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Leadership Initiatives

sigma chi online

Sigma Chi Online, made possible through the support of Significant Sig Bill George, GEORGIA TECH 1962, the George Family Foundation and donors to the George Match Challenge through the Sigma Chi Foundation, is the Fraternity’s learning management system comprised of a full menu of online learning content that is available to all undergraduate members.

Through a blended approach of online and in-person learning, our members receive content designed to help them:

  • Understand every aspect of our Sigma Chi ideals, history and traditions
  • Develop values-based leadership skills
  • Better understand the relevant issues found on college campuses today such as alcohol and drug abuse, mental health awareness, hazing and sexual misconduct

The service provides educational opportunities and content that combines curricula from existing values-based leadership programs with interactive mentoring and support from professionally-trained alumni.

For more information on Sigma Chi Online contact leadership.programs@sigmachi.org.

preparation for brotherhood

Over the last decade, Sigma Chi has invested in the development of an innovative approach to pledge education called Preparation for Brotherhood.

Preparation for Brotherhood, thanks to the support of a lead gift from Significant Sig David Pyle, SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 1980, is the critical first step in a Sigma Chi’s life-long learning journey. All our chapters and colonies are required to use this program in educating new members.

Preparation for Brotherhood (P4B) is designed to ensure that each new pledge, regardless of their chapter, gain a comprehensive, consistent, quality orientation to Sigma Chi — our history, values, ideals and programs — as well as, understand Sigma Chi’s commitment/contributions to the Greek world, campus and community. It ensures that Sigma Chi values remain front and center as a member of our organization.

As we teach principles, we hope to inspire our pledges to build lasting relationships with their brothers, to search for a way of life based on high ideals and to apply these ideals in their everyday actions. In short, it is our desire to inspire, educate, and help our members apply what they have learned.

Since the implementation of Preparation for Brotherhood in the 2015-16 school year, resulting program data points to higher pledge retention rates each year, an overall increase in pledge-class GPA each year, and an increase in leadership development and involvement among our members.

Additionally, chapters that implement the Preparation for Brotherhood perfectly are 80 percent less likely to experience an allegation of hazing.

For more information on Preparation for Brotherhood, contact leadership.programs@sigmachi.org.

ritual for life

In 2016, 69th Grand Consul Mike Ursillo, BROWN 1978, charged the Jordan Initiative Committee with developing a comprehensive Ritual education curriculum for new initiates following the completion of the Preparation for Brotherhood program.

In 2019, Ritual for Life will launch to every new initiate across the Fraternity.

Ritual for Life (R4L) is designed to educate each chapter’s new initiates on Sigma Chi’s Ritual history and inspire them to apply the Ritual’s lessons to their lives for the betterment of their chapter, campus and community.

By examining our Ritual, our new members are encouraged to make a lifelong commitment to the betterment of self, others and community through Sigma Chi’s values-based living. They will be inspired to find ways to apply our Ritual to their lives.

For more information on Ritual for Life, contact leadership.programs@sigmachi.org.

strong arms

Following the tragic loss of seven members over a three-year span from 2012 to 2014, Sigma Chi wanted to send a message to its members that their safety and welfare were top priorities.

Through a partnership with The Jed Foundation, whose mission is to promote mental health awareness and suicide prevention measures, Sigma Chi unveiled the Lifeline program in memory of Zibilich, an undergraduate member of the Louisiana State chapter who tragically passed away in 2012.

Today, through the lead support of Keller’s parents Michael Zibilich, GEORGIA STATE 1970, and wife Gayle, the Sigma Chi Strong Arms curriculum serves as the Greek-letter world’s first dedicated learning resource addressing mental wellness and emotional health.

For its groundbreaking approach, the Strong Arms curriculum was awarded the 2019 Laurel Wreath Award for outstanding education within the North American Interfraternity Conference (NIC).

Sigma Chi Strong Arms is assigned to all new members upon receiving a license on Sigma Chi Online and it should be completed within a new member’s first year within the Fraternity.

The first course of Strong Arms – Welcome to Strong Arms – can be found in the Commencement Course of Preparation for Brotherhood (P4B), while the other five courses will be completed either during or after pledgeship.

