Sigma Chi - University of Alabama

2 The Iota Iota Messenger Balfour Leadership Training Workshop F rom August 3-5, Ashton Hill '76, the House Corporation secretary, attended the Balfour Leader- ship Training Work- shop, Sigma Chi's annual summer con- ference where the leadership from un- dergraduate chapters across North Ameri- ca convene to learn and practice skills that will be imple- mented in their home chapters during the upcoming year. "I was inspired by the quality and character of the young men who had traveled so far to learn and grow, and I was proud of Iota Iota's undergraduate leaders who attend- ed on our chapter's behalf," Ashton stated. "Equally inspiring was the commitment of alumni from across the country who gladly invested their time, energy, and experience into maintaining our fraternity's excellence. One could not help but be moved to see so many men assembled in a single place solely for the purpose of pursuing and sharing the values of the White Cross. Our fraternity and chapter are in excellent hands. You can and should be proud of them." During Balfour, the Board of Grand Trustees presents an annual two-day House Corpo- ration Officers Training Seminar devoted to the concerns of house corporation officers. Ashton attended these sessions and shared, "I was amazed at the quantity and quality of the resources introduced to the house corpo- ration officers at this year's Balfour Leader- ship Training Workshop. Sigma Chi's inter- national experience has produced practical solutions to every challenge a chapter house might encounter with tangible benefits like insurance coverage, risk management check- lists, and short-term loans. Perhaps the great- est evidence of the fraternity's acknowledg- ment of the value of—and its commitment to—providing quality houses for all chapters was that our chapter house officers group was the only one with whom all five Grand Offi- cers met at one time." T he weekend of June 23, the Sigma Chi Gen- eral Fraternity celebrated the 61st biannual Grand Chapter meeting in Providence, Rhode Island. Grand Chapter is a time for brothers from across North America to come together, elect new Grand Officers, and celebrate the bonds which bind us. General Fraternity Executive Committee The General Fraternity's executive committee acts as the ultimate governing body of the Gen- eral Fraternity; it directs the fraternity's budget and expenditures, acts upon recommendations and reports from various boards and committees, and assigns duties to the International Headquar- ters staff along with the executive director. Congratulations, Jordan! Annually, two undergraduate delegates are elect- ed out of more than 15,000 undergraduates in our order to serve a one-year term on the execu- tive committee. This year, Iota Iota Consul Jor- dan Levy '18 was elected as one of the two del- egates. Jordan promised to make transparent to the undergraduates any General Fraternity deci- sions, especially those decisions concerning sui- cide, drug, and alcohol use. This is a huge honor T he Sigma Chi General Fraternity elected a new Grand Praetor for the North Alabama Province this summer, after Michael Ciat- to, Dickinson College '08 stepped down from the position following his move from Atlanta, Georgia, to Austin, Texas. Iota Iota alumni are indebted to the leadership of Brother Ciatto, who helped bring the chapter to a new level of suc- cess none of us imagined could be accomplished so quickly. At Grand Chapter in June, Robert NeSmith, Birmingham-Southern College '11 was elected as our new Grand Praetor. We welcome Broth- er NeSmith to the Province and look forward to working with him. A native of Oneonta, Alabama, Rob became a Sigma Chi member through Chi Chi Chapter. During his undergraduate years, he served as consul, house manager, social chairman, and was elected as undergraduate representative to the International Executive Committee—the same honor and position Iota Iota Consul Jor- dan Levy '17 holds. Rob was also an Interna- tional Balfour Award finalist during his senior year in 2011. Upon graduating, Rob worked on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., as the legislative aide/ press assistant for Congresswoman Terri Sewell. He served as her press secretary from 2011-13 before returning to his home state to begin law school at the University of Alabama. Before completing his Juris Doctor in 2016, Rob was editor-in-chief of the Law and Psychology Re- view. Today, he is the in-house counsel for Steel City Pops in Birmingham. Rob served as chapter advisor for Pi Chapter from 2013-17, was a member of the Quaestor Faculty for Balfour Leadership Training Work- shop, and a member of the D.C. alumni chap- ter. Rob has deep ties to Iota Iota, with his fa- GRAND CHAPTER 2017 for our chapter and marks a major shift in Iota Iota's General Fraternity presence. Jordan looks forward to representing Iota Iota with honor. The Board of Grand Trustees gives yearly hon- ors to Sigma Chi house corporations that demon- strate superior business practices in 15 defined areas. For the first time ever, the Iota Iota House Corporation received this honor, known as the Gold Award. Out of 244 house corporations, 32 have received the award, and only three of those are SEC schools (Alabama, Arkansas and Mis- souri). We are privileged to have been granted membership to this elite group. Welcome, New Grand Praetor for the North Ashton Hill '76

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