Sigma Pi - Cornell University

Page 5 W e are pleased to welcome four brothers, Peter Muth '74, Craig Dewey '06, Alex Eacker '15, and Nick Wint '15, to the Educational Foundation Board. Each brother brings unique experiences, strengths, and backgrounds which will help further our foundation's reach within the Sigma Pi, Cornell, and Ithaca communities. Their commitment to education and Mu Chapter will allow our board to continue our mission. Peter is a lawyer in Buffalo where he specializes in bankruptcy and commercial law. He has been lucky enough to be able to ease into "semi- retirement," continuing specialized work for many longstanding bank and credit union clients. As an undergraduate, Peter served as alumni secretary in his sophomore year and Sage in his senior year, as well as steward in both his junior and senior years. Outside of Sigma Pi, Peter was a member of the Cornell Glee Club, participating in its historic Eastern Europe tour. Peter currently serves as a director on Mu Chapter's alumni board. He received his law degree at The University at Buffalo School of Law. Craig moved to Los Angeles a week after graduation and started as a post-production assistant for the film Miami Vice. The following year, he went on to work for Warner Bros. Television and Lakeshore Entertainment before becoming an assistant editor. In the past few years, Craig has contributed to Bull, The Darkest Hour, Guilt Trip, World War Z, and Delivery Man, as well as several independent films. Craig is a director on Mu Chapter's alumni board and has served as a Cornell Alumni Association Ambassador in both Los Angeles and Alameda County. As an undergraduate, Craig proudly served as Sage. Alex graduated from Cornell in 2015 after having previously served as secretary and herald of Mu Chapter. He was also a member of the Cornell ultimate frisbee team. After graduation, he served two years as a Teach for America corps member in San Jose, Calif., where he was a high school teacher and debate team coach. Alex lives in Brooklyn and is currently a curriculum developer for CodeHS. As an educator, Alex is especially excited to contribute to the foundation's mission. Nick is a 2015 graduate of the school of human ecology. As an undergraduate, he served as steward and alumni secretary of Mu Chapter before ultimately serving as Sage his senior year. Nick was also a member of Cornell EMS and Cornell's Army ROTC program. Since graduation, Nick has been a member of our armed forces serving in the army. In his five years since graduation, he has been stationed in Georgia, Texas, and Arizona while being deployed to South Korea. He is currently stationed in Hawaii. S ince Cornell closed its on-campus instruction back in March, Sigma Pi brothers faced challenges and adapted to this changing world. One of these changes was the loss of summer internships. Many brothers who retained internships transitioned to unpaid work. To assist the undergraduate brothers through this time of uncertainty, the Educational Foundation started a campaign to match Mu Chapter alumni with undergraduate brothers for summer internships and to create grants to help undergraduates fund these experiences and other hardships associated with COVID-19. With the help of our gracious alumni, the foundation was able to mobilize resources and secure funding for the current undergrads. Approximately $18,000 was raised—gifts ranged from $10 to $6,000. Through this campaign, the Educational Foundation matched three undergraduate brothers with alumni. Trevor Faulk '21 and Alex Frank '21 are working for Nick Ornitz '16 at his startup, Dwelling (hellodwelling. com). It is platform for virtual home maintenance, much like telemedicine for your home. Zain Fazal '23 is working for Andrew Joseph '16 and Ethan Joseph '13 at Apres Lodge, a boutique hotel in Whitefish, Mont. Trevor described the summer as a great experience so far. He said, "Nick Ornitz and Shannon Kay, co-founders of Dwelling, let me take ownership of many projects. In only four weeks, I have gotten to contribute, brainstorm, and be a part of the organization even more than I'd hoped." Zain shared similar sentiments. "Over the past few weeks, I have had the privilege of working with Ethan and Andrew Joseph on developing the Apres Lodge group as an emerging hotel presence in the northwest. The experience of conducting market studies and underwriting properties is something I would never get from a conventional internship role at my age. As a rising sophomore, I am fortunate to have this exposure so early in my college career." The undergraduate brothers have also enjoyed opportunities to work with alumni through sharing stories of the house and connecting on these shared experiences. Trevor shared, "It is great that I've gotten to work with a fellow Sigma Pi. We have been able to share some stories about our times in the house. It goes to show that Sigma Pi has provided us with a massive network of alumni who can help and teach you in ways I would not have expected by joining a fraternity." Alumni have enjoyed the opportunity to work with undergraduates. Nick Ornitz wrote, "The opportunity to work with undergraduate brothers, Trevor Faulk and Alex Frank, has been a rewarding experience and nice way to stay connected. The existing trust in Pi brothers made it a unique opportunity to bring Alex and Trevor onto the team at Dwelling. As a difficult time for undergrad recruiting during the pandemic we were glad to be able to offer the roles and have been thrilled with their work so far." Finally, the Educational Foundation provided seven—and counting—undergraduate brothers with a summer grant through this same campaign. Koby Kiefer '22 is an undergraduate brother working at Platinum Real Estate analyzing the impact of COVID-19 in relation to future home buying trends and mortgage rates. He received of one of the grants this summer. Koby's internship transitioned from a paid position to one that was experienced-based due to the Coronavirus. Therefore, he shared "the stipend that I will receive will help offset my expenses for the summer and allow for me to have this experience." Other grant recipients affected in a variety of ways by COVID-19 also noted how the Educational Foundation's grants are helping them get through these troubling times. We are excited that the Educational Foundation was able to successfully assist undergraduate brothers during this time of uncertainty by connecting them to alumni and by the ability to provide some financial relief to those in need. Mu Chapter Foundation Launches Internship Program Foundation Welcomes Four New Board Members

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