Colony-Chapter News 2018

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Winter/Spring 2018

The Zeta Alpha Colony/Chapter of Theta Chi had a significant presence in the Winter edition of the Rattle. Click here for the digital copy. There are references to the following:

Page 3 – Recolonizations renew bonds of brotherhood: Zeta Alpha/Slippery Rock alumni award the inaugural Capt. Larry King Memorial Resolute Man Scholarship.

Page 6 – Expansion Updates – Zeta Alpha /Slippery Rock – Slippery Rock, PA Recolonized: 9/30/17 If you click the logo and the name it takes you to the Facebook page for the colony and the Theta Chi article about the recolonization with special shout outs to Brothers Joel “Bubba” McKenna and Steve Pennell.

Page 21 – The Foundation Chapter Contributions

Page 36 – Zeta Alpha 25th Annual Golf Outing Photo – if you click the online version it takes you to the Butler Eagle Article about Brothers Larry King and Ron Burke.

Page 42 – Chapter Eternal Listing initiated brothers who have passed that they had not listed previously.

(Left to Right) Recruitment Committee Member Logan Tupper, Marshal James Jackson, President Sky Pederson, and Recruitment Committee Member Ben Richards attended the Sasser Conference for Chapter Presidents, the first ever Marshal’s Conference and the recruitment Boot Camp at the International Headquarters in Carmel, Indiana.

President Sky Pederson, Eric Lehman, Brody McKenna and Julian Gonzalez attended the Theta Chi University with Chapter Advisor Krepinevich held on the campus of Michigan State University held on January 20, 2018. Over 300 brothers and colony members attended this event.

Colony pledge Marshall Tuten was able to organize a trip in conjunction with SRU to Bolivia for 2 weeks during the winter break. While there, he was able to to immerse himself in the culture and figure out exactly the help that people in the area need. He and 9 other SRU students dedicated 2 weeks to help people in need. Good job Marshall!

Congratulations to (left to right) the following Colony Pledges for their election on January 21 to the following Executive Board Positions: Eric Lehman – Scholarship Chair, Logan Tupper – Recruitment Chair, and Julian Gonzalez Vice President.

Recruitment is Underway for 2018. Below are are some of the promotional items, shirts and displays used so far this spring semester already.

Message from the Colony President to the Alumni:

This past month was jam packed for the Zeta Alpha colony.

Early January, I had the pleasure of visiting the Theta Chi International Headquarters in Carmel, Indiana. I was accompanied by James Jackson, our Marshal, along with Logan Tupper and Ben Richards, our recruitment committee. While in Carmel, we attended the Sasser’s President’s conference, Recruitment boot camp, and the Marshal Summit. During the conference, we were able to learn more about Theta Chi and its traditions. It was also a great opportunity to network with other members of different chapters. We generated a ton of new ideas and were excited to bring them back to our colony.

A few weeks later, I traveled to Theta Chi University at Michigan State with Brother Kevin Krepinevich and pledge brothers Brody McKenna, Eric Lehman, and Julian Gonzales. This conference was extremely helpful in learning new ideas for philanthropy and recruitment events. It was also nice to meet some other guys from different chapters. We were able to meet up with another colony from Bowling Green University and talk with them as well. It is amazing how Greek life varies from campus to campus.

This past weekend, we hosted our first inaugural CAB/colony retreat. The colony executive board and our alumni counter parts were able to meet and discuss some key topics as well as set some goals for the colony. It was a great success. Thank you to all who were able to attend and a special thanks to the Chapter Advisory Board for organizing the event.

Since we did not receive a deposit from the alumni until after the close of the semester we are currently writing letters of thanks to those who donated expressing our appreciation.

With the first week of the semester over, we are working hard to complete the requirements to install the chapter. The tentative installation date is set for April 29th. It will be held in the Slippery Rock Student Center Ballroom from 4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. The installation ritual will take place from 12:00 – 3:00 p.m.

Right now our biggest challenge is recruitment. We lost a few guys over winter break, which puts us back down to 30 pledges. However, we are currently talking with several potential new members and hope to extend bids in the coming weeks. The goal is to reach 45 guys.

