Sigma Phi Epsilon - San Diego State University

Page 2 Cal Delta News & Views CA DELTA SCHOLARS ENJOY GPA STEAK DINNER T wice each year, the CA Delta AVC rewards chapter scholars with a free, grilled steak dinner. The dinner serves as an award for those who make their academics a priority and encourages other members to up their game. CA Delta tries to recruit the best men, and part of that is being the best student. This past March 6, we invited 30 scholars to join us, and 16 were able to break away from class, text preparation, or jobs. AVC member Bob Gibbs '63 came with his baked potatoes and marinated mushrooms. He was assisted at the grill by recent CA Delta alumnus and past Chapter President Nick Milsner '18. Our outstanding faculty fellow, Christine Probett, created custom award certificates for each man and was present to help distribute them. We were honored to have SDSU Police Department Captain Matthew Conlon attend as well. Capt. Conlon thanked the guys for their scholarship and congratulated the chapter for its focus. He said, that to his knowledge, no other fraternity at SDSU embraces academics the way we do and has the foresight to understand the importance of having good relations with university administration and police. Catching Up with Former Chapter President Barak Alon '13 Why did you decide to join Sigma Phi Epsilon? SigEp was unique from other fraternities in that it seemed to dominate in all categories: members were leaders on campus, they had top grades, top sports—all while maintaining a reputation for having genuinely good people. That reputation was validated for me when my good friend, Robbie Parmenter '14, joined before I did. I got to witness the amazing experience he was having, all while staying down to earth and driven. That was something many people said couldn't happen in fraternities, but here it was, happening at SigEp. What are some of your favorite memories? Nick Warner '12 abstract renditions of "Clair De Lune" in a candle-lit chapter room. Davin Heaton '12 announcing the breaking news at chapter meeting that Osama Bin Laden had been killed. Sipping out of a Buchanan Cup. Sitting on a grungy couch in a grungy chapter room for the first time after joining. How did being a past president impact your career, personal life? Being president of SigEp Cal Delta was probably the most stressful job I've ever had. The president manages expectations from the chapter, university, alumni, and national fraternity, all of which aren't always completely aligned. Learning to pull all those groups toward alignment was incredibly helpful for my career. As for impact on my personal life, I met many of my best friends today through the fraternity. Do you feel more connected to the chapter being a past president? In some ways I feel less connected; you're faced with decisions where you can't please everybody, and I think I erred on the side of strict a bit too much. But in more ways, I feel more connected. Like many things, the more you put in the more you get out. And while being president is certainly not the only way to put a lot into the chapter, it's an effective one. What was your first job out of college? Where do you work now? My first job out of college was working for the SigEp national fraternity as a regional director in Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, Wisconsin, and the upper peninsula of Michigan. I'm currently a senior software engineer at Netflix, where I work on the cloud computing platform. What do you do in your free time? I've been drumming since I was a kid, and I continue to play and perform. I also produce indie music that no one listens to (soundcloud.com/ barrywargo). Aside from that, I ski, rock climb, travel, and hang out with friends. Do you keep in touch with any of your fraternity brothers? Yes! I recently rode in the 10th annual C.U.R.E. Ride alongside many brothers. I also recently got together with a bunch of brothers in San Francisco for a fledgling annual dinner tradition. I also met a lot of fraternity brothers from other chapters after working for the national fraternity, one of whom is a current roommate. Not to mention seeing everyone at the weddings and bachelor parties. Barak can be reached at barak.s.alon@gmail.com. Members with outstanding GPAs were awarded a steak dinner for their academic achievement.

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