Sigma Phi Epsilon - University of Florida

Page 4 SigEp Gator Heart N o, we are not talking about the Southeastern Conference; this buzz is about the Sigma Epsilon Colony (SEC) at the University of Florida. Our Colony, the Colony that will one day be the Florida Alpha Chapter of Sigma Phi Epsilon. As a policy, all startup or re-start colonies seeking to become chartered chapters are called a Sigma Epsilon Colony. Buzz #1 – Colony Strength Our UF SEC, barely three months old, is now 40 members strong with a GPA of 3.71. The Colony is made up of outstanding young men ranging from freshmen to junior classmen. Under the tutelage of in-residence SigEp Headquarters Chapter Development staff members, Austin Chapman, Lawrence Tech '14 and Patrick Gallagher, San Diego State '14, the new members have been busy. Chosen from an outstanding pool of prospects, these 40 young men are already making a name for themselves and the SEC on campus. Buzz #2 – Officers Appointed The SigEp Headquarters' plan for building a strong Colony includes selection of the officers to lead the Colony, selected by the Resident Chapter Development staff. They are an outstanding group of young men. Read more about the officers on page 5. Buzz #3 – Balanced Man Scholarships Awarded To build a prospect list of outstanding young men, applications for $1,000 scholarships were distributed throughout the UF campus. Over 250 applied. Austin and Patrick interviewed nearly Buzz 200 of them, and after in-depth interviews, many were offered an opportunity to join the SigEp Colony. Twenty finalists for the three scholarships were selected and on March 19, the scholarships were awarded at Reitz Union. Buzz #4 – Chapter Mentors/Chapter Officers Meet The mentors spent an entire day on April 10 in training sessions to learn how to conduct a successful mentor program. Trevor Bullard, Massachusetts '12, Director of Chapter Development, conducted the productive day. The success of the Balanced Man Program and of a successful Chapter operation depends heavily on active involvement of alumni and non-alumni volunteer mentors. By mentoring Chapter leaders, mentors help shape the direction of the Chapter in recruitment, member development, leadership development, and fiscal health, while ensuring long-term planning and stability. A mentor committee, led by me as the Chapter Counselor, has the primary responsibility for guiding the undergraduate executive board and Chapter. The current cadre of mentors is listed below. You will note that some are women. Mentors are chosen for their ability to provide experienced leadership in their special field of expertise. Experience has shown that members respond well to their mentors, whether they are men or women. Later in the day, the Chapter officers met with their mentors to begin establishing a one- on-one relationship. Mentors are expected to attend undergraduate Chapter and executive board meetings on a rotating basis and to stay in regular contact with their mentee. We appreciate their time and effort they are willing to put in to help ensure our success. HFF, Al Alsobrook '60, Florida Alpha Chapter Counselor thebestprguy@gmail.com Members of the SEC during the Colony's scholarship dinner this spring. 2016 Mentors and Mentees POSITION MENTOR NAME HOME CHAPTER MENTEE MENTEE POSITION Chapter Counselor Al Alsobrook FL Alpha - Florida N/A N/A Mentor for President Bob Durham KY Zeta - Morehead State Patrick Goodrich Chapter President Balanced Man Steward John Gresley IN Zeta - Valparasio Ty Robare VP of Member Development Mentor for Programming Rob Sowell VA Kappa - Virginia Tech Josh Lee VP or Programming Mentor for Recruitment Justin Szadek FL Beta - Stetson Aaron Blau VP of Recruitment Mentor for Finance Whitaker Leonhardt D.C. Gamma - Georgetown Jon Sarkisian VP of Finance Mentor for Communications Steve Shewbrooks FL Alpha - Florida Cameron Riley VP of Communications Mentor for Chaplain Michael Lewis FL Alpha - Florida Brendon Martin Chaplain Mentor Balanced Man Scholarship Alex Browning FL Epsilon - Florida State Ryan Decker Balanced Man Scholarship Chairman Mentor for Sigma Rachel Rodriguez Grad Student, Delta Phi Epsilon Jacob Morrison Sigma Challenge Coordinator Mentor for Phi Fallen Walker Grad Student Prakash Sundar Phi Challenge Coordinator Mentor for Epsilon TBD TBD Epsilon Challenge Coordinator Mentor for Brother Mentor TBD TBD Brother Mentor Coordinator Mentor for Service Learning TBD TBD Service Learning Chairman Mentor for Events Chairman Christina Retana Grad Student, Phi Mu Jon Katz Events Chairman

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