This will put us as the largest fraternity on campus. Besides recruitment, everything else is going very well. I know I’ve said this before, but we really would not be where we’re at today, if it wasn’t for the amazing support from our alumni.

Thank you all for the donations and extending an “assisting hand” in getting us up and running as a colony.

I hope to see you all in the near future. – Colony President Sky Pederson

Congratulations to the Zeta Alpha Colony members who made Dean’s List in the Fall 2017 Semester. To be eligible for the Dean’s list a student must have a 3.5 QPA for a semester or better. The members who achieved Dean’s List included: Logan Angert, Mackenzie Bestine, Kyle Ditzenberger, Eric Lehman, Brody McKenna, Zach Morse, Dan Pennell, Christian Rebmann, Marshal Tuten.
On February 1, the ZA Colony held a rush party at the Student Center that included pizza, games and plenty of interaction between pledge brothers and prospective new members.

Colony pledge Marshall Tuten was able to organize a trip in conjunction with SRU to Bolivia for 2 weeks during the winter break. While there, he was able to to immerse himself in the culture and figure out exactly the help that people in the area need. He and 9 other SRU students dedicated 2 weeks to help people in need. Good job Marshall!

Colony pledge Mack Bestine was seen on campus presenting to SRU President Philip Way information on how Theta Chi is helping to create Resolute Men on Slippery Rock Campus.

Congratulations to (left to right) the following Colony Pledges for their election on January 21 to the following Executive Board Positions: Eric Lehman – Scholarship Chair, Logan Tupper – Recruitment Chair, and Julian Gonzalez Vice President.

Exec Board/Chapter Officer Advisors Retreat

On January 27 we held a Chapter Officer Advisors/Colony Retreat to help the colony plan the next 12 months to help them succeed and to plan for the installation to come.

The agenda included:

An ice breaker where alumni were given a Generation Z/Plurals test and the colony members were given a baby Boomer test but were permitted to work together to generate the answers.

Time was spent discussing issues that would establish a baseline for the day including Dues, Convention 2018, The Resolute Journey, the Resolute Man program, The Sacred Purpose program and the Risk Management/FGIP Program – all of which can be found on the http://www.zachapter.com web site by clicking on the ChapterAdvisory Board link or directly at this link http://zachapter.com/brothers-only/chapteradvisory-board/

Colony President Pederson then presented a state of the Colony covering all aspects of their progress since September 30, 2018. He included all of his officers in attendance in the reporting and offered opportunities for Alumni to ask questions during the presentation.

No retreat is complete without a visit to Bob’s Sub so a food run was made and while that occurred all in attendance had a chance to become better acquainted and informally discuss discuss some of the topics brought forward so far.

After lunch CAB Chair Herbert took the podium and challenged the colony members and Alumni on several fronts especially in protecting the Theta Chi brand on campus and touched upon a common theme he has shared since the start of the process that “We are determined to create Warriors not Weasels as we develop the chapter and establish a brand on campus.” He also reinforced that those alumni in the room and those not in the room are here to support the colony to be successful but are also committed not to be “helicopter” brothers. We are here to help when asked.

The sessions reconvened with a “goal setting” session. The entire group identified challenges that faced the chapter and identified 5 primary areas of concern. These were assigned to teams made up of a mixture of colony members and alumni to brainstorm opportunities to address each area. The areas included: Installation/Chartering, Recruitment/Branding, Programs/Projects, Fundraising/Dues, Campus and Community Involvement. Each team reported out results and many notes were taken by the colony members.

The colony officers then paired off with their CAB counterparts and spent an hour discussing issues specific to the colony officer’s responsibilities and how the CAB advisers could help them in their duties.

The entire group reconvened with calendars and proceeded to fill the calendar with critical dates including when the colony meets. The colony requested that a representative of the CAB attend their meetings the first meeting of every month. Additional critical dates included submission of the petition with the charter fee of $2,500 with an initiation fee of $250 per member to IHQ by March 29 to be able to charter by April 29. Payment of convention fee of $2,500 by April 1.

