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GREEKNews
A Publication of The Center for Fraternity & Sorority Life at Washington State University
in this issue
Letter from the Director P.1
A Week With Kim Novak P.2
Advisor’s Corner P.3
Getting Phired Up for Recruitment
P.4
AFLV-Central P.5
Greek Leadership Academy P.6
Rho Gamma Retreat P.8
American Gentleman Challenge P.9
Men’s Retreat P.10
Chapter & Council Updates P.11
Letter from the Director
March 2013
Dear Fraternity/Sorority Alumni and Friends,
We are in our 5th year of Greek News and are reaching the inboxes of even more shareholders than
ever before including chapter leaders, national fraternity/ sorority headquarters and more Greek
alumni. Our partnerships with the Enrollment Management, the Alumni Association, the
Foundation, the Greek Alumni Organization, and our campus partners such as the Center for Civic
Engagement, Student Involvement, and the Dean of Students office are making a difference in the
lives of students in meaningful ways!
As another academic year draws to a close, we reflect upon how fraternity/sorority leaders have been making us all proud as
they serve their community. Here are a few highlights:
Building relationships and empowering one another through leadership weekends such as the Council Retreat, Greek
Leadership Academy, the Rho Gamma Retreat, and the “Men’s Retreat”.
Achieving success with programs and events and being recognized as award winning councils by the Association of
Fraternal Leadership & Values.
Raising money for the Circle of Sisterhood foundation through screening the Half the Sky documentary and providing the
community with more than 30,000 hours of service!
Developing their leadership by attending the Undergraduate Interfraternity Institute (learn more at www.nicindy.org), a
life-changing, values-based Greek leadership experience, thanks to sponsorship by the Interfraternity and Panhellenic
Councils.
Educating incoming students and are very visible at campus visitation and recruitment events as well as at Alive!
Orientation. At these events, they will share with incoming students that fraternity/sorority membership is value-added
to the college experience.
In this edition, you will read about how WSU fraternity/sorority students impact campus trends, get updates from the Greek
Councils, learn how you can get involved, and take the steps to getting reconnected and engaged with the WSU Greek
Community as an advisor! As always, we welcome your comments and suggestions for future editions of this newsletter.
Interfraternally Yours,
Anita J. Cory, Ph.D.
Director
The Center for Fraternity and Sorority Life
March
2013
A Week With Kim Novak:
Creating Communities of Care
Anna Marie Limbaugh, Graduate
Assistant, The Center for Fraternity &
Sorority Life
The Fraternal Movement at Washington State
University progresses with Kim Novak, from Novak
Talks!
Kim Novak from Novak Talks! came to WSU in late
January and spent the better half of a week meeting
and visiting with fraternity and sorority life affiliated
students on the subjects of dangerous behavior and
risk management. Providing a community program
on Alcohol Awareness,
Novak
offered
community members
an insight to the
dangerous behaviors
that are exhibited by
college students across
the nation and gave
helpful tips to mitigate
this risk.
Novak gained a high
level of respect with
students through her
personable attitude and coming from a place of care
and concern for the fraternal movement. During her
visit she also partnered with James Carlson, the
Executive Director of the Idaho Judiciary Council, to
provide a Greek Education Symposium to chapter
leaders, as well as offered consultations to chapter
leaders on how to further the fraternal experience
around values based integration and creating
communities of care.
Within the area of creating communities of
care, Kim Novak provided a professional
development to student affairs staff at WSU.
This professional development was an
interactive program designed to provide staff
strategies for partnering with students to
reduce incidents of high-risk behavior.
This interactive workshop brought staff
together to consider their professional
responsibilities in regards to preventing highrisk behaviors while reframing the way in
which they engage students in conversations
about risk management. Student leaders from
across the campus also provided a student
insight to high-risk behavior through a panel
discussion and gave ways staff can better
support students across the university.
A week with Kim Novak was overall a great
benefit to the campus and fraternity and
sorority life.
For more about Kim Novak, please visit her site at
http://www.novaktalks.com/.
March
2013
A Labor of Love–Serving
as a Chapter Advisor
Anita Cory, Director , The Center for
Fraternity & Sorority Life
Many of you are (or have been) a
member of your chapter’s advisory board. You know
this is a difficult volunteer role – a labor of love. You
tirelessly continue in your role because you know:
Advising provides the support that is needed for
chapters to succeed. Being a part of that process is very
gratifying.
 Advising is an opportunity for experienced alumni
to strengthen their coaching and mentoring skills
and be re-energized by the contact with
undergraduates who come into our chapters with
new ideas and untested ideals.
 Advising allows you to reflect on your own
fraternity/sorority experience and how it has
shaped you as a professional and a person.
 Advising can renew your enthusiasm for your
fraternity/sorority and develop and retain talent
within your organization. You know the
importance of developing and retaining good
people.
 Advising creates a legacy. The knowledge you foster
within your organization can inspire new ideas for
generations to come. Furthermore, through
advising, you can help carry on your fraternity/
sorority legacy by passing on its values and mission
to current undergraduates.
It is critically important that we have alumni who are
effective advisors, but honestly, being a chapter advisor
can often be overwhelming! Therefore, we offer some
suggestions on how to excel as a chapter advisor to your
fraternity or sorority.
Build Your Support System and Recruit People to
Help You
It is certainly a team effort to advise and mentor a
fraternity or sorority. There are infinite benefits to
building partnerships with:
 Fraternity/sorority alumni who work on campus as
staff or faculty.
 Campus departments such as Counseling &
