Delta Tau Delta - Indiana University

DTD e Shield e Shield Delta Tau Delta • Beta Alpha Chapter Alumni Newsletter • Spr ing 2021 The Volunteer Alumni Team Is Encouraged by the Central Office Meeting with University Beta Alpha Ready to Return to Campus Fall 2022 M ost of you are probably aware that in October, the Central Office submitted a petition for permission to bring Beta Alpha back to campus. The University expansion committee requires that such petitions be filed by the National Office. In March, the expansion committee met with Delta Tau Delta's Central Office to discuss how our Fraternity can be an asset to the campus and our members. The Central Office was very helpful and supportive of our chapter. I was asked to speak about the alumni who have asked to be part of the volunteer alumni team (VAT). I briefly introduced the eight participants that make up what we call the core group. I also told them what areas of focus each alumnus was handling. We expect those alumni will be the bulk of the VAT. I explained that we have been meeting quarterly since August of 2019 to be ready when needed. I emphasized that because people support what they help create, the core group has developed team charters and action plans as templates to guide the teams and to assess their progress. We are also fortunate to have more than 20 alumni from various vocations who have volunteered to be mentors for individual brothers. At the outset of the meeting, IU expansion committee members were saying, "If you come back on campus..." As this meeting unfolded, I realized that their tone shifted to "When you come back on campus..." After I left, the expansion committee members were completely confident that we have alumni committed to advising and being involved in every aspect of Fraternity administration. Fraternity professionals and University administrators are all too familiar with the bucket brigade mentality of alumni when there is trouble in a chapter. When someone yells "Fire!" everyone comes running with a bucket. However, once the fire is out, everyone takes their bucket and goes home. We have convinced both the Central Office and the University Administration that we aren't going to take our buckets and go home. The University's Expansion Committee has just informed us that we will be able to start our recolonization in August of 2022. We encourage everyone to consider how best to show support for this good news and let me know. Ski free, my Brothers. I am thinking of the JetBlach bike team! Fraternally, Ken Glass '76 (317) 590-6925 | krgh2oski@aol.com B randon Podgorski '03 spent the summer of his freshman year at Indiana University participating in an academic program, and during his free time would shoot hoops at the SRSC. "One day, two Delts, Raj and Eddie, asked if I would join their team for some three-on-three," Brandon said. "We went on a great run; I'm not sure if we lost a game that day." After going their separate ways, Brandon bumped into the guys again at an off-campus get-together where he was introduced to several other Delts. "We stayed in touch throughout the summer and I knew that I eventually wanted to rush Delta Tau Delta," Brandon said. "It's the only Fraternity I ever considered." Having a good group of friends on a campus of over 30,000 students gave Brandon a sense of belonging. During pledgeship, he found that his value of preparation was reinforced as he learned more about his Brothers and the history of Beta Alpha Chapter and Delta Tau Delta. "If an active ever quizzed me on the history of DTD, or even a hometown of one of the Brothers, I wanted to have the correct answer," Brandon said. "I figured if it was important enough for them to ask, then it was important for me to know." As a sophomore, Brandon served as philanthropy chairman and helped organize Dads Weekend and the powder puff football game with sororities on campus. His favorite activities each year were Little 500, intramurals, and recruitment. "I especially looked forward to bringing in new pledges," Brandon said. "I enjoyed getting to know them and sharing any advice that would help them through their freshman year at IU and pledgeship. I've always had a penchant for mentorship, and that continues today in my current job." Brandon graduated from IU in 2003 with a bachelor's degree in general studies and a minor in sports management and marketing. He began his career as a manager at a Cardinal Fitness health club in Indianapolis. Quickly, he moved up the chain to become an owner and operator at his own club in Bloomington while also overseeing operations of clubs in Columbus and Indianapolis. In 2009, Brandon transitioned to higher education as the fitness center director and assistant basketball coach at Darton College in Albany, Georgia. "At Darton, I began teaching classes through the physical education department and fell in love with teaching," Brandon said. "Working with young adults just energizes me, and I knew that I wanted to end up in the classroom full time down the road." In pursuing this goal, he earned a master's degree in recreation and sports sciences from Ohio University in 2010. Then, in 2013, Brandon returned to Indiana as the athletic director of Indiana University Kokomo, where he also taught sports marketing classes as an adjunct instructor. Finally, in 2017, he landed a full-time professor position at Trine University in Angola, Indiana, where he teaches classes in sports management and advises a group of 35 students. Brandon is also the director of the Trine Center for Sports Studies, which is a multidisciplinary teaching and experiential learning collaborative that focuses on the study of sports and the international sports industry. "We host a biweekly podcast and publish a research blog in addition to bringing high-level guest speakers from the business world of sports." Brandon continues his pursuit of higher knowledge in the industry and earned a master's in business administration from Trine in 2021; he is working toward his Ph.D. in sports leadership from Concordia University Chicago. Outside of his career, Brandon is an avid runner and triathlete. His wife has worked for Delta Airlines since 2015, so they love traveling together. Brandon does his best to strategically plan their trips to wherever the Chicago Cubs are playing. Most of his free time, however, is spent trying to keep up with their 2-year-old son, Ryne. Brandon is amazed at the remarkable things that Beta Alpha Brothers are doing in business, healthcare, law, education, and other fields. "I would expect nothing less from this group of guys who have meant so much to me," he said. Brandon and his family live in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and can be reached at bpodgors@hotmail.com. THE LOVE OF THE GAME Brandon Podgorski '03 Found a Love for Sports and Teaching through His Time with Beta Alpha and His Career in Education and Sports Studies

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