The Strong Arms education focuses on:

  1. Staying Connected and Spiritual
  2. The Importance of Self-Care
  3. Dealing with a Crisis
  4. Seeking Strong Arms and receiving help from others
  5. Encountering Challenges and using Resiliency

the reach out app

Beginning Fall 2019, Sigma Chi will offer the Reach Out Editions app to all its members to assist in times of need.

Reach Out Editions helps connect members of all communities who are in need to both in-house and community resources, such as helplines, counseling services, emergency responders, rape crisis centers, legal aid services and medical care providers. The college and university editions also focus on campus sexual misconduct, but can expand the scope to other areas such as substance abuse, depression, disabilities, identity issues, etc.

Because every organization, such as Sigma Chi, is unique, every edition is customized — but all editions empower users by putting actionable information at their fingertips. Reach Out enables you find the answers to questions such as: What are your rights? What are your options? Who can help you and how can they help? No registration is required. The app is 100 percent anonymous.

Sigma Chi wants to ensure its members and others have all the resources necessary in times of need, therefore the partnership with Reach Out became a major priority.

Reach Out is available for download in the app store for all Apple devices and in the Play Store for all Android devices.

More information on the app can be found at captivation.com. For more information on the Strong Arms, contact leadership.programs@sigmachi.org.

values-based decision making

Since the early 2000s, Sigma Chi has made a concerted effort to provide members with the resources needed to lead by example when facing challenging issues within the Greek community such as alcohol and drug abuse, hazing and sexual misconduct.

A new hybrid learning curriculum touching on these key issues, Values-Based Decision Making (VBDM), the Fraternity’s accountability education, will launch in Fall 2019.

Values-Based Decision Making, through the lead support of Order of Constantine Sig and Significant Sig Robert J. Georges, FLORIDA SOUTHERN 1973, is based on a more personalized learning experience that can be tailored to the needs of chapters and individuals, as well as be delivered in variety of educational settings and venues, including chapters, Sigma Chi Online, province conferences and Krach Transformational Leaders Workshop.

VBDM addresses accountability and the challenging issues on our college campuses today from a positive behavioral approach, meaning that we explore these topics with the goal of inspiring change through positive reinforcement of brotherhood, healthy relationships and our values.

The core curriculum (pre-learning, in-person and post-learning) invites our undergraduate brothers to live more authentically by holding self and others accountable to the seven values of Sigma Chi.

Our undergraduate bothers are introduced to the new S.O.A.R. Model, the third Sigma Chi instructional model, that will enable them to make values-based decisions – decisions that give them wings to “soar” toward the White Cross.

An integral component of the core curriculum is the art of giving and receiving feedback through the Sigma Chi Feedback Model. The topics areas and models in the core curriculum are foundational to the entire VBDM program. Therefore, the core curriculum is a prerequisite to the seven electives.

The naming of the elective areas reflects our positive behavioral approach mentioned above, e.g., the elective aimed at eradicating hazing is called True Brotherhood and the elective addressing sexual disrespect and assault is called Healthy Relationships. Each one of the electives takes the learner on a journey toward holistic living where healthy masculinity and self-identity actualize personal mission and the collective mission of the larger fraternity.

For more information on Values-Based Decision Making, contact leadership.programs@sigmachi.org.

Mission 365

Sigma Chi members better learn character-based recruitment and leadership skills through the Mission 365 course.

Mission 365 is designed to provide our undergraduate brothers with the necessary skills to recruit quality men into our fraternity.

Realizing that recruitment is the means by which we perpetuate our Ritual and Fraternity, the Fraternity provides a core curriculum and six electives that support our undergraduate brothers in looking for men of good character 365 days a year.

In essence, Mission 365 provides our chapters the opportunity to learn essential recruitment skills for fraternity life and the professional world.

For more information on the Mission 365 curriculum, contact leadership.programs@sigmachi.org.

krach transformational leadership workshop

Each summer, Sigma Chi’s undergraduate chapters send a delegation of five-to-seven brothers who were elected to officer positions to meet as a collective group during the Fraternity’s longest-running leadership engagement event.

