duty small or large, believing that our given word is binding; striving to esteem the inner man above culture, wealth or pedigree; being honorable, courteous, tender.”

And finally, our members are expected “to serve in the light of truth, avoiding egotism, narrowness and scorn; to give freely of our sympathies.”

I have yet to meet many individuals who can live up to these lofty standards 100% of the time.  I will freely admit that I haven’t, but I also know that I try.  Some may think it silly of me to keep a copy of the Phi Mu Creed on the dresser where I get ready in the mornings, but it serves to remind me of the kind of person I want to be.  We are human beings with human flaws and these are, after all, high expectations.  So have I failed?  Have we failed?  Have our members failed us, or have we failed them?

The Rituals of our fraternal organizations provide a framework for and a picture of the kind of lives we want for our members.  We fail our members by not being specific about our expectations.  Too often, we recruit our members based on one set of standards and expectations (appearance, partying opportunities), then we do a “bait and switch” when it comes to expecting them to live according to our Ritual.  The two are not always in sync.

We fail our members, too, when we do not give them the support and motivation to live our Ritual.  Are we providing opportunities for philanthropic work if that is one of our goals?  Are we holding memorial services for loved ones we have lost?  Are we being the sister/brother to them that we expect them to be to us?  When a member strays from our expectations, are we quick to judge and punish, or do we provide a system to address the unacceptable behavior and provide support for change?  Do we recognize those that are living examples of our expectations?

To make our Ritual goals more tangible and to demonstrate their achievability, we should be allowing time at every meeting for members who have exemplified our ideals to be recognized and applauded.

Our efforts at clearly defining the meaning of “Living Our Ritual” pay off when we see a measurable difference in the number and caliber of members we recruit and in the number of “cases” that must come before our disciplinary boards.  Along the way we may find that for some “Living our Ritual” is not realistic.  Is that a bad thing?  After all, shouldn’t our members have a shared vision of what it means to be a member?

Where do we begin such a monumental task as “Living Our Ritual”?   Let us clearly define what that means and challenge each and every member to invest in our ideals.  Let’s take inventory annually to evaluate our shortcomings and plan for change if needed.  Let’s celebrate success!

If we truly want to change the too-often negative image of Greek life, let’s not only let our Rituals and ideals be known, but let’s “shout it from the mountaintop” that we are organizations truly striving to develop responsible members to lead their families, their communities and the world today and tomorrow.  And we are succeeding!  Let’s not make that a well-kept secret!

Peggy King was initiated into the Alpha Eta Chapter of Phi Mu Fraternity at Louisiana State University in 1969.  She has served as Phi Mu’s National Council Member-at-large, National Alumnae Vice-president, Volunteer Coordinator, Phi Mu Foundation Trustee and as National Ritual Chairman since 2002.   She has received the Fraternity’s Outstanding Alumnae Achievement Award as well as LSU’s Greek Excellence Award and a Leave a Legacy Award in her local community. Peggy holds a B.S. in Spanish, an M.A. in Cultural Anthropology and an MA+30 in Curriculum and Instruction.  She currently teaches Spanish in LSU’s Osher Lifelong Learning  Institute  and is an assessment administrator for Westat, a research company under contract to the U.S. Department of Education.

The post Thoughts on “Living Your Creed” appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

In his book, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, author Stephen Covey states, “By centering our lives on timeless, unchanging principles, we create a fundamental paradigm of effective living.” I am not sure if Stephen Covey is a fraternity man, but I know for sure that this statement exemplifies exactly what is meant when people in the fraternal world say that you need to live your Ritual. As members of fraternities and sororities we have committed ourselves to organizations that were founded upon timeless, unchanging principles and because of the oath that every one of us took when we became members of our organizations, it is our responsibility to live those values all the time, every day.

Before I move forward with sharing some specific ideas of what living your Ritual looks like, let’s first make sure that we are on the same page about the definition of Ritual. I am sure, for the majority of you who are reading this blog, the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear ‘Ritual’ is some sort of ceremony from your chapter – maybe it’s your formal chapter meeting or maybe it’s your initiation. You are probably also thinking, our Ritual is secret, so how am I supposed to live that every day? Well I am not asking you to put on your robe, sing your songs, or re-enact your ceremonies on a daily basis. What I am asking you to do is to think about the meaning of your organization and what those ceremonies teach you about what it means to be the greatest version of yourself. Think about the words you recited in your oath when you committed yourself to your fraternity for the rest of your life. Think about the three Cardinal Principles of Phi Delta Theta: Friendship, Sound Learning, and Rectitude. Speaker Mari Ann Callais defines it best, Ritual = Values = You!

So now that you understand that living your Ritual means living your organization’s values that you committed to, let’s reflect on what that looks like. My good friend and colleague Scott and I have presented several times to students and professionals about this idea of living your Ritual and what it looks like.  We have boiled this idea down to four key categories: knowledge, education, execution, and accountability.

Knowledge. Our Ritual is the one thing that makes our fraternal organizations different from any other organizations on campus and the values and lessons that our own Rituals teach us make our own fraternity or sorority unique from others. It is important for chapters to recognize the importance of learning about your Ritual and making the Ritual readily accessible to all of the members. Members need to embrace the mentality of learning about their Ritual not because they have to but because they want to.  Again, I am not referring to just memorizing the lines, the oath, or learning the handshake. I am talking about facilitating discussions and reflections around what that Ritual teaches us about how we live. It is each of our individual responsibilities to make sure that we really know and understand what our Ritual is teaching us. If the fancy words used in your ceremonies confuse you, take some time to dissect that Ritual and interpret what it means today. Re-writing your oath into your own words will help you to gain a deeper perspective and appreciation for the commitment you have made. The very basics of being able to live your Ritual starts with your knowledge and understanding of what it is you are supposed to be living. So if you aren’t familiar with what your Ritual is telling you about your organization, the first step is to take some time to really read it and reflect on it. If you need help comprehending what your Ritual is telling you, your advisors and International staff members are a great resource to reach out to for clarification and understanding.

