Convention Connections

By Adam Pittenger, '11, Theta Chi

Incredibly, with over 500 brothers in attendance, the central region of Florida was more appropriately named “Brolando” from June 30th-July 3rd. Though this is seemingly only a small inside joke from the 154th Anniversary Convention of Theta Chi Fraternity, the nickname proved to be true. It seemed everywhere you turned you were running into a brother. Men from all across the nation (and Canada) traveled to the home of Disney World in order to take part in this spectacular event. I, along with Jon Pribis ‘12, Jason Raschiatore ‘12, Todd Ferreira ‘13, and Alex Lass ‘13, represented Lehigh University’s Beta Sigma chapter.


Our first night at the Rosen Plaza was one to remember. The five of us were honored to receive awards for Chapter Excellence for New Member and Member Education Programming, The Ritual, Community Service & Philanthropy Programming, Alumni Programming, Chapter Finances, Chapter Operations, Internal Cooperation, Campus Involvement, Risk Management Practices, and Social Programming. While that served as great recognition for our past achievements, we realized that convention is about meeting new people and learning for the betterment of our chapter.


Throughout the next three days, the five of us took part in numerous challenges, team-building exercises, and listened to a variety of speakers. Personally, I felt the breakout sessions were the most valuable learning tool in regards to the future growth of our chapter. Also, having never been to a national event before, it was great to meet brothers from different chapters and learn about the changes taking place within our international headquarters. Not only were we able to take part in the election of a new Grand Chapter, but Beta Sigma got to take pictures with the group during our formal banquet. Finally, the brothers of Theta Chi spent Saturday night out on the town as we all went and explored City Walk in Orlando. In all, the experience was invaluable and the lessons we learned will certainly carry over to our chapter in the 2010-2011 school year. And since the 2012 Convention is in sunny Palm Springs, California, I’ve already told our younger members that if they need an alumni delegate… I’m their man.

Leading with Integrity

By Jennifer McCusker, '12, Delta Gamma

I learned a lot about myself as a leader during my time at The LeaderShape Institute in June. I appreciated learning how to develop my vision for the future and planning action steps to reach my vision. The vision I developed at LeaderShape is very broad, but I plan on using my experience from the program to create and act upon visions for Delta Gamma and teach other chapter management team members how to do the same. My favorite part of LeaderShape was taking the DiSC leadership style assessment. I found that learning about my leadership style and those of my peers helped me work better in groups, and I think taking this assessment would also benefit DG’s chapter management team.

The most important thing I learned at LeaderShape is to lead with integrity and have a healthy disregard for the impossible.

Novak Institute for Hazing Prevention

By Tim Wilkinson, Director, Office of Fraternity & Sorority Affairs

From June 9th through June 13th, I had the opportunity to attend the Novak Institute for Hazing Prevention, hosted by Hazingprevention.org and held at The State University of New York (SUNY) Geneseo. The Institute is an annual educational opportunity that brings together college campuses to discuss all aspects of hazing. Some of the discussion points included the perceived intent and psychology behind hazing, ways to educate students on the effects and dangers of hazing, and tips for building campus coalitions to eradicate hazing from an entire institution. Some of the interesting takeaways from the Institute included…

• The problem of hazing begins well before college. Nearly half (47%) of college students reported being hazed in high school, according to the National Student on Student Hazing.
• Over half (55%) of college students involved in clubs, teams, and organizations experience hazing.
• In 95% of the cases where students identified their experience as hazing, they did not report the events to campus officials.
• 69% of students who belonged to a student activity reported they were aware of hazing activities occurring in student organizations other than their own.

One of the things that most impacted me was the way we can all take a new approach on recognizing hazing. As students and staff, we are always arguing about what is hazing. How often when we debate hazing do we hear the following statement?

“According to the definition, everything’s hazing!”

We need to stop thinking of hazing in terms of a list of activities. Think of hazing the way it has been reframed at Florida State University.

“Students should not be demeaned or exposed to harm when pursuing involvement in campus life.”

If you are on a sports team, a member of a fraternity or sorority, or in a club or campus organization, and you can’t answer that statement, then you know it is hazing! OFSA is continuing to lead the charge in understanding and eradicating hazing at Lehigh. We are continuing the Bystander Initiative, Peer Values Educators, 888-NOT-HAZE, the on-line hazing reporting system, as well as all of the educational programming we do with chapters. Look for OFSA to continue to build campus coalitions in 2010-11 with faculty, athletics, student organizations and university alumni. This is the number one way to make hazing prevention the priority that it needs to be.