Testing, Career and Academic Counseling Center,
Student Involvement, Multicultural Student
Services, Center for Civic Engagement, Health &
Wellness, and others. As a chapter advisor,
building a team of people on campus that can be
visible and serve as a resource in your chapter is a
great practice. These individuals and departments,
while not members of your organization can
provide excellent educational experiences and
mentor your chapter’s undergraduates.
 Know local law enforcement and hear their
perspective on your chapter.
 Individuals at your (inter)national headquarters
and volunteers who work with the governing body
that oversees the your fraternity/sorority. (i.e.
NPC, NIC, NALFO, NPHC).
 Last but not least, seek out the perspective of the
Center for Fraternity and Sorority Life advisor who
works with your chapter. We meet with your
students frequently and may have unique insight
into your organization that may be valuable to you.
Building a support system of trusted professionals can
help you move your chapter from good to great. There
are many people at WSU that want fraternities and
sororities to be successful organizations so don’t
hesitate to seek them out!
(Continued on page 7)
March
2013
Getting “Phired Up!”
for Recruitment
Jami Harrison, Assistant Director ,
The Center for Fraternity & Sorority
Life
For many years, the WSU fraternity/sorority
community has invited company PhiredUp!
Productions to visit Pullman and speak to our
students about effective recruitment. Focusing
primarily on values-based recruiting and quality
versus quantity, the team at Phired Up! has a
knack for connecting with our students and
helping them see the big picture of the fraternal
movement. Their content allows men and
women to use their organization’s values and
purpose to create a recruitment plan suitable for
the chapter, and encourages them to recruit men/
women who will continue the growth and
success of the organization. Year after year, it is a
big hit.
This year, our partnership has gone to a new level
and our campus was identified as one across the
country that is ready for the next step. The
company has created a new program to continue
the education for men and women beyond the on
-campus visit and their staff has created a
curriculum specific to the needs of WSU.
Separately, the fraternity and sorority
recruitment chairs are meeting with two staff
members from Phired Up! to continue the
dialogue about values-based recruitment. “The
Masters Class” is a weekly 1 hour meeting held
via Skype and the men and women are able to
interact with the staff members via chat with
their laptops. They are discussing who we are
looking for as a community, how to show
potential new members what we are all about
and explain our mission using values words. The
students are learning how to teach their
members the key components in holding
conversations with potential new members, and
selecting men and women who are a best fit for
each respective organization.
We are excited to continue this partnership
with Phired Up! and can not wait to see how the
students implement the practices in our
community.
For more about PhiredUp! Productions, visit
http://phiredup.com/.
March
2013
2013 Association of Fraternal
Leadership & Values-Central
Steven Williamson, Graduate
Assistant, Center for Fraternity and
Sorority Life
The Greek community thrives on true leadership. Being
compelled to be a part of something greater than yourself and
herald your organization against the world. We thrive as a
unit. Not just within our own organizations, but as a
community. At the Central Fraternal Leadership conference
and the National Black Greek leadership conference, we were
able to see what a community of leaders in the Greek
community have been doing around the country, and how
larger communities are being awarded for their success to
thrive and grow together.
On February 7-10, the Association for Fraternal Leadership
and Values held their annual conference that merges both the
Central Fraternal Leadership conference, made up of the
North American Interfraternity Conference (NIC) and the
National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) as well as the
National Black Greek Leadership Conference, composed of the
National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) fraternities and
sororities.
major stroll competition between universities. Everyone
was on their feet and dancing along to the music and
students from different universities performed various
strolls or dance routines to music. It was certainly one of
the best events of the conference.
Tish Norman would keynote the following day’s lunch with
a speech titled, “Calling all Greeks to the Floor.” The
presentation was a request for all Greeks to be passionate
about their organization, inspire fraternal bonds, and serve
their campus and community.
Along with various keynotes were tons of workshops
throughout the weekend. Some ranged from collaboration
across councils, to branding and the image of organizations,
risk management, and so on. Yet, the goal of the conference
is to award excellence, and it was at this conference that the
Washington State University Interfraternity Council took
away awards for council management and membership
recruitment. The WSU Panhellenic council walked away
having won awards for academic achievement, council
management, leadership & educational development,
membership recruitment, and philanthropy & community
service.
The energy was electric from the beginning with Phired Up!
getting the crowd up, moving, and meeting new people. Not
just basic introductions, but questions of depth, such as
asking your partner what they are passionate about, to fun
questions, such as which actor would you punch and why?
This was simply the beginning of an amazing journey of skills
throughout the weekend.
The following day was kicked off by David Stollman, who
presented a workshop titled, “Buy in or Get out.” Very
candidly, he addressed that members should aspire to get
better and build one another up. For the members who are not
passionate about Greek life and growing, he suggests that they
should simply get out, because they are inhibiting the
potential of these organizations. Wrapping up this night was a
We strive to get better daily. In the Greek community, we
seek scholastic achievement, selfless efforts of service, and
lifelong brotherhood/sisterhood, which provides an
amassing leadership skill for each and every one of us.
March
2013