Education. Once you gain the knowledge of your Ritual, the next step is to make sure that your chapter is teaching the values of your Ritual to all of your members. Chapters who struggle in this category are unable to teach the values and principles of their organization, lack Ritual training, and have little to no follow-up after Ritual ceremonies are conducted. Many organizations have a post-initiation education session with their new members, but what are you doing to continue to educate all of your members about your Ritual? Why not spend 5 minutes at each chapter meeting picking a different part of your Ritual to review and evaluate as a chapter how individual members and the chapter as a whole is actually living that part of the Ritual? Take a separate line of your oath each week and as a chapter discuss it’s meaning and specific examples of how it can be lived. Remember, it’s not just up to our new initiates to understand this, but every member, so let’s be sure we are educating all of our members on an ongoing basis. Chapters who focus on education consistently train, educate, and discuss Ritual in various settings. Members feel comfortable discussing Ritual and a good deal of time is spent reflecting on what Ritual means to the chapter.

Execution. Once you have gained the knowledge and educated your chapter about your Ritual, it’s up to you and all of your members to live and/or execute the values of your Ritual. You have to “walk the walk” and put values into action. The key thing to understand about execution is that you cannot pick and choose when you want to live those values, they must become such a part of your daily routine that you don’t even have to think twice about them. They need to be just as evident on a Friday or Saturday night as they are on a Tuesday afternoon when you are in class. Think back to those three Cardinal Principles and how they can each be incorporated into your daily actions. Demonstrate your friendship by being there for your brothers when they need your help, and putting them before yourself. Dedicate yourself to sound learning, get out of bed and go to class, participate when you are there, and go up and speak to your professor afterwards. Sound learning isn’t just about getting good grades but it is staying open to new experiences and opportunities that will help you to continue to grow into that greater version of yourself, and that doesn’t end when you leave college. When making decisions about how to spend your time and money, both as an individual and as a chapter, let your moral rectitude guide those decisions. Execution is where the rubber meets the road; our Rituals are not just pretty words on papers, but a call to action and a guide for how we should be living our lives every day.

Accountability.  Perhaps one of the most important aspects of living our Ritual, but often the most neglected, is accountability. I get so frustrated when I meet with chapter presidents and they tell me that there is nothing they can do about members in their chapter who are not paying dues, getting good grades, or whose behavior is destructive to the organization. “I am not their dad,” they say.  Correct, they are not their dads, but they are the president of the organization and each of their members took an oath to uphold the values of their organization. It is up to the leaders, and really all members, to make sure that we are all holding each other accountable for doing what we say we will do when we join our organization. Recognizing members who are living out your values on a regular basis can reinforce accountability among your members.  Each week as you review a line of your oath and discuss examples of what it looks like in practice, take time to recognize members who have demonstrated those values through their actions. This will help positively reinforce the idea of living your Ritual and help other members see how they can do that in their own lives. Additionally, when you see members behaving in ways that are inconsistent your values, you must call them out. Have a conversation; remind them of the commitment they made, help them understand the negative impact it is having on the chapter. So often we get caught up in the rules and policies and only holding members accountable for those. Don’t get me wrong, those are important, but remember: our Ritual is the blueprint for the success of our chapter and its members, so let’s start incorporating that into standards meetings and conversations.

At the end of the day it’s important to remember that we made a lifetime commitment to living our Ritual when we were initiated and that doesn’t end when we graduate from college. As a Phi Delt, friendship, sound learning, and rectitude should always be the principles that serve as your paradigm for effective living.  Our Ritual is not just words on paper to be memorized or recited once or twice a year. If we are really members of our organization we have to put those timeless and unchanging principles at the center of our life every day.

One of my favorite quotes is “when all is said and done, did you say more or do more?” The future of your fraternity and our Inter-fraternal community depends on your ability and willingness to DO more.  It is time for us to stop just saying we stand for these values and actually demonstrating them through our actions every day. Let’s start living our Ritual!

Rachel Westra Marsh currently serves as the Director of Greek Life at the College of Charleston, previous to that she served their community as the Assistant Director of Greek Life for two years. She is originally from Virginia, where she completed her undergraduate studies at Virginia Tech. She spent two years working as a National Consultant for Chi Omega Fraternity before she returned to school to pursue a Master’s Degree in Higher Education and Student Affairs at the University of South Carolina. While pursuing her master’s degree, she served as the graduate assistant for Greek Life as well as Assistant to the Associate Vice President for Student Affairs. Rachel has experience working with NASPA’s Knowledge Community for Sorority/Fraternity Affairs and has given presentations and facilitated at a number of fraternity and sorority conferences. She also serves as a volunteer for Alpha Chi Omega, Beta Theta Pi, Chi Omega, and Sigma Alpha Epsilon.

The post When All Is Said And Done, Did You Say More Or Do More? appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

Getting ready to leave Central America after a week of service with the Association of Fraternal Leadership & Values (AFLV), I felt accomplished, yet saddened to see all my new friends go back to their own homes and communities. Fellow participants that I had only known for the past week or so, felt like they were closer to me than some of the friends that I had back at home. Some of the people I met in El Salvador were so authentic and enlightening, that I could feel nothing but satisfaction to know that because of the work of a handful of Greek students, we forever made a difference in their life.

Going on an immersion trip allows you to see another culture in its entirety and compare it to the culture of your own. For a quick example: as a person from the United States, I often called myself an American, and was shocked when a woman from El Salvador also said, “Soy Americana, tambien” translating to, “I’m American, too.” While something we do not think about, the term American can describe anybody from North America, Central America to South America. While this is a small vernacular difference, it made a difference when I told the woman that we were both Americans and acknowledged the flaw in what I had said.

We all have customs that we are comfortable with and deviating from those customs if often difficult or awkward for us. Most of us have friends and family that we are comfortable, and going on an immersion trip truly questions all aspects of our life. After participating in this trip, I can confidently say that I can more easily question the status quo. It helped me think about how I talked with my peers and how I was speaking with people I did not even know. I recognized and learned about the culture I was visiting as well as my own culture. I felt comfortable and encouraged to be myself in a group of peers whether I was being the chirpy morning person, contemplating and reflecting about my day or if I was sick after accidently drinking the water.

Through the amazing and positive times in Central America, I worked with my peers to make a difference in the lives of many. The close-knit feeling of our volunteer community came quicker than anybody could have expected. I shared some of the most personal aspects of my life with the group that I would typically never share with people after four days of knowing them. The connectedness has continued since the end of the trip, as I have been able to call many of the fellow participants to ask them with help in making decisions through my life and they have been able to do the same for me. After the trip, I found myself in an extended layover in Chicago, and asked a fellow participant if she had a place for me to stay and she opened her doors to me without reservation.

Going on an immersion trip was one of the most eye-opening and amazing experiences I could have asked for. It has allowed me to be a better member of my family, brother in my fraternity, friend and student. It has given me comfort to know that there are individuals spread across the United States that I know I could call for help without hesitation. It has motivated me to challenge the status quo and dream of the impossible.

