Alpha Delta Phi - University of Washington

e Washington Alpha Delt 3 T he last year and a half at Washington Chapter can best be described in one word: reestablishment. To be frank, the COVID-19 pandemic and our stint away from the Temple hit us hard, but I can confidently say that we have fully left the depths of that experience. The reestablishment of traditions, standards, and status of the Chapter at UW has been evident. I'm very excited to see how incoming President Griffin Marich '25 and his executive committee can continue growing the prestige of the house. CONVENTION RECAP It's been quite a summer and fall here. For me, one of the most exciting highlights was attending the International Convention with Alumni President Michael Derr '84, House Secretary Bennett Miller '25, and the incredible Jen Lewandowski in Tampa, Florida. Going into the weekend, we had high hopes of bringing some hardware back to Seattle. While we were finalists for several Chapter and individual awards, we came up empty-handed. We were disappointed, of course; the nature of that awards banquet ignited a fire in house leadership and in the Temple. Bennett and I used that opportunity to discuss many initiatives that other successful Chapters have taken on. We have started implementing a number of those ideas here at UW. There's not a doubt in my mind that coming up short during that weekend will do good for our Chapter long-term, and we're already starting to see changes take place. REENGAGING WITH YOUNG ALUMNI A theme of the fall for us undergraduates has been creating and rekindling relationships with young alumni. Recent graduates David Gillully '16, Zachary Williams '16, and I recently started the Manus Multae Mentorship Program to pair young alumni with undergraduates for career, school, and life advice. This has already been a great success, with many upperclassmen receiving guidance that has helped them land great internships and jobs nationwide. Furthermore, it's allowed for an increase in knowledge getting passed down in the fraternity, which has helped us improve our philanthropic plans for this year's Bubble Bash, assisted in ongoing officer transitions, and more. If you are a young alumnus (graduates of 2012 and on) and would like to get involved in this program, please reach out to me, David, or Zach. FALL HOUSE EVENTS It's been a great, albeit eventful, fall at the house. We were lucky enough to host the International Board of Governors for their quarterly board meeting. During the meeting, our current and future executive and recruitment teams, in addition to several alumni, took advantage of the opportunity to engage in discussion on ways we can further improve our fraternity. We all found the opportunity very insightful. We recently hosted our annual joint Homecoming and Parent's Weekend event for the Arizona State game. It was a pleasure to see and take part in many generations of Alpha Delts and share stories of their experience in the Temple. We enjoyed the opportunity to welcome so many alumni back to the Temple for the first time since the rebuild. If you haven't had a chance to see the rebuilt house in all her glory, feel free to reach out to Griffin or me. LOOKING AHEAD While I have many takeaways from my tenure as president, one of the most critical has been the importance of making the house culture a costant topic of conversation during meetings. The culture is what makes this place special, but if it's not given consistent attention, it can falter. Every quarter at the first Chapter meeting, we kick it off by setting short and long-term Chapter goals. While many are tangible and traceable, like increasing our house GPA from a 3.51 in the spring to a 3.55 this fall and increasing levels of volunteering, many are not as measurable. These goals look more like cultivating a closer brotherhood and more positivity within the house. I've found that the intangible goals are often the most important. Though we may not be able to effectively measure them, you can feel the change happening as they are accomplished. Considering my term as president, I'm very proud of how far we've come. My hope for where we can go in the future far outweighs that pride. The collection of ambitious and talented people in this Chapter is, at least in my opinion, nothing short of incredible. It'd be an understatement to say that I'm excited to see where Griffin and his leadership team take our Chapter in the next year and beyond as I prepare to transition into a less involved role in the house. All the best, and we hope to see you soon. Xaipe, Nick Utgard '25, President nick.utgard@gmail.com From left: Bennett Miller '25, Nick Utgard '25, Jennifer Lewandowski, and Michael Derr '86 attend the International Convention in Tampa Bay. Brothers gather after decorating the house with the Parent's Club for the holidays, just before celebrating with a chili potluck. Building Stronger Bonds in 2023 and Beyond Structured to Su cceed

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