Greek Leadership Academy 2013
On January 25-27, About 130 members from the
Greek Community attended the annual Greek
Leadership Academy.
This year, curriculum focused on the aspects of
skill building, including topics of citizenship,
ethics and communication. The Center for
Fraternity and Sorority Life staff were joined by
individuals from the Department of Residence
Life, Student Involvement, Standards &
Accountability and Multicultural
March
2013
A Labor of Love (Continued from page 3)
Get Organized
Advisors “live” in the fast paced world of undergraduates! In order to stay organized, we must embrace
technology! It is a good idea to have a calendar that tracks your chapter’s activities and will help keep you sane.
Communicate to students what medium they should use to do communicate with you (email, phone, etc.), and
consider creating a Facebook (or online social network account) for students to connect with you.
Other ways to get and stay organized include:
 Encourage recurring events. This will help to organize each semester so another meeting does not happen
just to set the calendar.
 Clearly communicate what your involvement will look like, when you will attend meetings, and when you
expect to have updates/paperwork turned submitted to you. By communicating expectations in advance, it
may help prevent deadlines and events from sneaking up on you.
 Set up regular meetings and/or conference calls with chapter leaders. The more you can get the
undergraduates you are working with on a schedule, the better off you will be.
Communicate the Common Values and Expectations of Fraternities and Sororities
Expectations of your chapter may have been low before you came on board. You should know and communicate
the basic expectations WSU and your (inter)national organization has for your chapter and what you expect.
You should not only know applicable state laws when outlining expectations, but the WSU’s Student Code of
Conduct as well.
It is important to have conversations with the chapter about the founding values of your organization and
provide them with tips on how to live those values. Challenge the chapter to “do what they say they will do” and
praise appropriate behavior.
Empower Students – Guide Them, Don’t Do It for Them
Students develop and gain leadership skills and practical experience when they do the work and the advisor
simply advises. Encouraging self-governance is one of the best things a chapter advisor can do. Undergraduates
should plan events, write reports, and hold one another accountable. Advisors should step in when needed but
great learning can occur through making mistakes and learning from them.
Be Engaged. Be Authentic.
The more authentic you are with your students, the more likely they will understand your role and
responsibilities as a volunteer and their role in maintaining a good working relationship. Many volunteers will
attest their students work to meet the expectations of the chapter advisor with whom they have a close, yet
respectful bond.
Immerse yourself in the chapter and you can make a tremendous difference in culture change, as well as create a
positive experience for yourself. Introduce your family to the chapter members, attend some campus events with
the chapter (including awards banquets), and dine with the chapter periodically. Connecting with students in
their environment helps build connections and also builds your credibility as an advisor.
March
2013
Council Corner
2013 Rho Gamma Retreat
Kendra Peterson, VP Recruitment
Counselors, Panhellenic Council
We are very excited for all 49 women
who have been chosen to serve as
recruitment counselors (also known as Rho Gammas) for
the 2013 sorority recruitment. These women all went
through an extensive application process and we are
excited for them to begin their journey. This year’s goal
with Rho Gammas is to help train them to become better
leaders, coaches and strong women in our community. We
strive to help these women to feel empowered and
confident in their roles.
be a coaching leader, how gender plays a role in how
women interact and their roles portrayed in society.
Along with this, the participants were challenged to
think about a woman’s perception of various aspects
that impact their roles in the community.
The Rho Gammas were able to put their
information and skills to the test in an activity
called “Behind Closed Doors”. This activity
allowed them to place themselves in scenarios
which often occur during recruitment and
practice how they would handle the situation.
One of the first steps in their journey was on February 8 th
when they attended the first ever overnight retreat for Rho
Gammas at Camp Sanders in Idaho. Rho Gammas attended
the retreat as well as six Panhellenic officers and eight
facilitators recruited from the CFSL, Office of the Dean of
Students, the College of Education, Residence Life, and one
from the University of Idaho.
During the weekend the group spent time on various topics
pertaining to being an impactful Rho Gamma as well as a
strong role model in our community. We covered how to
Using the support of their peers and mentors,
these women were able to bond with one
another and come together to create an
atmosphere that will allow potential new
members to feel welcome and excited about
Washington State University and the Greek
community on campus.
March
2013
Council Corner
The 2013 American Gentleman
Challenge
Ryan Minnerly, Director of Public
Relations, The Interfraternity Council
The 2013 Interfraternity Council at Washington State
launched its first American Gentleman Challenge on
March 4, 2013. The Challenge, which was implemented as
a part of the WSU American Gentleman campaign,
features weekly tasks for fraternity men in every chapter
on campus.
Some of the challenges for March challenge included
holding the door open for others on campus, tweeting one
of your fraternity’s values, or sharing a nice text message
you have sent to your mom or an important woman in
your life.
The IFC has also partnered with WSU’s Advertising
Club to produce an American Gentleman video series.
Each short video depicts a lesson of an American
Gentleman (i.e. holding the door for others). Two videos
will be released each month and will tie in with the
American Gentleman Challenge of the week. The chapter
with the most participation each month will win a prize
from the IFC. The IFC will also send a letter to the
winning chapter’s inter/national headquarters on behalf
of the chapter!
#AmericanGentleman Tweets:

