Alpha Gamma Rho - University of Arkansas

The Alpha Iota Messenger 4 ALPHA IOTA T his past spring has been a very eventful time for Alpha Iota at the University of Arkansas. Our executive board, active members, and alumni have been working very hard to improve the Chapter's recruitment, academics, and community involvement. Not only have these three factors shown improvement, but member and alumni participation has increased dramatically. It is inevitable that this fall will bring even more success for this great organization. DESIGNATED STUDY SPACE TO IMPROVE ACADEMICS At the beginning of this year our executive board created three goals we wanted to focus on during the spring and fall. The first was academics. In order to improve every member's GPA, we reserved private meeting rooms on campus three days a week for all members to utilize. Even though members with low GPAs were required to attend, many others attended to receive and offer assistance to other members. Our Chapter has seen drastic improvements in only one semester. To continue this momentum, we will be working with a local company this fall that offers study rooms as well as individual tutors. Since academics are arguably the most important focus of anyone's college career, we are making sure every member of Alpha Iota has access to the assistance they need. MEMBERS LEAVE A MARK ON CAMPUS Our second focus is campus involvement. We now require all members to be associated with two registered student organizations on campus; one being agriculture related and one of their choice. This has allowed members to meet new students around campus, receive help with schoolwork, and spread our name. Campus involvement benefits both our individual members as well as the Chapter itself. STRIDES IN PHILANTHROPIC ENDEAVORS BENEFIT COMMUNITY AT-LARGE Our third goal is to improve our community involvement through philanthropies. In April, we worked with Zaxbys restaurant to host a percentage night for the Wounded Warrior Project. After the successful night, they are eager to work with us again this fall! We are planning a golf tournament in October to benefit the Farmer and Veteran Coalition. We also paired with another fraternity on campus to host an event in September to benefit the men and women in uniform. We are very excited to give back to the community while spreading our name around Northwest Arkansas. ALUMNI, WE NEED YOUR HELP One major problem Alpha Iota faces at this time is not having a fraternity house. In the past two years, our members have made an effort to all live together in townhomes and apartments. Just by living in the same proximity, fall recruitment has nearly doubled. However, it is very clear that a fraternity house is the one thing we need to make our Chapter one of the top fraternities at the University of Arkansas. It is the number one reason why new members don't join Alpha Iota. Our Chapter remains resilient and has proved this by prospering even without having a house for the past six years, but this won't go on forever as we have survived on the hope that a new house will be built soon. Having a Chapter House is something we would all like to see and experience during our time on campus. I am very confident that Alpha Iota has a bright future and will continue to surprise the University of Arkansas community, but it's safe to say that the one thing we need the help with the most is having a common place to bond as Brothers, a place for Alpha Gamma Rho. We sincerely thank our generous alumni who recognize this problem and who have stepped up to help us reach our goal. We hope more of you will join the campaign and get involved. Fraternally, Spencer Hendricks '12 Chapter President smhendri@uark.edu Alpha Iota Sets Goals on Campus and in the Community Alumni Support Needed to Leave Legacy at the University of Arkansas Alpha Gamma Rho and Alpha Chi Omega members at a University pep rally.

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