Lehigh will continue to take the lead in hazing prevention, as we have been chosen as the host site for the 2011 Novak Institute for Hazing Prevention. When we come together as a Lehigh community, it can be a very powerful thing. Isn’t eradicating hazing worth coming together for?

2009-2010 Accreditation Results

The 2009-2010 Accreditation reports for each of Lehigh's fraternities and sororities are now available on the Office of Fraternity & Sorority Affairs website, under the "Reports and Statistics" page.


GOLD:

Alpha Gamma Delta
Alpha Omicron Pi
Alpha Phi
Delta Gamma
Kappa Alpha Psi
Kappa Alpha Theta
Phi Sigma Kappa
Pi Beta Phi
Sigma Phi Epsilon

SILVER:

Alpha Chi Omega
Alpha Tau Omega
Chi Psi
Delta Phi

Delta Upsilon
Gamma Phi Beta
Kappa Alpha
Kappa Sigma

Lambda Chi Alpha
Lambda Sigma Upsilon

Lambda Theta Alpha

Phi Kappa Theta

Psi Upsilon
Sigma Chi

Theta Chi

BRONZE:

Delta Chi

Phi Gamma Delta
Pi Kappa Alpha
Theta Xi

POOR:

Delta Tau Delta

Welcome, Joe!

Joe Gurreri
Leadership Programs Coordinator

(formerly the "Greek Life Leadership Coordinator")

Hometown:
York, PA

Educational Background:
B.A. Political Science, Gettysburg College
M.Ed. Higher Education Administration, Vanderbilt University

Fraternity Affiliation:
Lambda Chi Alpha

Professional Highlights:
Member of the Association of Fraternity/Sorority Advisors (AFA)
Training for Intervention Procedures (TiPS) Trainer
Past advisor: Order of Omega, Dance Marathon, Panhellenic, IFC
Areas of Interest: Leadership, new member education, risk management, member wellness

Why did you decide to pursue a career in fraternity and sorority affairs?
My undergraduate experience as a member of the fraternity community was highlighted by the formation of a steadfast support network, numerous opportunities to enhance my leadership abilities, and an understanding that we were part of a larger group that was more important than just one or two individuals. That being said, I also recognized that not all of our organizations could claim to provide the same opportunities to their members. It was my desire to help others have positive, meaningful experiences that inspired me to enter this field.

What do you hope to do during your time at Lehigh University?
I hope to build on an already impressive offering of leadership programs available to our organizations and continue advancing the Lehigh Greek community. I also hope to challenge and support members so that they can make the most of the incredible opportunities that come with their fraternity or sorority membership.

What has been your impression of the Lehigh Greek Community so far?
While it is the summer and not many students are on campus, it is clear to me that there is a great deal of passion and pride in the Greek community at Lehigh that I am sure will be even more exciting to experience when everyone returns to campus in the fall!

Mini-Golf Masterpiece

Psi Upsilon fraternity received recognition for their hard work and commitment to building and maintaining a portable mini-golf course for the Bethlehem Area Public Library.

Article in The Express-Times

Video

Senior Reflections - Part 10

By Nick Anderson, '10, Theta Chi

As a senior reflecting on my experience at Lehigh as a member of the Greek community, I can’t help but reminisce and procrastinate in writing this entry. I have shared so many great experiences with not only my brothers but the entire Greek community. I believe a Lehigh Greek experience is truly beneficial to those who participate. I can honestly say that part of my success as an undergraduate can be attributed to the Greek experience. I believe this is true for three reasons:

First, as a member of the Greek community, I was able to participate in numerous service and philanthropic events that I would not have had the opportunity for otherwise. The community service and philanthropy that come from the Greek community arise from student interest. The students believe they should support or donate, and the means of doing so are all student driven. It is truly rewarding to see a philanthropic effort that contributes to a good cause and that students have fun not only planning and running, but participating in as well.

Secondly, the Greek community is a fantastic way to meet people. I feel that I was able to establish many connections and network effortlessly through the Greek community. I was able to use contacts from the Greek community to help bridge connections between my other involvements on campus. As the first Greek to be President of the Association of Student Alumni (ASA), I feel as though I was able to effectively unify the entire campus (both Greek and non-Greek) at key points in the year such as Lehigh-Lafayette week and Hawk’s for Haiti.

Finally, being Greek helped me to develop as a leader. I learned how a room full of 40 different viewpoints can be combined to achieve a common goal. As my chapter’s Accreditation chair I was able to collect input, articles and perspectives from the entire chapter to produce a report that the chapter as a whole could agree with and be proud of.

The Lehigh Greek experience is truly unique and positive in so many ways. I would highly support the decision to go Greek for anyone who is interested. I had a blast, and will never forget it.