#WHATIF you could help change the world?

#WHATIF you had friends across the country who you knew would always be there for you?

#WHATIF you dreamed the impossible?

Learn about Phi Delta Theta’s Service Immersion Trip to Honduras this Spring.

Matthew Dempsey is a senior education major at the University of Connecticut and a currently serves as the president of his chapter of Beta Theta Pi Fraternity. He is also a member of the Residence Life Staff at the University of Connecticut.  Matthew participated in the AFLV Immersion Trip to El Salvador in January 2011.

The post Please Fasten Your Seatbelts And Turn Off All Electronic Devices As The Plane Departs appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

During the last four years, I can’t recall the number of times I’ve heard that phrase.  For my most recent boss, the phrase is not only her personal mantra, but also a mantra for how she manages her job, her team and the department of the agency she oversees.  When adopted, it has a noticeable, direct impact on the quality of work we provide our clients.

While I thought I understood what she was talking about the first few times I heard her say it, it wasn’t until much later that I fully realized what it meant, or that my fraternal experience had laid the groundwork for ‘how you do things.’

At the heart of the statement is the idea that no matter how intelligent, smart, correct or otherwise amazing what you are doing is, if you don’t do it in a manner that solves a problem, meets a need or in a manner not consistent with your values, that idea/deed cannot reach its full potential.

Our fraternal experience provides a great foundation for developing the ‘how.’  It teaches us how to be men with a high standard of morality and how to live lives with integrity and accountability. Our fraternal experience also gives us the opportunity to get ahead of our job competition with some very concrete job skills.  From basic skills like how to run a meeting, prepare a budget, and work with a diverse team to more advanced skills like how to be a self-starter, exceeding when no one is holding you accountable and not settling for being average.

While all of these skills and opportunities can be a part of our fraternal experience, they are not given to anyone.  Just being in a fraternity doesn’t automatically mean that you’ll develop these skills.  Full, active participation in your fraternity experience puts you on the path to learning the ‘how’ and puts you at an advantage over your colleagues who didn’t have these same opportunities in college.

When correctly utilized, this experience can be a four-year head start on the competition to not only get the job you are dreaming of, but to also take that job and make it a successful and rewarding experience.

Nick Prihoda is a member of Delta Tau Delta Fraternity and a 1999 graduate of Wabash College.  Nick works as an Account Director on the Nintendo account for Leo Burnett USA, a worldwide advertising agency in Chicago, IL.  Prior to Leo Burnett, Nick spent six years as the Director of Expansion and Recruitment for Delta Tau Delta International Fraternity where he led the colonization of more than 15 new chapters and developed fraternity-wide programming which has led to double digital overall growth for the entire organization.

The post How You Do Things Is More Important Than What You Do appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

When I tell people I’m a fraternity and sorority advisor, I receive several reactions. Whether that’s a look of shock and horror or comments like, “That’s a full time job?” I’ve pretty much heard it all. My least favorite response is, “So you help fraternities plan parties?” I respond simply with,

“No, I don’t have time for that.”

In 2006 I was a senior at the University of Illinois attempting to figure out what I was going to do with my life. I loved being a history and anthropology major and thought a museum might be the place for me. However, I couldn’t shake the nagging feeling that I needed to do something that would make a difference in the world. Cue the entrance of my Greek advisors. I remember sitting with them, asking why fraternity and sorority members say they believe in something when our actions are far different. And they simply said, “Have you thought about advising?” My world changed, and I never looked back.

I didn’t become an advisor because Greek Week was awesome or because my sorority made cool shirts or because I wanted to help fraternities plan parties. I don’t have time for that. I became a fraternity and sorority advisor because we have work to do. A lot of it.

Fast forward five years, and you’ll find me at the University of Oregon where I have the privilege of working with a community that is willing to think. There are a couple key parts to this statement. First, my job is a privilege. I get to spend my days supporting and challenging students in their growth, and I’m lucky enough for those students to be members of an experience I deeply believe in. Second, the ability to think is crucial and often seems rare to locate. In lower levels of the college environments, students are taught to memorize facts. Hopefully by junior and senior year students have moved into the realm of contemplating and engaging their coursework. Often this is leading to shifts in beliefs or attitudes. The ability to think, ponder, wonder, dive deep into possibilities – that is what we often lack in the fraternity and sorority world. In so many unfortunate ways, our membership has taught us to respect tradition so highly that we’ve lost our ability to question it.

Now this is why I am a fraternity and sorority advisor! I have endless amounts of time to work with students, collegiate chapters, inter/national organizations, alumni and colleagues across the country who are ready and willing to engage in critical thinking about the fraternal experience. I would venture to guess most fraternity and sorority advisors feel this way. Survey advisors across the country about their daily activities. What you’ll find is most spend their time acting like emergency room doctors. Major injuries come in, the doctor stops the bleeding, fixes as much as possible and moves on to the next patient. The problem is that no one goes to the emergency room because they’re healthy. So if the majority of an advisor’s time is consumed in the emergency room, they are rarely able to leave the hospital and encourage people to stay healthy. What I’m saying is that if the dysfunction in our fraternity and sorority communities takes nearly all of an advisor’s time to deal with, there’s nothing preventing the high performing chapters from falling among the rest. We need to spend more time among the healthy encouraging them to prosper than fixing the wounds of chapters that live high risk lifestyles. We simply don’t have the time for that.

Earlier I said I became an advisor because we have work to do. So let’s get working! As undergraduates, alumni, headquarters staff and campus-based professionals, it’s time for us to start asking some tough questions. What do we want this experience to be? What purpose can we serve? How can we change the world? It’s not always about how we were founded – it’s hard to make a personal connection to our founders when some of them lived over 200 years ago. It’s about exploring what fraternity could be in light of tomorrow’s student. Easier said than done, and I don’t have a solution. What I do know though, is we have an opportunity to engage undergraduates in a critical conversation about what they’re experiencing. I don’t think we give enough credit to the abilities and brilliance of today’s student to move mountains when given the chance. We also have the opportunity to engage an incredibly optimistic population in the world of possibility. What if fraternities and sororities could ____? Let’s let our undergraduates fill in the blank and then help them realize the potential. It’s time to “live with a healthy disregard for the impossible.”