Theta Chi Scholarships deadline March 15. The 26th Annual Alumni Golf Outing June 9th. The Theta Chi Annual Convention July 27 – 31. 2018 Dues due October 1.

The attendees were then divided up into 3 groups and were provided 3 different “real life” case studies of incidents that have occurred on college campuses related to fraternities and were asked to review the incident and then discuss how the incident could have been prevented, handled better and what can be learned. Each group reported on the incident and their findings.

The day was closed with the opportunity for the attendees to offer comments “For the Good of the Fraternity” that included many positive comments and encouragement that this should continue each year. The event closed with all brothers and pledges joining in a circle shoulder to shoulder arm in arm as they recited the Creed of Theta Chi.

Some images from the event include:

 

Recruitment is Underway for 2018. Above are are some of the promotional items, shirts and displays used so far this spring semester already.

Activities

Now the chapter faces the following expenses:

$2,500 charter fee due March 29 with the petition for charter.
$250 per initiate due March 29 with the petition for charter.
$2,500 due April 1 for 2 convention registrations required by IHQ bylaws.
If not paid, the colony/chapter will be placed on probation. On October 1, 2018 each initiated member will owe $430 annual dues.

That is $5,000 we have to come up with in addition to $250 per man by April 1!

Thankfully the Alumni Board offered and provided the funds necessary to cover the $2,500 to cover the cost for the petition for charter and the convention registration.

The chapter currently has the 2nd highest Greek GPA on campus. Second only to a sorority and only by .1 point!

Starting in February we plan to regularly attend Borough Council meetings to be a presence and start a dialog with the Boro to see how we can contribute to the Boro.

Theta Chi University at University of Michigan

President Sky Pederson, Eric Lehman, Brody McKenna and Julian Gonzalez attended the Theta Chi University held on the campus of Michigan State University held on January 20, 2018. Over 300 brothers and colony members attended this event.

 

Congratulations to Heidi Blatz for winning the contest to win a Free Theta Chi Spring Rush Shirt by retweeting the contest held in early February.

On February 1, the ZA Colony held a rush party at the Student Center that included pizza, games and plenty of interaction between pledge brothers and prospective new members.

Vice President Julian Gonzalez made the trip back home to Philly for the Eagles Super Bowl parade representing the ZA Colony on February 9th!

Members of the ZA Colony participated in the SRU Up Till 2 event for St. Jude Research Hospital. Congratulations to all the volunteers who helped make the event a huge success!

Members of the ZA Colony participated in a Valentine presentation to the sororities on campusto thank them for thier support in helping the colonization of the Theta Chi Chapter. Pictured here left to right top to bottom ΑΣΤ & ΘΧ, ΑΞΔ & ΘΧ, ΑΟΠ & ΘΧ, ΔΖ & ΘΧ, ΦΣΣ & ΘΧ, ΣΣΣ & ΘΧ

The Zeta Alpha Colony hosted a Colony/Alumni social event and invited all alumni to attend on what turned out to be a very snowy evening in Slippery Rock on February 17th. (Who knew snow in Slippery Rock in February!) Twenty seven pledges, alumni Delta Zetas and guests attended including Brother Mark Hoffman all the way from Ohio! Many of us learned why at our age bowling is no longer part of our vocabulary and watching is! Brother Hoffman’s wife set the scoring pace! But there was plenty of pizza and soda for everyone. We appreciate the colony for hosting us but again most alumni in attendance again reached into our pockets and passed some cash back to the colony to help defray the cost of a great evening of fun and brotherhood! Not to mention brother Herbert Photobombing the Colony photo after the event!

On Tuesday February 20, 2018. The Zeta Alpha Colony of Theta Chi was honored to have received the Academic Excellence Award at the Fraternity and Sorority Life Celebration of Excellence! The members of the colony go above and beyond in the classroom and this award reflects that. Pictured here left to right are Mason Pritchard, Vice President Julian Gonzalez and President Sky Pederson. Of the seven established fraternities and six sororities on campus the newly established colony took the top honors. Congratulations for your efforts you deserve it.