Formerly known as Leadership Training Workshop, Krach Transformational Leaders Workshop (KTLW) creates an opportunity for undergraduates to undergo mentoring and strategic planning sessions to ensure improvement in their chapter roles and operations throughout the forthcoming academic year.

Sponsored by a lead endowment gift from 64th Grand Consul Keith Krach, PURDUE 1979, the former Chairman and CEO of DocuSign and Ariba and current United States Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment, KTLW shifts between chapter small group discussions to officer-specific large-group educational presentations, both led by highly-trained alumni facilitators within the Sigma Chi Facilitator Academy. The alumni facilitators also serve as mentors for their assigned chapters during the following academic year.

The chapter officers meet together with the facilitator throughout the workshop’s three days to develop core objectives of the chapter’s strategic plan, which will be finalized at the beginning of the school year.

Attendees also meet in officer-specific groups at Krach TLW. In these presentations, individual officers will participate in core educational sessions related to their office, key initiatives within the Fraternity and the Ritual before breaking out to officer-specific small groups for personal mentoring from an alumnus facilitator. Here, the facilitators will teach best practices and provide guidance in values-based decision-making regarding the operations of the chapter.

Chapters also spend time meeting with other chapters within their province with their Grand Praetor and local alumni facilitators. In this meeting, brothers assess their operations and goals, and discuss the strategic plan components they plan to implement during the upcoming year.

Alumni also have training opportunities offered at KTLW for building operational and leadership skills, such as New Chapter Advisor training, which offers a blend of in-person and online training to accommodate all learning styles.

After the learning journey during throughout the day, Krach TLW is host to the annual SigFest activities and tournaments in the evening – an opportunity for chapters to challenge and interact with one another through a variety of athletic and educational opportunities. Beyond the competitive events, SigFest offers discussions on Ritual history and opportunities to meet Grand Officers and distinguished alumni in attendance.

ktlw logistics

The location of Krach TLW has moved throughout North America during the last 72 years, ranging from college campus in Texas and Ontario, Canada. In 2019, Krach TLW will be held from August 1 to 3 at Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio.

Email workshop@sigmachi.org for more information on the Workshop experience.

Horizons huntsman leadership institute

In 1995, members of the Sigma Chi Foundation board of governors began exploring the Fraternity’s challenges and opportunities. The prevailing thought was to reestablish the core values of character and provide an opportunity for undergraduates to develop skills to deal with the complex and ever-expanding issues of our global society. Their idea was to create a program that encompassed a renaissance in the areas of core values and beliefs.

 

In 1999, after four years of development, the Fraternity launched Horizons, a six-day leadership program located in Snowbird, Utah. What began with 48 participants in a pilot program has grown into an annual attendance of nearly 250 undergraduates spread across five weeks each summer.

 

In 2014, through a generous endowment by Order of Constantine Sig and Significant Sig Jon M. Huntsman Sr., PENNSYLVANIA 1959, to the Sigma Chi Foundation, the Horizons program became the Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit.

 

The Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit is a leadership development experience created for qualified undergraduate Sigma Chis with at least two years of academic eligibility remaining. The program is conducted in an ideal setting for outdoor adventure, interactive learning and inspired reflection.

 

The Huntsman Cancer Foundation and the Sigma Chi Foundation generously fund 100 percent of the Horizons experience through a leadership grant. This includes all travel, housing, food, curriculum, materials and activity costs.

objectives

  • Provide Sigma Chi undergraduates with the highest level of leadership training in order to positively impact our chapters, host institutions and the world
  • Expose Sigma Chi undergraduates to character development that helps them realize and explore their core values
  • Provide a growth experience that will support Sigma Chi brothers throughout their collegiate years and
  • Provide participants with a mentor that will help them further develop their character.