We don’t have time to talk about parties anymore. And we certainly don’t have time to “do things as they’ve always been done.” But we have endless amounts of time to create something new and like a phoenix, to rise from the ashes a reborn and meaningful experience. I became a fraternity and sorority advisor to engage in the conversation, so let’s do work!

Annie Carlson serves as the Fraternity and Sorority Advisor at the University of Oregon. A 2007 graduate of the University of Illinois, Annie went on to receive her master’s degree in higher education from Florida State University in 2009. Annie volunteers for the Association of Fraternity/Sorority Advisors, Oregon Women in Higher Education, the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators and Beta Theta Pi Fraternity. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with friends, traveling (A LOT!) and hunting down the perfect glass of red wine.

The post We Have Work To Do appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

Just Say No! Many of us are adept at saying no to bad things. However, we are living in an over committed and over programmed world in which the new campaign spread throughout colleges should be, “Just Say No…to good opportunities.”

I’ve discovered that one can’t do everything all the time. In fact, there is only 100% of you a day and despite what your coach, parent, or teacher may have told you when you were little, you can’t give 110% of yourself to anything. It is mathematically impossible. There is only one whole you and you are often being pulled in multiple directions. Therefore, as you engage in activities throughout the day that 100% of you dwindles. 20% of yourself to this class, 30% of yourself to this committee, 10% of yourself to your friends, 20% to another leadership position, 10% of yourself to the gym, and before you know it there is 10% of you left for things that you need at least 60% of yourself to accomplish. This is when stress happens and this is when you experience burnout. You are doing too much.

I get it, you care and you want to do many different things. As an advisor you are my favorite student and my biggest headache. You’ve been told your whole life that you are a leader and therefore you have a strong desire to “lead” things. People come to you and ask for your support, tap you for leadership positions and recommend you for seats on boards. Your friends know that they can always depend on you to step up and get things done and you feel an obligation to satisfy all expectations. You’ve even convinced yourself that you work best when you are under pressure and stressed out.

But, what always ends up happening? Something doesn’t get done. Even if it does get done it isn’t your best work. You inevitably will double or triple book yourself. You get tired but don’t have time for rejuvenation. Your friends want to do something fun but you’ve got so much work to do that you can’t even fathom heading out on the town for a good time and even when you do take that chance you are thinking about the consequences of having fun. You neglect to take care of yourself and so you become ill which greatly affects your level of performance. You pull all- nighters to cram for a test or finish a paper. You yearn for a vacation and complain to those around you about how busy you are all the time. Sound familiar?

I was you. I’m not going to lie, at 28 I’m sometimes still you. I vividly remember one of my mentors in college encouraging a group of student leaders, including myself, to seriously reflect on all that we were involved in on campus. Make a list and go through each activity. While you are examining this list think about those things that you really value–your passions. Also, think about those activities in which you are learning the most, and ultimately think about those activities that are actually helping you become the person you want to be–your ideal self. For those things that don’t make it into these categories you need to let them go.

I decided to follow her instructions and in the process I gave up one of my jobs, and three extracurricular activities. I crossed them off the list, sent in my resignations, and honestly never looked back. I kept the things that fit into the categories above and I have to tell you a weight was instantly lifted off my shoulders.

Even now, I have to sit down and think about things prior to making a commitment and I’ve had to walk away from things that are great professional and personal opportunities. I’m not going to lie—I still don’t enjoy this process, but I know that in the end I’m making the best decision for myself and the rest of the organization.

College students engage in résumé building in a way that has become quite reckless. It is not only hurting you and adding stress to your life but it is adding stress to those that are depending on you to prioritize that commitment. All of your commitments can’t possibly be number one; something is bound to fall by the wayside. If I could get students to understand that the quality of your involvement and your articulation of that quality is much more important than the quantity of things you are involved with, then I think I would be eligible for retirement simply on merit alone.

Be okay with the fact that you aren’t a superhero. Sometimes you actually can’t do it all and most of the time you can’t do it all extremely well. I have learned that people appreciate it when you are honest about your disinterest or inability to prioritize that particular commitment and when you take initiative to step down from a role instead of prolonging your subpar involvement.

Take time to engage in intentional reflection about your commitments. Think about those things that you love to do versus those things that have become a burden. The next time someone asks you to do something, instead of saying “Yes” immediately, think about responding with, “Let me get back to you on that. Sounds like a great opportunity but I just want to make sure I have time to commit and give it my best effort.” Stop filling out applications just because you were sent an email with a link. Do you really care about that project? Are there things that you want out of that experience that you are already getting from existing opportunities?

If you are struggling with this exercise chat with those that advise you in your roles. Are they seeing strain on your involvement? Have there been moments where they have felt you didn’t prioritize that specific role? How has that affected others in the organization?

Be honest with yourself. Believe me; not being an officer in that one organization isn’t going to be the detriment of your life post college.

Involvement in co-curricular activities is never going to be the reason that you get your college diploma and in fact, though Phi Delta Theta is a worthwhile fraternal organization I don’t believe it has been granted the privilege of disseminating college degrees. Remember, that in the term “student leader” student comes first. What you chose to involve yourself with after that word is completely up to you, but I strongly encourage you to be discerning about where you expend your daily 100%. Yes and no are two incredibly powerful words; please learn to use them wisely.

Krystal Clark, M.Ed. is a native of Portsmouth, Virginia and received her BA in Sociology and Psychology from The College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, VA. After graduation she ventured to College Park, MD where she completed her M.Ed. in College Student Personnel at the University of Maryland, College Park. During her time at Maryland Krystal served as a Student Affairs Residential Fellow in the Office of Fraternity & Sorority Life and continued her work in this functional area post-graduation at Duke University in Durham, NC where she served in the role of Program Coordinator. In February 2010 she became a proud member of Delta Delta Delta and in June 2011 she began as the Associate Director of Greek Life at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN.  She is an active volunteer in the Association for Fraternity/Sorority Advisors, the Junior League of Nashville, and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Middle Tennessee.

The post Learn to “Say No” to Good Things appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

When I arrived at UNC Chapel Hill as a freshman, I learned that Phi Delta Theta’s national philanthropy is the ALS Association and the Phi Delts were planning on having a philanthropic event to support it. Around the same time, I had joined Kappa Delta Sorority and met my now, very dear friend, Ally, whose dad also battled the disease.  I also learned about a former Kappa Delta at UNC whose mother had the disease as well. After getting to know Ally, and learning about the very close and personal connection that Kappa Delta has to ALS, it was obvious that KD should join forces with Phi Delt to make this event happen.