With the help of CAB Health and Safety Advisor Brother Greg Laws, the first “All Campus” Sacred Purpose program hosted by the Zeta Alpha Theta Chi Fraternity Colony was offered February 21st bringing local law enforcement, members of the community and the campus together to raise awareness. Over 80 participants attended a “standing room only” event that included CAB Vice President Advisor Don “Clippy” Iskat from George Junior Republic as one of the presenters!

Thank you to everyone who came out to our first campus wide Sacred Purpose event! We hope you all learned a lot about drug abuse at SRU. Be on the lookout for our next event coming very soon!

Shout out to Marshall Tuten for making all this possible!

On March 1 the Theta Chi Colony held a fundraiser selling cookie dough during the common hour and sold out within minutes. Plans are in the works to conduct this fundraiser again but with a great deal more product. Though they are seriously considering modifying ingredients!

On March 8th in conjunction with Sigma Sigma Sigma Sorority the Colony sold Late Night Tacos and helped to raise $300 for the SRU Relay for Life and the Sigma Tie Blankets for Babies project.

On March 1 Director of Recruitment and Expansion Brother Taylor Dahlem conducted individual meetings with officers and conducted a colony meeting that included members of the Chapter Advisory Board to discuss the steps to be completed over the next 60 days to meet the necessary requirements to charter the Zeta Alpha chapter by April 29th. One ofthe objectives of the meeting was to set a plan but to also belay fears/concerns about what may happen in the “secret” ceremony. He assured the colony members that “live snakes” would not be involved!

On March 21, 22 and 23 members of the Zeta Alpha Colony participated in the Slippery Rock University Musical Theatre Society Cabaret.

We are very excited to share that Colony Pledge Riley Keffer will be continuing after graduation at Slippery Rock University for a Master of Arts degree in Student Affairs in Higher Education and will be the Graduate Assistant for the Alumni Association. Seems like we may have a Theta Chi “shoe in” for faculty advisor!

March 26 designated as Slippery Rock Foundation Giving Day! Giving Day was a great success with 693 donors and $54,208 raised in just 24 hours and $22,300 raised for the student support fund unlocking $5,000 in challenge grants. What you may not have known was that the SRU Foundation and the Office of Annual Giving reached out to all of the Student Clubs and Organizations on campus and created a challenge: The first student group to recruit 25 donors after 12:00 a.m. on March 26, 2018 would WIN $1,000. Second place would be $750 and 3rd place would be $500. The SRU Foundation would send a URL to the organization at the stroke of midnight on the 26th and the competition would begin. Motivation, creativity and ingenuity again raised it’s head and the leadership and members of the Theta Chi Colony accepted the challenge. As you can see Theta Chi Fraternity tied for first place. No other sorority or fraternity made the top 3! A tie for first means a split of the 1st and 2nd place pots so we earned $875 for their operating fund from the SRU Foundation.

Spring Break
Pleadges Brody McKenna and Jake “Bad” Good managed to get spotted by a Theta Chi alumni in Ireland! There’s a Theta Chi everywhere! Cliffs Of Moher, Ireland. Pledges Mark and President Sky in Greece. Daniel Pennell. It’s not all fun and games! Military training during spring break!

 

Dancing during Greek Week? They may have had us in the first half…..but we’ve still got a whole week left with @trisigma_sru and @kappadeltarhosru 😎 See the full video if you have Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/BhWtwqRFmAO/?img_index=1

Message from the Colony President to the Alumni:

With April 29th quickly approaching, we are continuing to fill our petition to install. We are six weeks into the new semester but it feels like we started just the other day. This past week, we hosted our first campus-wide Sacred Purpose event. The topic was drug abuse at Slippery Rock University and throughout the community. Alumni, Brother Don Iskat, was kind enough to come speak about some of the ways drugs can affect the body.

Lieutenant Sharkey, with the SRU Police Department, also spoke about substance abuse on campus. We also has a recovered addict come speak about the journey he has gone through with drug addition. It was very successful event with attendance of 80 plus people.

