The Greek Letter November 2013 / Volume 5 Issue I G From the Director reetings! The semester has started strong within our Greek Community. Growth and expansion have been the focus of this Fall 2013 semester. Our four councils have been working diligently to uphold the standards set in place by their National Organizations, while they continue to emerge into great leaders. As a result, we have seen a tremendous increase of students who desire to become part of our amazing community. In This Issue . . . Award Winning Chapters Page 2 Interfraternity Council Page 3 Multicultural Greek Council Page 3 National Pan-Hellenic Council Page 4 Fall 2013 Recruitment Page 4 Alternative Spring Break Page 5 The Office of Greek Life Staff: Robyn Brock, Assistant Dean / Director [email protected] Michelle Robinson, Associate Director [email protected] Susannah Shiner, Assistant Director [email protected] Our Panhellenic community had a record breaking number of women participate in Fall recruitment, all while welcoming the colonization of Alpha Omicron Pi. The Multicultural Greek Council (MGC) has dedicated this semester to promoting unity amongst their peers, beginning with encouragement to Love Your Body. The Interfraternity Council (IFC) welcomes the colonization of Beta Theta Pi fraternity into the IFC community. The National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) has made the decision to dedicate themselves to serving the Tallahassee Community by placing focus on homelessness. As the Director of Greek Life I spend a lot of time advocating for our values-based organizations. I consistently talk about leadership, service, scholarship, and friendship within fraternities and sororities. Our community makes it easy for me to engage in these conversations. The next page demonstrates the numerous accolades our chapters received. We look forward to a continued successful year as we approach Spring 2014. For more information about programs, resources and services related to fraternities and sororities, please contact us at [email protected] or visit our website at http://greeklife.fsu.edu. Fraternally, Sarah Hubbard, Student Program Assistant [email protected] Frank Lopez, Graduate Assistant [email protected] Brian McDermott, Graduate Assistant [email protected] greeklife.fsu.edu Left to Right: Brian McDermott, Frank Lopez, Robyn Brock, Sarah Hubbard, Michelle Robinson, Susannah Shiner Page 2 Volume 5 Issue 1 Award Winning Chapters O ver the past academic year, individuals and chapters of our community were honored for their achievements both regionally and nationally. Congratulations to all of these chapters on their accomplishments. Our members are constantly showing why Florida State’s Greek Life community is one of the best. Lets congratulate our award winning community! IFC Alpha Tau Omega: True Merit Cup recipient; Recruitment Excellence Award Chi Phi: Thomas A. Gehring Award for Chapter Excellence – Chapter of the Year; Philanthropy Achievement Award; Bates Block Campus Involvement Award Pi Kappa Alpha: Smythe Award – Chapter of the Year Pi Kappa Phi: Champion Master Chapter Award Sigma Chi: Recognized as a Bell Chapter Theta Chi: Alter Award – Chapter of the Year; Holland Award – Top Recruiting Chapter; Phil S. Randall Award – Top 5 Fundraising Chapter Zeta Beta Tau: Recognized for campus involvement and academics; ZBT Top Recruitment Award Upcoming Events:  11/24 Initiation Deadline 11:59pm  12/3 Mandatory Interest Meeting 9:15pm Union Ballrooms MGC alpha Kappa Delta Phi: Chapter of the Year Kappa Delta Chi: Chapter of the Year Lambda Theta Alpha: Burgundy and Grey Award – Sister of the Year; Community Service Event of the Year; Secretary of the Year Omega Phi Beta: Chapter member Maria Silva named Chapter President of the Year and given the Leadership Award Sigma Beta Rho: Newly Inducted Brother of the Year; Brother of the Year Theta Nu Xi: Chapter of the Year; Program of the Year; Best Intake Process NPHC Alpha Phi Alpha: Florida Chapter of the Year; Florida Brother of the Year Kappa Alpha Psi: (2) Byron U. Armstrong Awards for Academic Achievement Phi Beta Sigma: Silver Award for Membership PH Alpha Chi Omega: Alpha Level Accreditation Alpha Gamma Delta: Jewel Chapter – Fundraising Alpha Phi: Order of the Lamp Qualifier; #1 Southeast Donor to Alpha Phi Foundation Delta Delta Delta: Top 25 chapters for St Jude Children’s Hospital fundraising Delta Zeta: Outstanding Community Philanthropic Support Gamma Phi Beta: Five Crescents Level Kappa Alpha Theta: Bronze Kite Award Kappa Delta: Merit Chapter – Top 10% of Kappa Delta Chapters; Academic Excellence; Chapter Advisory Board Excellence; Alumnae Chapter Achievement Award Kappa Kappa Gamma: Outstanding Academics Pi Beta Phi: Arrow in the Attic Award – Top Donor Sigma Delta Tau: Diamond Chapter – Chapter of the Year; Received a Pearl in administration, membership recruitment, new member education, scholarship, programming, leadership development, and alumnae Zeta Tau Alpha: Crown Chapter Did you know that the overall Greek GPA was 3.114 in spring 2013? The Greek Letter greeklife.fsu.edu  Volume 5 Issue 1 Page 3 IFC Welcomes Back Beta Theta Pi Fraternity T his semester, the Interfraternity Council and Greek Life community has welcomed a new chapter to Florida State’s campus. Beta Theta Pi Fraternity begun its colonization this fall and has already had 92 men accept bids. Beta is known for its award-winning Men of Principle initiative and recognized as one of the top ten fraternities for number of chapters, undergraduate members and living alumni. The Interfraternity Council is excited to welcome Beta to its continuously growing community. Multicultural Greek Council (MGC) Focuses on Values Based Programming T he Multicultural Greek Council (MGC) was founded on the ideal to promote unity and cohesion on Florida State University’s campus. To achieve their ideals, each organization will be hosting a variety of events, fundraisers, and participate in many community service efforts. This year, the council is focusing on values based programming. During October, the MGC is participating in Love Your Body Day. This is an event where women and men come together to celebrate self-acceptance and promote positive body image. According to Florida State University Health Services, between 50-80% of the Florida State community struggles with body dissatisfaction. Because this issue is so relevant to our campus community the men and women of