For more information, email horizons@sigmachi.org. To apply for HORIZONS, click here (insert link to Horizons application)

lead donors

krach transformational leaders workshop

lead sponsor

64th Grand Consul 

Keith Krach

PURDUE 1979

additional sponsors

Lloyd G. Balfour

Foundation,

through Bank of America

29th Grand Consul

Lloyd G. Balfour,

INDIANA 1907

Thomas Cowan Bell

Chapter Challenge

Donors

Chapter Advisor Training:

Kent Johnson,

IOWA STATE 1978

Quaestor Division:

Dan Benoit,

DRAKE 1986

Ritual Division

(tribute to honor Joseph C. Nate and Douglas Carlson):

Grand Historian Dr. Michael Codina,

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA – SAN DIEGO 1993

Pro-Consul Division:

Gaurav Parikh, 

CAL POLY POMONA 2005

sigma chi online and preparation for brotherhood (p4b)

lead sponsors

Sigma Chi Online

Bill George,

GEORGIA TECH 1962

Bill & Penny George Family Foundation

Preparation for Brotherhood (P4B)

David Pyle,

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 1980

additional sponsors

James R. Allen,

DEPAUW 1979

Robert D. Basham,

MARYLAND 1970

John G. Berylson, 

BROWN 1975

63rd Grand Consul

Lee Beauchamp, 

TEXAS A&M-COLLEGE STATE 1975

Kim Caldwell, 

OREGON 1969

Samuel J. Chase, 

TEXAS TECH 1969

John Clerico, 

OKLAHOMA STATE 1963

Dave Dillion,

KANSAS 1973

Joseph J. Durzo,

SYRACUSE 1967

Dr. H. Allen Ecker, Ph.D.,

GEORGIA TECH 1957

Mark Emkes,

DEPAUW 1975

G. Carl Everett, Jr.,

NEW MEXICO STATE 1973

John K. Forst,

GEORGE WASHINGTON 1984

Robert J. Georges,

FLORIDA SOUTHERN 1973

Jeffrey T. Gill,

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 1978

Stephen W. Goodroe,

GEORGIA 1971

Gregory J. Harbaugh,

PURDUE 1978

Gerald Hines,

PURDUE 1946

Robert E. Joseph,

WILLAMETTE 1957

Alan J. Kessler,

SAN JOSE STATE 1979

Richard J. Lewandowski,

RIPON 1975

J. Willard Marriott Jr.,

UTAH 1954

Joe Martin,

HOUSTON 1976

Sanjay Meshri,

TULSA 1992

Timothy A. Michael,

OHIO STATE 1970

Jon P. Milanese,

MIAMI (FLORIDA) 1984

Jeffrey S. Muir,

GEORGIA 1971

Mark Paniccia,

A COLLEGE IN STORRS, 

CONNECTITCUT 1983

Dr. Mark E. Sand, 

PURDUE 1972

Donald H. Schefmeyer,

SYRACUSE 1969

Robert L. Seidell, 

NEBRASKA 1965

69th Grand Consul

Michael A. Ursillo, 

BROWN 1978

Dr. Daniel P. Walsh,

SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 1971

Chuck L. Watson,

OKLAHOMA STATE 1972

Kenneth L. Way,

MICHIGAN STATE 1961

Robert Zorich,

SANTA BARBARA 1971

horizon huntsman leadership summit

lead sponsor

Jon Huntsman, Sr.,

PENNSYLVANIA 1959

and The Huntsman Family Foundation

Session Sponsors

64th Grand Consul

Keith Krach, 

PURDUE 1979

Robert C. McNair, 

SOUTHERN CAROLINA 1958

Facilitator Training Sponsor

Chuck L. Watson, 

OKLAHOMA STATE 1972

Small Group Sponsor

Peter L. Frechette, 

WESTERN MICHIGAN 1960

Participant Sponsor

V. William Hunt, 

INDIANNA 1966

Mission and Day Sponsors

68th Grand Consul

Michael Greenberg, 

ILLINOIS WESLEYAN 1982

Ed Blessing, 

SAN DIEGO STATE 1960

Dan Shaver, 

TEXAS TECH 1993

strong arms

lead sponsors

J. Willard & Alice S. Marriott

Foundation

The Anschutz

Foundation

Michael and Gayle Zibilich, 

GEORGIA STATE 1970

Associate sponsor

Anderson J. Arnold, 

PENNSYLVANIA 1982

Values-Based Decision Making (VBDM)

lead sponsor

Robert J. Georges, 

FLORIDA SOUTHERN 1973