On top of hosting events and fundraisers, we are continuing to recruit. So far this semester, we have recruited four quality gentlemen. We are still the second largest fraternity behind Kappa Sigma who have 39. We will continue to push towards our goal of 45 members.

These next two months are going to packed with events. We are currently working on finalizing the dates for some philanthropy fundraisers which include hosting a kickball tournament between clubs and organizations and selling food items. On April 23rd, we will be hosting our second campus-wide Sacred Purpose event. This time the topic will be on sexual abuse. We were able to get approval from the Student Government Association for funding to bring Kate Harding as a guest speaker on the topic. Kate is the author of Asking for it: The Alarming Rise of Rape Culture – and What We Can Do About It. This event is expected to have high attendance as well.

I would like to thank all the alumni again for all the amazing support you have given us. Without it, we would not be where we are today. Thank you again for extending an assisting hand and helping with donations. I really do appreciate it. I hope to se you all in the near future and cannot wait to be able to call you all my brothers.

Colony President – Sky Pederson

 Chartering of the Zeta Alpha Chapter

Original Charter member Brother Jack McMahon speaks at colony meeting explaining what it was like to be a charter member in 1964!

Colony Pledges added before installation (Left to Right) joe Rubic, Nick Ryckman, Kevin McLaughlin, Chirs Garcia, Sean Cook and Dave Miller.

162 years ago today, (April 10) Theta Chi was founded by two men by the names of Fredrick Norton Freeman and Arthur Chase. Happy Founders Day!

Kicking off Installation Week Brother Stephen Pennel and his son Pledge Daniel Pennel hosted the colony pledges on April 21, 2018 to their home for a picnic and bon fire.

The Zeta Alpha Chapter in cooperation with Greek life hosted Kate Harding for a campus-wide Rape Prevention Program on April 23, 2018.

Congratulations to Mike Ambrose on accepting his bid to join our brotherhood! We can’t wait to see what you accomplish with us 😎

We are honored to have received the “Outstanding Greek Organization” award for 2017-2018 at the Rising Star Award Ceremony today! 🌟 Thank you to all of our Brothers who put in so much work this year! 

We are SO EXCITED that our very own Eric Lehman has been awarded the Board of Governor’s full tuition scholarship!! Eric has worked extremely hard his first year at Slippery Rock in order to receive this scholarship. Congratulations Eric!!

Chartering of the Zeta Alpha Chapter April 29, 2018A New Beginning

Beginning at noon on April 29, 2018, 32 young men began the final steps of their journey to become Resolute Men and join the ranks of the initiated members of Theta Chi Fraternity. But they were not alone. They were joined by over 20 alumni brothers of the Zeta Alpha Chapter, and brothers from “The” Ohio State University, Youngstown State (that had just reinstalled on March 17th) and the University of Akron to share in the solemn ceremony and celebrate the chartering of the Zeta Alpha Chapter.

In addition to Director of Recruitment and Expansion Brother Taylor Dahlem, who was responsible for the day’s events other representatives from Theta Chi International included Foundation Chapter Vice President Brother David May, Chief Operating Officer Brother Ray Vanlanot, Field Executives Brother Mitch Nolan, Brother Patrick Zurn and Brother James McGuire. Also in attendance was Brother Ben Hill, Editor of The Rattle of Theta Chi.

During the ceremony, some very special moments were shared. Brother Jack McMahon #11 on the roster and an original charter member placed the badge of Theta Chi on the first initiate Michael Ambrose and the last initiate Marshall Tuten. Brother Joel McKenna placed the badge of Theta Chi on his son Broderick McKenna as did Brother Stephen Pennell placing the badge of Theta Chi on his son Daniel Pennell.

Brother John Kreuzer, who was there when the thought of reinstating the chapter was nothing but a hope placed the badge of Theta Chi on Riley Keffer the founding member of the chapter. Eric Lehman had the unique opportunity to have his grandfather, a member of Theta Chi, place the badge of Theta Chi on his chest. Each advisor on the Chapter Advisory Board placed the badge of Theta Chi on the chest of their counterparts and Brother Gary Sablowski placed the badge of Theta Chi on Billy Hawk sharing that Billy Hawk was a member of “his” pledge class. Each brother in attendance was given the opportunity to place a badge on one, if not two, of the young men as they made their journey from colony member to brother.