We saw this as an incredible opportunity to raise awareness for this disease, as well as funds for research and care for ALS patients. It was amazing to see how the members of Phi Delt and Kappa Delta instantly stepped up and volunteered their time and talents to making this event a huge success.  On April 8, 2011, KD and Phi Delt hosted their inaugural Cookout to Knockout ALS on the lawn of the Phi Delt house. Over 600 people, including the UNC Chapel Hill community, family and friends, enjoyed the delicious barbeque, burgers and hotdogs prepared by John Jenkins, Phi Delt’s very own chef.   Attendees also enjoyed socializing and listening to the Fabulous Kays play many beach music hits. With many generous donations, we raised over $25,000 that went to the North Carolina Catfish Hunter chapter of The ALS Association. The greatest and most priceless part of it all was my dad’s ability to gain enough strength to come to the cookout. My dad was able to physically be on the lawn of the house where he created his greatest college memories.  His favorite “Famous Phi” brothers swarmed him with love and support at one time and showed him that they and the rest of the Chapel Hill community would continue to fight the disease on this earth after he is no longer with us.

Even though my dad will not be at the 2^nd annual Cookout to Knockout ALS in April of 2012, he will be able to look down from heaven and see the Chapel Hill community honoring his legacy and rallying around the cause for a world without ALS.

Macon Cornick grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina and attended Saint Mary’s School. She is now a sophomore at UNC Chapel Hill, studying exercise and sports science and is a member of Kappa Delta Sorority. She is very thankful for the UNC Phi Delta Theta community and the enthusiasm shown by the alumni and current brothers to help fight ALS, a cause that is very close to her heart. 

The post Remembering My Father, Who Lost His Battle With ALS appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

We often think of hazing as a secret act that is violent or embarrassing; including some forms of ridiculous buffoonery, or malicious acts of “taking wood” or physical activity.  We often think of hazing as a behavior of young immature men and women that becomes commentary of lore during reunion weekends with former classmates.  And, we often think of hazing as a time-specific act with no consequences.  For many of us, these descriptions have served as rites of passage that too many of our students involved in fraternities and sororities are experiencing.  These hazing experiences, which for some have replaced our membership rites, have been used to transition our new members into our society; often have been violent and oppressive and have distorted the goals of fraternal organizations. They have distorted the purpose of our membership processes.

Our pledge activities or new member programs are significant rites of passage that honor the traditions of our founders.  Rites of passage are a sequence of events that enable individuals to proceed through stages that ultimately end with predetermined outcomes. Rites of passage connect individuals to organizations, or they can serve to connect individuals to communities. Rites of passage are ritualistic and mark significant events in our lives and are celebrated as we mark our entry into our communities. “Without rituals, there would be nothing to mark this cultural change in status as extraordinary” (Manning 2000, p. 30); and in the context of sorority and fraternity life, rituals are an important processes to mark the entrance into and the end of the experience of our distinctive practices.   Rites of passage mark entrances into social roles that have significant meaning to a community.  They are elaborate, dramatic, and planned sets of activities that consolidate various forms of cultural expressions into one event, which is carried out through our many interactions.  Rites of passage activities that mark the entry into our fraternal communities are excellent venues to transmit our organizational cultures and unique histories.  However, what we have seen is practices that mark entry into our organizations marred by hazing rituals that themselves have become the norm, a required rite of passage.   Our organizational pledge or new member programs are rites of passage that attribute to members understanding and committing to the ideals of their organization.  Additionally, many of our members have found meaning in the rites’ rituals and cultural underpinnings.  As a process, membership activities serve as a means to indoctrinate our aspirants/new members seeking initiation into our societies.  The underlying objectives and outcomes of our rites of passage serve to connect men and women to the values and practices of the organization.  This is important to note because rites are valuable and are significant to the future of our organizations, however, far too many of our members are incorporating hazing practices into our organization’s rites of passage.

Hazing rituals can be violent and exploitive. Many college campuses suggest that hazing rituals, though banned publicly by national organizations and illegal in most states, remains a practice that men and women voluntarily engage in when seeking membership in our chapters.  From a certain point of view, hazing is a practice of habit, adherence to tradition, and power and oppression.  Freire (2000) argues that oppression is learned, transmitted, and replicated. He also notes that at some point in the course of human interactions, we all assume the role of the oppressor. Exposed hazing rituals indicate that participants are bound in the struggle between power and control.  Our members often use our rites of passage as a means to secure and maintain power that allows them to maintain control of our chapters.  These members believe that hazing rites are a necessary tool to maintain chapter traditions and customs, and to develop organizational pride and respect.  Far too often, these members are the most vocal in our chapters and resist change and evolution.  These members view hazing as a rite of passage and believe that it is necessary in order to maintain the system. These members are oppressors and will not easily give up power to change the chapter’s culture.

Eliminating hazing rituals in our rite of passage will be NECESSARY if we want to reclaim our traditions and power from those who would distort the core of our fraternal identities.  We must empower each member to take a stand against oppressive hazing acts. Taking a stand for rites of passage experiences that are free from hazing practices will take courage, but it is possible.  First, chapters need to recommit to their founding values and find meaning in the rituals, customs and traditions of our founders.  The founders are long gone, but their words, work, and passion lives in each chapter that has come after them.  Tim Marchel discusses this well that “as human-beings, we have a fundamental need to belong to groups, clubs; to affiliate with those who share our values and beliefs.”  We need to embrace our members who seek to not be bystanders and desire meaningful change.  Second, we need to GET REAL and have conversations with members about their need to harm, intimidate and oppress their follow brothers. Getting real will take courage to confront our members and challenge them to seek a new path.  The reality that research is showing us is that folks joining groups want to find meaning and purpose in the membership process.  Some folks say, “Nothing easily gained is appreciated.”  That being said, we must take a look at our rites of passage, commit to ensuring that they support the organizational values and have MEANING, not HAZING!  Men and women will seek out our organizations only if our rites of passage present them with compelling values to which they can commit and find purpose.

Dr. Gina Lee-Olukoya is the Associate Dean of Students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.  She is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and has served her sorority as chapter president and collegiate chapter advisor.  Her research areas include hazing in historically African American sororities and application of feminist ideology to the experiences of women in sororities.  Gina serves on the Board of Directors for HazingPrevention.Org and director of the Novak Institute for Hazing Prevention.   

The post Hazing: A Rite of Passage? appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

It is one of the most frequently quoted lines from a movie.