MGC are making it a priority to be a part of this initiative. While MGC is a council comprised of social fraternities and sororities, MGC has a strong commitment to the academic success of students in their community here at FSU. This semester MGC is hosting study nights on the last Wednesday of each month; the study nights will be held at a variety of locations on FSU’s campus. Academics are the first priority of the council and each individual organization within the council. A common phrase heard at Florida State is to Uphold the Garnet and Gold, FSU’s challenge to the entire community to respect yourself and others, take responsibility for yourself and those around you, and reflect the values of the institution. Civility is respecting diversity, tradition, recognizing the importance of dynamic learning environments, and holding each other accountable. In alignment with this challenge, the council is hosting MGC week in the spring semester. During this week they will be addressing the issue of civility on social media. The council is implementing a hashtag campaign on Twitter, to show how social media can be used to positively impact the community. For more information regarding the Multicultural Greek Council, please visit: http://greeklife.fsu.edu/Current-Members/Multicultural-Greek-Council The Greek Letter greeklife.fsu.edu  Volume 5 Issue 1 Page 4 NPHC Fall Focus, Service T he National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) at Florida State University is currently comprised of six of the “Divine 9” organizations. Each organization, although founded upon their own values and principles, shares the common value of serving their community. Our NPHC community made the decision to focus its collective efforts on serving the Tallahassee community. Each month the council will choose a different area of concern and work towards being part of the solution. From the start of the Fall semester the NPHC has set the focus on homelessness in Tallahassee. The council has partnered with The Shelter, located on Tennessee Street. The Shelter’s history stems back to 1986 when First Presbyterian Church opened its doors to a few men who were seeking shelter from the cold. By 1988 The Shelter was registered as a non-profit agency and the location on Tennessee Street was opened in 1991. According to The Shelter’s website, the establishment provides food, shelter, and basic health needs for hundreds of men, women, and children each day and night. The NPHC has become a part of the volunteer force at The Shelter. Every Wednesday the NPHC will continue to collect basic toiletries items and blankets to help support the mission and vision of The Shelter. In addition, members of the council will volunteer to serve food at The Shelter. The council is truly taking an active role in the Tallahassee community. As they turn their service efforts the Florida State University community, the council will look to partner with various student organizations to find ways to give back to this community which has given them the opportunity to explore their educational dreams. Panhellenic Association Achieves Another Successful Recruitment J anuary 2013 marked the beginning of another year of preparation for Panhellenic’s recruitment staff. With the consistent increase in Potential New Members (PNMs) every year, the staff began its year selecting 90 recruitment counselors to accompany the growth. The recruitment counselors, rho gammas as they are respectfully called, trained for the entirety of the Spring semester to provide the utmost counseling and customer service. As registration opened in April, we were heading towards record numbers. When registration closed and final preparations commenced, the Panhellenic community was prepared for the nearly 1,700 women who were seeking membership into the 16 organizations that comprise the Panhellenic Association. Along with the record-breaking numbers, the Panhellenic community was welcoming its 17th organization, Alpha Omicron Pi Sorority. The newest sorority participated in the first of four rounds of recruitment to introduce themselves and the organization to the PNMs. As we neared the end of the recruitment week, we would celebrate the accomplishment of 1,200 new members into the Panhellenic community, but there was one more chapter to finish their introduction into the community. Alpha Omicron Pi sorority quickly moved into recruitment mode as the campus community began classes. During the weekend of September 7-9, Alpha Omicron Pi began and finished their colonization weekend. By the evening of September 9, 2013, Alpha Omicron Pi added 200+ women to the Panhellenic community and introduced their women to a sea of Greek men and women who came to support the colonization ceremony. As the Panhellenic community continues to grow and truly embody a values-based community, there is no doubt the number of women who choose to participate in recruitment will find an organization that aligns with her personal values. The Greek Letter  Page 5 Volume 5 Issue 1 Alternative Spring Break G ive back to the global community, bond with others in the Greek community, and travel abroad for Spring Break…what more could you ask for?!?! For the second year, the Greek Life Office is providing Greek students with an opportunity to engage in community service during their Spring Break, March 8 – 15th. Greek Life Alternative Spring Break is a great way for students to explore social issues and discover new things through education and purposeful action. Students will join forces with others members of the FSU Greek community to provide some much needed assistance to others in a foreign country. On last year’s trip, nine FSU Greek students helped rebuild schools, while making unique connections with young Jamaican children and each other. Not only did the participants help others, they learned a lot about themselves during the seven day trip. One participant reflected, “I did not realize how much I could grow as a person along the way.” The trip is designed to help students get out of their comfort zone, challenge themselves, and give back to others who may not be as fortunate as us. If you are interested in learning more about the Greek Life Alternative Spring Break trip, please contact Brian McDermott ([email protected]) this years Greek Life Staff Graduate Assistant or Susannah Shiner ([email protected]), this year’s Greek Life Staff Leader. The Greek Letter greeklife.fsu.edu 