As a special touch, each brother and soon to be brother in attendance was presented and displayed a red carnation.

We also appreciated the attendance of Brother Alan Copeland from The Ohio State University and newly initiated Brothers from Youngstown State University. In addition, each of the alumni brothers who had volunteered to assist with the ceremony were assigned roles and as COO Brother Ray shared, “These young men have no idea of how this should be, so if you do this in a first class manner they will assume that this is the way it should be and will attempt to live up to this standard with every ceremony from this point forward.” So with those instructions, each brother did conduct themselves in a professional solemn manner and conducted what most later shared was an experience theyoung men would not soon forget.

In addition to those guests mentioned above, Brothers pictured here who were involved in one way or another in the ceremony include, Ron Burke, Stephen Pennell, John Kreuzer, John Farrar, Tom Minnett, Jack McMahon, Paul Herbert, David DeRosa, Jr., Gary Sablowsky, David Stotka, Don Iskat, David Minett, Patrick Russell, Joel McKenna, Tim Thomas, Al Lichtenwalner, Mike Bariski, Emil Brenkus and Kevin Krepinevich. Brother Ben Hill, Editor of The Rattle of Theta Chi shared with us that this was one of the largest turn outs of alumni support at a reinstallation he had ever seen.

Though it is inappropriate to discuss the ceremony, we can share probably one of the most moving parts of the ceremony was when we watched the alumni pass the roles of leadership from the alumni to the new brothers and watched the passing of the chapter from the old to the new. For most of us, at that moment, there was a realization of what had been accomplished. Then we were able to witness the presentation of the charter bringing back to Slippery Rock what had been missing for 29 years. Additionally, the Chapter was not only presented with the new chater we were presented the original 1964 Charter, minutes and roster book as well.

We wish to thank the brothers, little sisters and spouses who attended the banquet on April 29th. The adage that pictures are worth a thousand words clearly applies in this section so we will attempt to provide the basics and let you just enjoy the photos we have been able to collect.

The banquet began at approximately 4:00 p.m. in the Smith Student Center Ballroom. The backdrop for the event was a huge slide show montage. Not only a tribute to the efforts of the colony for the last six months but also images of the house and brothers involved in activities in the past with slides expressing appreciation to the alumni for their support.

A copy of the banquet program is available for download by clicking here . The banquet program includes the names and hometowns of the 32 young men installed. In addition a history of the Zeta Alpha Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity 1964 – 1989 was placed at each table including a list of all who went before. A copy of the document can be found here. Message from Kevin Krepinevich, Alumnus, Zeta Alpha Chapter. Click here.

The newly formed Zeta Alpha Chapter hosted and covering the cost of the banquet and the AVI Food Service for a wonderful meal.

The Assisting Hand Award was presented to Brother David Miller.
Scholar of the Year Award was presented to Brother MacKenzie Bestine
Brother of the Year Award was presented to Brother Riley Keffer.
The Community Involvement Award was presented to Brother Marshall Tuten.
Outstanding Service to the Chapter Award was presented to Greek Advisor JaynePiskorik.
Outstanding Service to the Chapter Award was presented to the Chapter Advisory Board and accepted by Brother Paul Herbert.
Outstanding Service to the Chapter Award was presented to the Alumni Board and accepted by Brother Dr. Donald “Doc” Hannon.

Photos from the event

Congratulations to our two graduating seniors Riley Keffer and Chris Pagley (not pictured)!!! We are so excited to see what you guys continue to do in your lives!

Our Brother Marshall Tuten received a grant to conduct research in China this summer! He will be analyzing the effects of modernization methods in rural ethnic Chinese communities. Keep it up Marshall!

It is official. The Theta Chi banner has been added to the Greek Banners (first on left) on display of recognized sororities and fraternities on campus at SRU displayed in the Robert M. Smith Student Center.