Tom Cruise, portraying a youthful lieutenant and reluctant trial attorney is questioning Jack Nicholson, the sneering, hardboiled full bird Marine colonel in the 1992 movie, “A Few Good Men”. At a critical juncture in the trial, Cruise yells, “I want the truth!” to which Nicholson responds, “You can’t handle the truth!”

And, to paraphrase that epic line for purposes of National Hazing Prevention Week:  it is the hazers in chapters who can’t handle the questions…not to mention the truth.

Let’s face it.  Hazers hate questions.  They simply want to haze.  They don’t want to think about why they haze, or the damage they do to their chapters—the brotherhood—or the men who don’t join because of the hazing or who choose to leave because of the hazing. They don’t want to answer questions that challenge the very premise of hazing—what gives them the right to haze?  The authority?  Who are the hazers in a chapter?  For the hazers, no questions is a good thing.  They want passive victims who will not object to the hazing.

And what questions trouble those who believe in hazing?

Why are we doing this?  What is the purpose…the intent?  What is the outcome?  What are we learning?

And we’re just getting started.

Why didn’t you tell me about the hazing during recruitment?  Why did you lie to me?  Why do some of the best members of the chapter refuse to take part in the hazing?  If hazing is a crime and against university and fraternity policy, why would you risk the charter for hazing?

Once the hazers discover that they can’t dance around the questions—that scornful sneering arrogance and anger won’t fill the void—then the tortured rationalizations and circular arguments surface.  “Well, ah, er, you just don’t get it…like, you gotta do this because I went through it and it may not seem to have a purpose right now but when you’re active you’ll get it/everyone has gone through it/it brings you together”

Really?  But you didn’t answer the questions.

Why do pledges/new members have to do a disproportionate amount of the work compared to members? Why do we have to do things that we will never have to do again as members—how does that qualify as education or training?  Show me a direct correlation between what you expect of us and expectations for members.

You are asking good questions.

Let’s get specific.

Why are those who advocate for hazing usually—not always—the worst members in a chapter?  Why are they the ones who won’t show up for anything other than parties, sports and hazing?  Why are they among the leaders in missed chapter meetings?  Why do they skip initiation and Ritual?  Never volunteer to help on committees or projects?  Won’t pay their dues on time?  Rarely attend a campus event or a regional or national event?

Now you’ve done it.  You have angered the hazers.  How dare you question the commitment of brothers…even though it is abundantly clear that the hazers are not (with a few exceptions) good members.

Let’s get logical.

Why do we have clean up after members?  Why do we have to clean their rooms or their cars in order to obtain a signature?  We sure didn’t hear about that during recruitment.  Why do we have an ever-growing list of “gotta do” things—we have to carry certain items, use greetings, wear certain clothing, and enter the house or residence hall via a certain door?  Why do we have to serve as DDs, as door guards, as drivers for intoxicated members who can’t or won’t take responsibility for themselves?  Why do we have to interview every member, especially when some members go out of their way to dodge or avoid the interviews?

Which is more important: pledge class unity or chapter unity?  Why then would you support pledge class unity?  

All excellent questions.  Hazers, can you handle those questions?

Silence…unless a hazer says, “Well, it’s like…you gotta do these things to prove yourselves to me/us”

Really?  Do we earn our badges once…or every day?  And, following the quote from Albert Einstein—“Example is not the best form of leadership.  Example is the only form of leadership”—how are we leading our pledges/NMs by example through hazing?

We prove ourselves every day in Phi Delta Theta.  Every. Single. Day.  That is the simplest form of  brotherhood…and the first thing that hazers forget.

More questions?  Sure.

You talked about diversity during recruitment—that our chapter was “Diverse”.  How do we encourage, support and exemplify diversity by requiring all pledges/NMs to speak, dress, act and indeed to think the same?  Our chapter members don’t do that—why should we?

Wait! Don’t say it!  But, the hazers always fall back on “the military argument”.

“This is like the military, dude”

No.  It isn’t.  First of all, what is your mission as an organization?  It isn’t the same as the military.

Secondly, in the military, you have to be qualified to haze.  The best of the best.  Drill instructors undergo extensive training, including psychological evaluations, before they can lead recruits through basic training or boot camp.  Are hazers qualified?  No.

In fact, some  of us in the anti-hazing movement have discussed developing a “How to Haze Your Pledges” program for fraternity members to be offered each summer.  Wanna haze?  Enroll here!  Regrettably, it would fail for lack of participants.  Few if any hazers would qualify because our standards would include a 3.5 GPA, holding at least two major offices, attending at least two national events, leadership on campus, and volunteering time for the less fortunate.  And that’s way, way over the standard hazer level of achievement.

Final question:  If Phi Delta Theta represents and stands for the noblest of virtues, values and ideals…why do we allow those who rarely represent those expectations haze men who have joined with the intention of living up to those expectations?

Someone must ask the questions.  Will it be a courageous young Phikeia…or will it be you, a brother in Phi Delta Theta who wants to become the greatest version of yourself?  Men, take the lead.  Ask the questions.  Step back and evaluate your program with clear eyes and one goal in mind—to create great brothers, not “good” Phikeias.  Few fraternity members can say that they accomplished more within their Phi Delta Theta chapters than those who lead the charge to eliminate hazing and replace it with activities and a philosophy which reflect your proud history and bright future.

Dave Westol is an alumnus of Michigan State University and the Detroit College of Law.  He served as an assistant prosecuting attorney in Michigan for nine years and as Chief Executive Officer of his national fraternity for eighteen years.  Dave now has his own consulting company and focuses upon non-profit organizations and associations. He has over a dozen national men’s and women’s fraternities and sororities as clients and specializes in risk management, membership reviews and investigations along with the relationship between boards and staff members, orientation, and strategic planning.  Dave is a member of the board of directors for HazingPrevention.org and the Association of Fraternal Leadership and Values.  His website can be found at LimberlostConsulting.com

The post (Hazers) You Can’t Handle The Questions! appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

Effective recruiting of new members comes from first and foremost truly believing in what your organization stands for and being passionate when conveying that message.  But, who are you telling your message to?  Anyone who will listen?  Are you strategic about your delivery?

#1 Strategy: Recruit men with high GPAs

As a Dean working with Greek organizations for many years  I’ve seen chapters come and go, but the most stable fraternal organizations are those that maintain an overall high GPA.  How do they maintain their high GPA?  Easy………by recruiting members with a high GPA in the first place.  Sometimes we get into a dangerous mindset of thinking that we should offer a bid to a potential member because he’s ‘a good guy’ and would make a great brother.  Think again.  This decision will have negative consequences.