Thank you mom for supporting me. You are the
inspiration and the drive. You have given me the
strength to become great. @WSUIFC
@SigEpWSU

#WSUAmericanGentlemanChallenge always
strive to be a true gentleman
#fraternalexcellence #OXfam @WSUIFC

My mom has given me more than I could ever
give back, I love you so much!
#Ame ric a nG ent l ema n @WS UPh iD el t s
@WSUIFC

A WSU American Gentlemen holds the door
open for others. #WSUAmericanGentlemen
#fraternalexcellence @WSUIFC @WSUFSLife

@WSUIFC We develop leaders who give back
to our community by requiring 12 service hours,
instead of only IFC's 8.
March
2013
Leadership at a New Level: The Men’s Retreat
Fraternity members developed leadership skills and cultivated relationships at the IFC sponsored Men’s
Retreat February 22-24. A group of 52 fraternity men from 15 fraternities took a three day retreat to Camp
Sanders in Tensed, Idaho to promote personal growth and interfraternal unity. The retreat was promoted by
the Interfraternity Council as an opportunity for men to
get together without the distractions of the Pullman
environment.
A group of retreat experts, Growth Guiders, led the
group, challenging the participants by facilitating tough
conversation and activities. The curriculum focused on
values congruence, strategic decision making,
stewardship, and overall how to be a man in the college
environment. This was the first year that the retreat
was put on, and due to such positive responses there are
plans to make this an annual tradition. Retreat
participants left the camp feeling inspired of their values and wanting their fraternity brothers to share the
same experience.
Thomas Hammett (left), Interfraternity Council Director of Recruitment, emphasized the
unifying aspects of the retreat. “We really wanted to bring guys together in a different
environment to help them realize that we all share common values, even though our
letters are different.”
Now that the men are back in the school environment, peer facilitators
have been charged to follow up with participants in small group
meetings. “The goal is to sustain the knowledge that the participants learned at the
retreat by follow up, with hopes that we will make a lasting impact” says Michael
Kamradt (right), Interfraternity Council Executive Vice President.
March
2013
Chapter & Council Updates
The women of Chi Omega hosted their 1st annual Eleusinian tea March 23rd, welcoming alumnae from
across the state to the Beta Beta chapter house.
Congratulations to the men of Lambda Phi Epsilon
Fraternity, Inc. for being officially recognized as a United
Greek Association Colony at Washington State University!
Lambda Phi Epsilon is an internationally recognized Asianinterest fraternity.
Welcome to the WSU Greek Community!
March
2013
Celebrating 15 Years of Distinction–
Gamma Alpha Omega Sorority, Inc.
Members of Gamma Alpha Omega Sorority, Inc., Delta Chapter will be returning to the Pullman campus
for their 15 year anniversary on April 5 – 7, 2013.
The theme for the event is “Celebrating 15 Years of Distinction” in recognition of the impact the sorority
has had on both its membership and the WSU campus.
Coordinated by chapter alumnae, this event will kick off
its festivities on Friday, April 5th with a brown bag
dialogue featuring Gamma alumnae. On Saturday, April
6th, members will gather with invited guests for a Legacy
Breakfast and Awards to highlight the positive impact
Gamma has had on the WSU community and honor a
member with the Distinguished Pillar Award. Following
the breakfast, will be a business meeting and
professional development workshops for reunion
participants. Considering the many health and nutrition
issues the Latino community is facing the reunion will
conclude with a heart pounding Zumba class!
Gamma Alpha Omega Sorority, Inc., is a Latina-founded, multicultural organization that exists to:

Increase the number of women with a college education and advanced degrees.

Provide mentors for youth, women and under-represented communities.

Enhance the individual leader in each member.

Provide a family of lifelong support for sisters who live their lives by the pillars of Honesty, Integrity,
Leadership, Scholarship and Unity.
The WSU Delta Chapter was founded on the Pullman campus on April 24, 1998. For more information
about Gamma Alpha Omega Sorority, Inc. Delta chapter, please visit www.gao-delta.com. For more
information about the 15th year reunion, please contact Mareth Flores de Francis at
[email protected].
March
2013
International Badge Day
International Badge Day was established in 1997 by the National
Panhellenic Conference to set aside a day or an event for women
across the nation to wear their sorority badges or Greek letters in
a celebration of sisterhood.
This year’s theme was: “Wear Your Letters on Your Heart.”
The WSU Panhellenic Council celebrated the event Monday
March 4, 2013 with a table on the Glenn-Terrell Mall. Chapter
members stopped by to take photos and celebrate what their
badge means to them.
March
2013
Chapter & Council Updates
Last week the Gamma Eta chapter of Kappa
Kappa Gamma hosted two in-house
programs to educate their members. They
first taught members how to be aware of
behavior processes and equipped them with
skills to work better with other people in the
work place, as well as in a sorority. The
chapter also hosted their annual Check Your
Boobies event, an educational session to raise
awareness of breast cancer and how to live a
healthier life and potentially prevent breast
cancer. Check out their updated website at
http://kkggammaeta.wix.com/kkggammaeta
Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity at WSU seeks Resident Advisor
August 2013-May 2014
Requirements:
 Live in chapter facility
 Inspiring team leader with interest in mentoring college-age men
 Educator and Management capacity
 Able to aid in supervising the meal plan and helping the cook
Desired Qualifications:
 Bachelor’s degree or equivalent
 Experience in advising or management of youth
 Property and Financial management skills
Compensation:
 Monthly salary
 Parking close to campus
 Private room with full bath
 10 meals per week
 Cable
Sigma Phi Epsilon is located on
610 Colorado St. in Pullman.
Email or mail resume and cover letter to:
Christopher M. Campbell
[email protected]
610 Colorado St.
Pullman, WA 99163
MARCH
2013
Upcoming Events
Greek Week: March 31-April 4
Mr. Greek: April 7
GAO Sorority, Inc. Anniversary: April 5-April 7
AFLV West & NCGLC: April 11-14
Mom’s Weekend: April 12-14
WSU Spring Commencement: May 4
Spring 2013 Greek Council Retreat
CFSL Contact Information
Main Office: 509-335-5433
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @WSUFSLife
Facebook: facebook.com/WSUCFSL
Pinterest: pinterest.com/wsufslife
Have an Idea?
We encourage you to contact us with questions,
ideas, and comments for future Greek News
publications. If there is a topic or issue in the
fraternity / sorority community you would like to
know more about, please email Courtney Ramsey
at [email protected].
Social Media & Blogs We Follow
Twitter
@WSUIFC: WSU IFC
@WSUpanhellenic: WSU Panhellenic
@WSU_UGA: WSU United Greek Association
@nicfraternity: North American Interfraternity Conference
@fraternalvalues: Fraternal Values Society
@SigmaNuHQ: Sigma Nu Fraternity
@simonsinek: Simon Sinek
@NPCWomen: National Panhellenic Conference
@fraternalthghts: Fraternal Thoughts
Blogs
The Hungry Student Leader: www.tjsullivan.com/blog/
Fraternal Thoughts: www.fraternalthoughts.blogspot.com
Fraternal Musings: www.jessekoch.com/blog/
The Fraternity Blog: www.thefraternityblog.blogspot.com
Re: Focus: www.sinekpartners.typepad.com/refocus/