26th Zeta Alpha Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity Golf Outing

The 26th Annual Golf Outing was held at Tam O’Shanter Golf Course on June 9, 2018.

Charter member Larry Young (005) attended the Golf outing for the first time and is eager to track down with Board member “Doc” Hannon and charter member Jack McMahon other charter members to support the new chapter of Theta Chi. Brother Larry was one of several first timers at the event this year.

We were thrilled to see Brother David Price attend the Golf outing even while battling all of his health issues he made the 1 ½ hour trip to be with his brothers and continue to work for the success and growth of the new chapter. Keep him in your thoughts.

The Friday before the Golf outing an event was coordinated by Jim Clarke at the Grove City Country Club and the Cookout for Brothers who arrived early on Friday Night hosted by Brothers AlLichtenwalner and Jack Shivetts. Thank you brothers.

We wish to thank Brother Ron Burke for bringing Jack King and his sons and Larry King’s daughter for brothers to meet them at the golf outing and share stories and brother’s memories of Brother Larry. We would like to thank brothers for their generosity for supporting the brick fund and contributions to the alumni association and to the scholarship fund.

For the first time in 25 years, a team from the existing chapter participated in the outing. Six of the new brothers attended the golf outing (four played as a team) and they were meeting and mixing with the alumni. We appreciated their attendance and participation. According to Brother Suprano, who did another magnificent job coordinating the event, we had in excess of 50 golfers with about 65 participants in the dinner afterward and approximately 70 participated at sometime during the day including Brothers Alan Copeland, who is the CAB chair for Ohio State and he brought along Jim Greesling. We would also like to offer a special thank you to everyone who contributed prizes for the event.

Below are some pictures from the event.

The 162 Theta Chi Anniversary Convention was held in Las Vegas Nevada at the Flamingo Hilton Hotel July 27 – 30, 2017. During the business session, a resolution was adopted by the convention congratulating the Zeta Alpha Chapter on its Chartering after 29-year absence.

As part of the report each attendee offered a brief comment of their experience and they are shared here:

Brother Sky Pederson – The Theta Chi Convention was an amazing experience. Throughout the convention, we learned about numerous topics including; recruitment tactics, financials, and sacred purpose. The convention also gave us the opportunity to connect with other brothers from around the country. Learning about how other chapters run their organizations was the most beneficial part. We were able toshare different ideas and solutions to problems we might occur. Being a new chapter, everyone was excited to help us. Had I not joined Theta Chi, I never would have had this experience. I cannot wait to take what I learned back to my chapter.

Brother Stephen “Mark” Beacom – Theta Chi’s 162nd Anniversary Convention was an amazing experience. I learned about many important topics at the convention to improve both my chapter and me as an individual. Of course, we listened to speakers and learned about subjects such as leadership, philanthropy, and recruiting. However, I received the best information and advice from speaking to other brothers (both collegian and alumni) about their own chapters. With over 600 brothers in attendance from all over the country there was a huge pool of knowledge and experience to share. Many brothers were excited to offer their thoughts and advice for our new chapter. I look forward to bringing back new ideas to our chapter for G.I. Theta Chi, recruitment, and more. Beyond the convention itself the week was an awesome experience to build brotherhood and experience the city of Las Vegas. We visited Caesar’s Palace, the fountains at the Bellagio, stayed at the historic Flamingo Hotel, and much more. The highlight of the trip was all of the attendees being bused to historic downtown Las Vegas and taking over Fremont street. We also met brothers from the nearby Youngstown State Chapter throughout the week and look forward to seeing them in the future.

Brother Charles “Andrew” Borcherding – Going into the convention with having very little knowledge of what to expect, I was curious and excited to figure out what it would be like. Being surrounded by so many brothers from all over the country was surreal. They were all extremely welcoming to us and the staff seemed eager to meet us as well. Throughout the convention, we were provided with helpful tips on how to become a better brother, fraternity, and man overall. The guest speakers we had were phenomenal and opened my eyes to so much more than I had realized before on brotherhood, professionalism, and life itself. My first convention was very informative and full of many laughs, memories, and new friendships, and I would encourage anyone with the opportunity to attend one.