So, why recruit new members with high GPAs in the first place?

• Men with higher GPAs are more likely to recruit  other men with higher GPAs.
• Your members are more likely to be involved in high profile leadership positions on campus.
• Your chapter will retain more members.
• Your chapter will be stronger and stick around for a lot longer than the others.
• High chapter GPAs make you chapter eligible for local and national awards and recognition.

THIS IS THE EFFECT!

So, how do you figure out who has high GPAs on campus?

• Offer scholarships to potential new members the summer before they arrive.  The applications tell the story.
• Have potential members sign a grade release form BEFORE extending a bid.  Your Greek Life office should have these available.
• Ask your college or university to provide you lists of members of academic honorary organizations, e.g., Blue Key or Mortar Board.
• Tap into your college’s honors program?  Can you get class lists?
• Ask college department chairs for referrals.
• Recruit Residence Life staff members or other students in high profile leadership positions that have grade requirements.

If you are responsible for the success of your fraternity then start with a successful strategy!

Michelle Merritt is the Associate Dean of Students at Monmouth College in Monmouth, Illinois.  She is a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma Womens Fraternity.  Michelle graduated from Monmouth College in 1989 with a B.S. in Speech Communications and went on to receive her M.S. in Student Affairs Administration in Higher Education from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.  Prior to her current role at Monmouth College, she served as the Assistant Director of Housing at the University of Central Missouri and Residence Hall Director at the University of Wisconsin La Crosse.

The post The Trickle Down Effect – A Recruitment Strategy appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

Ask any fraternity man or sorority woman who their “person” is, and they can tell you instantly. It’s the one person that they feel is responsible for their membership in their organization. Whether it’s the person that continuously called, texted, and Facebook crept you until you came to an event, or the person that connected with you over free hamburgers, it’s the one person that you believe helped sell you on this thing we call fraternity. For me, it was Lindsey. Lindsey and I shared a few classes together. It was something about the way that her face lit up when she talked about her sorority, or how happy she was when I saw her with sisters… Or maybe it was that when I talked to Lindsey, she would tell me about how much I would be an asset to the sorority, instead of trying to sell the sorority to me. Whatever it was, I wanted to be a part of it.

As you begin the school year and delve into the crazy time of recruitment, think about your person. Think about the guy that really connected with you and made you seriously consider what it would be like to be a member of Phi Delta Theta. Then ask yourself what you need to do to become someone else’s “person.”

So often, we focus on selling ourselves based on our accomplishments from the past year- Greek Week champ, All Sing winner, Intramural champ, and the amount of money we’ve raised for our philanthropy. Don’t get me wrong- those are big wins! Often though, we forget why the men are really walking through our doors. Men are walking through our door looking for brotherhood. They’re looking for an opportunity to get involved on campus. They’re looking to become a part of something bigger than themselves. They’re looking for a place that they can walk into and feel comfortable; a place to call home.

My advice to you is that instead of spitting out random facts about your organization, take a little extra time to share your story. Why did you join Phi Delta Theta, and what have you gained from your experience thus far? Likewise, be a listening ear and find out what the men that you’re talking to are looking for in a fraternity. Have high expectations in the quality of men that you’re looking for, but also ensure that you’re living up to those expectations. Think about your cardinal principles of friendship, sound learning, and rectitude, and share what striving to live those daily means to you.

And if you do these things, you may just become someone’s “person.”

Tabatha Sarco is currently the Assistant Director of Student Involvement of Lynchburg College, located in Virginia. Before coming to LC, Tabatha completed her Masters in College Student Personnel at Bowling Green State University, where she advised the Interfraternity Council. Tabatha is a 2006 graduate of Austin Peay State University, which she earned her degree in Psychology and Leadership Studies. She is a member of Alpha Delta Pi Sorority.

The post Becoming Someone’s “Person” appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

I recently presented a breakout session to Tri Delta alumnae.  We discussed how as alumnae they live The Purpose of Tri Delta. The discussions were amazing. They did not focus on what type of programs, meetings, or activities they sponsored although that was discussed, they focused on how they cared about and for one another.  Isn’t that what it is really about?  How we care for and about one another and the manner in which we live those promises we make is what fraternities and sororities are really about.

Phi Delta Theta is clear, even to outsiders that being a good brother, obtaining a college degree, and being a person of integrity are the corner stones of whom you are.

Phi Delta Theta states:  Phi Delta Theta was organized with three principle objectives, referred to as the “Cardinal Principles”:

•    The cultivation of friendship among its members
•    The acquirement individually of a high degree of mental culture
•    The attainment personally of a high standard of morality

The Founders of Phi Delt were clear about the character of the men they were asking to be a part of their inner circle.  They were the exceptional men at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.  Today, often times we talk in terms of minimum everything.  I have sat in meetings with students and the discussion of minimum grade point average, minimum participation, minimum attendance at events, etc.  I often think back to those young founders who founded organizations like Phi Delta Theta and wonder what they would think of these discussions.

In everything I have read and experienced, founders of fraternities and sororities had high expectations of their members. They expected and supported one another to be and live their best. There is a theory in higher education called Sanford’s Theory of Challenge and Support.  I am certain this theory was not even a thought in 1848 when Phi Delta Theta was founded; however, what I do believe is that this was a theory lived each day by Phi Delts. The belief that if we love one another and support one another as individuals, we can go beyond what we might have felt was our best.  That love and support is what has continued to allow Phi Delta Theta to offer an amazing experience to young men on college campuses and older men into their alumni lives.

The “Cardinal Principles” of Phi Delta Theta are timeless.  Today, the challenge is still to support one another and be brotherly in your actions and deeds.  You have and will continue to be a force to be reckoned with.

Dr. Mari Ann Callais served as the Director of Student Organizations and Greek Life at Southeastern Louisiana University for 10 years. She most recently served an Assistant Professor and Program Coordinator of the Student Affairs Graduate Program at Mississippi State University.  She the immediate Past National President of her sorority for Theta Phi Alpha, NPC Delegate and she was a member of the Delta Delta Delta Center Board.  She received a B.A. in Political Science from Loyola University, earned a Master’s degree in Education Administration from Our Lady of Holy Cross College, and received a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Research from Louisiana State University.

