SIGMA CHI LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE is a 501(c)(3) organization that offers values-based curriculum to help our Sigma Chi members and community members become transformational leaders. Sigma Chi believes transformational leadership is the practice by which leaders inspire and empower others to innovate and create change that will positively impact the fraternity and ultimately the world.
As leaders in the fraternity and sorority community, Sigma Chi International Fraternity continues to believe that the creation of the Sigma Chi Leadership Institute will positively impact the entire Greek-letter landscape.
As Sigma Chis, we expect more from our members. As partners, you should expect more from us. The Sigma Chi Leadership Institute allows you to do just that.
Sixty-eighth Grand Consul Michael Greenberg, ILLINOIS WESLEYAN 1982, was selected as chairman of the Sigma Chi Leadership Institute on July 1, 2019. He is currently serving a three-year term as chairman. Greenberg previously served as chairman on the Education and Leadership Board from 2017 to 2019 and as Sigma Chi’s international president from 2013 to 2015.
Michael has more than 25 years of experience directing as many as 225 employees in his company with revenues in excess of $170 million. Michael is a respected businessman and entrepreneur with eight successful business startups heading an impressive list of personal, civic, charitable, and professional accomplishments to his credit. Michael has spent the past 25 years as principal owner of Interior Investments, which was named in the 50 fastest growing companies in the Chicago market, the top 300 privately held companies in Chicago, and recently was named in Inc Magazine's top 5,000 privately held companies.
Michael began his pursuit of leadership development over 25 years ago. Working with undergraduates from all over the United States, he has conducted over 200 retreats across college campuses. Michael has remained grounded by helping others understand how they can grow and transform into enduring leaders through his mentoring and superior leadership skills. His focus on helping students become enduring leaders includes development of vision and purpose statements, understanding behavior social styles, creating high performance teams, learning how to collaborate with others effectively, creating strategic plans, implementing strategic plans, and making a positive contribution to the community.
The Sigma Chi Leadership Institute’s board of directors is comprised of Fraternity alumni volunteers and an undergraduate representative. Its members are as follows:
Mark has dedicated the last 10 years to Sigma Chi’s educational and leadership development pursuits. He served as Vice Chairman of the new member education committee and helped craft the rollout of a hybrid learning new member program – Preparation for Brotherhood – in 2016. He specialized in developing assessments and evaluations within the Sigma Chi Online learning management system for the program. Mark served on Sigma Chi’s Education and Leadership Board from 2015-2019 before being appointed to the SCLI Board of Directors for a three-year term in July 2019.
Galbo is a master certified instructor in Tracom SOCIAL STYLE™ and has served as a guide for the Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit for 15 years and as a longtime faculty member for Krach Transformational Leaders Workshop.
Dan has served as the CEO and President of Affinity Consultants in Carlsbad, Calif., since 1997. With Affinity, Dan leads a team that provides proven licensing and marketing solutions for North America’s leading fraternities, sororities, honorary societies and affinity-rich organizations. He worked as director of marketing for Sigma Chi Headquarters for seven years as well.
Within Sigma Chi, Dan has chaired the Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit Operating Board and served as a volunteer committee member. He also serves as chairman of the Philanthropy Committee for the Sigma Chi Fraternity. Dan helped establish the Cal. State-San Marcos undergraduate chapter in 2015, and he currently is working with the San Diego State undergraduate chapter and its installation. In 2008, he received the Fraternity’s Mark V. Anderson Character-in-Action™ Leadership Award.
Dan also loves teaching, serving as session coordinator and guide at Sigma Chi’s annual Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit in Snowbird, Utah.
With more than 35 years of leadership and learning experience, Curt is actively involved in helping others find success within Sigma Chi and within the leadership development industry. He is a Certified PDP professional and a certified trainer of Tracom SOCIAL STYLE™. Curt is currently principal at Strengths Inc., serving in the role since June 2019. He assists clients in increasing profitability by maximizing the potential of their people.
Within Sigma Chi, Curt specializes in training and development of all Sigma Chi members. He served on Sigma Chi’s Leadership Training Board, Alumni Services Team and Education and Leadership Board before joining SCLI’s board of directors. Curt helped Sigma Chi formalize its first alumni facilitation training program and now helps consult with the Sigma Chi Facilitators Academy as SCLI gears up for accreditation.
Curt also has served as session coordinator and guide at the Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit and as a longtime faculty member at Krach Transformational Leaders Workshop.