Brother Brody McKenna – My experience at the International Convention in Las Vegas was nothing less than fantastic. The convention provided me the opportunity to see Las Vegas and network with brothers from around the world. The speakers that they brought in and the breakout sessions provided covered topics that need to be talked about, such as, hazing prevention, alcohol abuse/safety, how to budget your finances, where all our dues money goes, accountability, the future of sorority/fraternity life, and many more. Joining Theta Chi Fraternity has provided me with opportunities that I would never have had and, to me, that makes the whole fraternity experience completely worth it.

Brother Mason Pritchard – The 2018 Theta Chi National convention was an experience of a lifetime. It was above and beyond anything I could’ve expected before attending. One of my favorite things about the convention were the breakout sessions because that helped myself gain more knowledge in some of the different areas in a fraternity such as philanthropy, recruitment, etc. I hope I will be able to relate some of the great messages that I have received onto my fellow brothers to share my experience with them and help them kind of understand what I was taught. The speakers were amazing, we got the message they were trying to give in a manner that we can relate to as college students. I am going to use a lot of the different things I learned to help increase the size and better my chapter at Slippery Rock University. Recruitment is one of our most important areas and because now this is most of my responsibility I attended most of the recruitment sessions that were mainly about how to approach and find the right guy. Overall being able to be a part of the fraternity ritual meetings were an amazing experience that not everybody gets to experience so its extra special. See ya at the next convention!

For a complete report click here.

#myfraternity A major development that occurred during the convention in which every alumni member can participate surrounds your fraternity experience! You have an incredible story of brotherhood to tell. On Wednesday, September 12 we need you to join with hundreds of thousands of fraternity men around the world to share a positive story on social media. Text “myfraternity” to 25827 for a reminder on September 12. Learn more at http://www.myfraternitylife.org. But what you can do right now if you have a Facebook page is you can add a frame to your Facebook profile pic. Update your profile pic to include the frame #myfraternity. Simply click update your profile pic and “add frame” then search myfraternity and Theta Chi. Select switch back to previous profile picture in a month. Then on September 12 share your positive story(s) of Theta Chi fraternity. You can share positive stories on twitter and Instagram as well. An IFC Town Hall report on #myfraternity was recently conducted via a webinar to help communicate what is happening throughout Theta Chi and the entire Greek community. The link below will be that 7 minute webinar. Click to get the latest. https://vimeo.com/286360253/9d1f6c6fff

Here are some pictures from the convention

Fall 2018

Thank you to everyone who stopped by our booth today at the Clubs and Orgs Fair!! We met a lot of fine gentlemen and we can’t wait to get the semester started!

Congratulations to Cooper Collins, Andrew Auth, Ryan Mittleider, Jake Reynolds, Jack Lamberton,  Dillon Pusateri and Joe Kelly for taking the first step towards having a rewarding college experience! We are so excited to have you all aboard 😎

We had the pleasure of pinning our new members tonight! Please help us in welcoming the 6 members of the Beta Pledge Class!

Come out and Pie a Chi on Thursday October 4, 2018 at 12 on the SSC Patio!! All proceeds go to the USO

Congrats to Brother Logan Tupper and Julian “Julio” Gonzalez for making Homecoming Court 🎉

Homecoming was a success with these ladies 🎉

September 29th the Zeta Alpha Theta Chi Resolute Man Book Scholarships were awarded between the first and second quarter of the SRU vs Mercyhurst University football game in Slippery Rock. Newly appointed Slippery Rock University President Dr. William J. Behre presented the scholarships along with Chapter Advisory Board Scholarship Chairman Brother Ron Burke, and committee members Brother Paul Herbert and David Price. Click here for a copy of the press release for the event. This contains more detail on each of the winners.

Shout out to all our Brothers who performed in the mts at sru cabaret!! Nobody can rock the heels like you guys can 😎 (posted 10/19/18)

Big/Little reveal was tonight! Congrats to everyone!

Please help us in welcoming the newly initiated brothers of the Beta Pledge Class!