In 1997, she received the Louisiana Youth Seminar Lifetime Achievement Award, and in 1996 and 2001 she was named the Southeastern Interfraternity Conference Advisor of the Year. She has also been honored as the Sigma Sigma Sigma Greek Advisor of the Year, the Theta Chi Fraternity Outstanding Greek Affairs Professional Award, Theta Phi Alpha National Achievement Award and the Guard of Honor, which is the highest award Theta Phi Alpha bestows on a member. She was awarded the AFA 2005 Distinguished service award. She served as the Theme Housing Specialist and Vice President for Leasing/Marketing Cottages Division for Capstone Development. Currently, Mari Ann serves as the Director of Development for The Center for Living, Learning, Leading for Delta Delta Delta Fraternity. Mari Ann is a member of the CAMPUSPEAK Team and has been a keynote and featured speaker at SEPC, SEIFC, NGLA and AFLV West and Central.

The post Timeless Principles… appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

And now?  Light up within 100 yards of a nonsmoker and you’re treated like you have the plague.  The only safe place for smokers to go is out behind a building, standing right next to the dumpster.  It is safe to say that our society has grown intolerant of smoking, and those who choose to do it are considered outliers.  Smoking still takes place, and consumption levels are still high.  There is just a different attitude toward the practice.

I believe this change over the last decade or so has been accelerated by an extraordinary anti-smoking campaign, called “The Truth”.  You have probably seen their commercials, the most famous of which shows a group of activists carrying megaphones lining hundreds of body bags on the street below the offices of tobacco executives.  This campaign has been effective in reducing smoking – especially in young people – because instead of focusing only on the health reasons, it turns nonsmokers into rebellious youth sticking it to the “man” (tobacco companies).  Rebellion has always been a well-received message amongst teens!

The campaign is also effective because it involves young people talking to other young people.  This is another good strategy for youth education.

So what does this have to do with hazing?  From my observation, the vast majority of anti-hazing messages that are delivered to college students come from much older adults.  It smacks of a parent telling their child to “stop doing that” because “I know better than you.”  While we’ve made strides against hazing, there certainly hasn’t been the same momentum like we’ve seen against smoking.

Let me offer a vision.  What if fraternities and sororities undergraduate members became the chief activists against hazing and brought this message to their brothers and sisters, as well as their peers in sports, the marching band, or other clubs on campus?  What if fraternity and sorority members started leading this movement?  How about it starts with Phi Delta Theta?

Let’s take it one step further.  Where I live in Indiana, there have been some high-profile hazing incidents in the high schools.  What if fraternity and sorority members were invited into high schools to educate students about the dangers of hazing?

The messaging could be similar to that of “The Truth” campaign – hazing offers power-hungry meatheads the chance to bully others, and we’re not going to take it anymore!

Imagine if the one place on a college campus where a person could know for sure that they would be safe from hazing was your fraternity.  Or any fraternity.

Perhaps this vision is not yet within reach.  What is within reach is your personal influence within your own chapter.  It’s not enough to be quietly against hazing and just hope that it will go away.  I tried that approach, and it didn’t work.  If you want to see hazing eliminated, you need to grab your megaphone and work against it.  Find like-minded members and start a rally within your own organization.  Put the “no hazing” signs right next to the “no smoking” ones.

Hazers are like tobacco executives – getting compensated for promoting an unsafe practice.  Treat them as such.  Turn the chapter against them.  The ones who matter will allow themselves to change.

It’s great to be against hazing.  It’s better to make sure it has no place in your fraternity.  Working to eradicate it from our society is even better than that.  Let’s stop reacting to this issue and start leading.

Oh yeah, and you shouldn’t smoke either.

John Shertzer is a Theta Chi and a graduate of Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.  He has worked professionally in higher education as a staff member for Iowa State University, the University of Maryland, and the North American Interfraternity Conference.  While at the NIC, John directed their signature programs UIFI, IMPACT, and FuturesQuest.  He is now serving Kiwanis International as their Senior Director of Programs.  In this position, he oversees all of the Kiwanis service leadership programs for youth and adults.  This includes Key Club International and Circle K International.  John serves on the board of the Center for the Study of the College Fraternity, and a few local nonprofits.  John is also the creator and writer for the blog Fraternal Thoughts.  He lives in Indianapolis with his wife Ellen and their sons Jack and Luke.

The post Smoking Out Hazing appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.

As I was sitting at the Sigma North/South Bi Province retreat, I noticed on the left side of the agenda they had printed Arthur R. Priest’s “I believe in the college fraternity.”   Something I never thought about was that OUR fraternity (Phi Delta Theta) was not mentioned anywhere in that quote.  It made me think that he did not just believe in Phi Delta Theta; he also believed in the opportunities that other fraternal organizations could provide to college students.

One of the things that many chapters do not consider a part of their fraternity experience is their participation with other fraternities on campus.  An important part of fraternity life is being a part of the IFC.  Every chapter should try to hold at least one position on the IFC, because it allows them to help lead the body that governs their fraternity community.  Many chapters that have problems with the IFC are the ones who feel like they are underrepresented or not represented at all.  Make sure when election time comes, you have at least one member running for a position on the council.

Another way to further engage your chapter within the Greek community is by helping with or attending other fraternities’ and sororities’ philanthropies or community service events.   Helping others will also encourage other organizations to be more active in your chapter’s events in the future, causing your efforts to be more fruitful.  Co-hosting or participating in social awareness programming for the Greek community or university is another way to fight negative stereotypes that still exist.   Your chapter could be great, but if the IFC or Greek Community in general is not respected, you’re chapter will be lumped in with the rest.  The majority of non-Greeks do not understand the differences between one Greek organization and another.  If there is an overall appreciation for fraternities and sororities, your chapter will benefit from that positive reputation.

There are also opportunities around campus to create a unified Greek community.  If the Greek community pulls together and elects student government officers who are Greek, the student government will identify more with Greek endeavors.  In your Greek council meetings, let attendees know if fellow Greeks are running for Student Government positions and discuss how their election could be beneficial to the community.  If your community wants to encourage a Greek to run for office, make sure that you are encouraging the right people.  The Greek community can gain respect from the rest of the University by improving the University with the office, but if he or she does a poor job, it will reflect negatively on who they represent.

Finally, I’d like to finish with a thought about our open motto – We enjoy life by the help and society of others.  Remember that working together with other organizations on campus can be mutually beneficial.  Always take time to look for those who are willing to help, and always remember to return the favor when they need help.  A long term relationship with another organization on campus is much easier to maintain than continuously having to look for new partners.

The post Thoughts on Interfraternalism appeared first on Phi Delta Theta.