Dr. Friedman has served Sigma Chi for fifteen (15) years, in roles including: Chapter Advisor for the Theta Eta Chapter at the Missouri University of Science and Technology (MS&T), facilitator at the Krach Transformation Leadership Workshop, undergraduate representative and committee member of the Alumni Services Team, committee member of the Education and Leadership Board (ELB), member and chairman of the Metrics Committee, and member of the Sigma Chi Leadership Institute Board. He received a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from Purdue University in 2012 and received his B.S. in both Civil Engineering and Architectural Engineering from MS&T in 2007. In his free time, he enjoys traveling with his wife, listening to podcasts, perfecting his barbeque recipes, woodworking, boxing/kickboxing, and a nice glass of Scotch.
Dr. Gross currently works as the associate director of student engagement at Arizona State University. In this role he oversees student organizations and leadership, as well as student events and programming. He also advises the Interfraternity Council and Sun Devil Leadership Council. Before coming to ASU, Gross worked at his alma mater, the University of Miami. He holds a doctorate of education from Northeastern University, as well as a master of science in education and bachelor of science in communication from the University of Miami.
Dr. Gross loves to volunteer his time to assist in the development of Sigma Chi undergraduate students. He serves as a guide for the Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit program, and he has served on the risk management faculty at Krach Transformational Leaders Workshop.
Cory works as the senior business development manager at Allergan. He received his Masters Degree in Business Administration in 2006 from the University of Denver’s Daniels College of Business.
Cory remains active within Sigma Chi’s leadership landscape, now as a director within Sigma Chi Leadership Institute. He is a 10-time Krach Transformational Leaders Workshop faculty member and a three-time Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit faculty member. Cory has facilitated numerous province workshops for the Rocky Mountain and Northwestern provinces and conducted brotherhood retreats for the Montana, Denver, Northern Colorado, Wyoming and Boston chapters. Rigler also has served on the Fraternity’s Preparation for Brotherhood Committee; on the Horizons and Balfour Leadership operating boards; and as a Cornerstone mentoring program facilitator.
Matt Skoy received his bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from North Dakota State University and master’s degree in Education Administration from Iowa State University. He is currently a doctoral candidate in Institutional Effectiveness at North Dakota State University. His dissertation is focused on the disconnect between what employers expect from college graduates in terms of their leadership skills, and what skills graduates possess upon graduation. Matt started his career at North Dakota State University and served for 11 years in Student Affairs. When he was the Director of Student Activities, Matt was responsible for leading his department and creating curriculum designed to ensure growth and development of students, faculty, and staff. After his time at NDSU, Matt joined the private sector and is currently serving as the Learning and Development Manager at a fast-growing biotechnology company called Aldevron. Matt has held several different positions throughout his career, but one element remains consist. Learning has always been a component. As a life-long learner, Matt is passionate about providing value to others through intentional learning and development. When Matt is not at work, he is blessed to be a husband and father of three. Matt believes his life is a blessing and takes nothing for granted.
Mark has dedicated the last 10 years to Sigma Chi’s educational and leadership development pursuits. He served as Vice Chairman of the new member education committee and helped craft the rollout of a hybrid learning new member program – Preparation for Brotherhood – in 2016. He specialized in developing assessments and evaluations within the Sigma Chi Online learning management system for the program. Mark served on Sigma Chi’s Education and Leadership Board from 2015-2019 before being appointed to the SCLI Board of Directors for a three-year term in July 2019.
Galbo is a master certified instructor in Tracom SOCIAL STYLE™ and has served as a guide for the Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit for 15 years and as a longtime faculty member for Krach Transformational Leaders Workshop.
Dan has served as the CEO and President of Affinity Consultants in Carlsbad, Calif., since 1997. With Affinity, Dan leads a team that provides proven licensing and marketing solutions for North America’s leading fraternities, sororities, honorary societies and affinity-rich organizations. He worked as director of marketing for Sigma Chi Headquarters for seven years as well.
Within Sigma Chi, Dan has chaired the Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit Operating Board and served as a volunteer committee member. He also serves as chairman of the Philanthropy Committee for the Sigma Chi Fraternity. Dan helped establish the Cal. State-San Marcos undergraduate chapter in 2015, and he currently is working with the San Diego State undergraduate chapter and its installation. In 2008, he received the Fraternity’s Mark V. Anderson Character-in-Action™ Leadership Award.
Dan also loves teaching, serving as session coordinator and guide at Sigma Chi’s annual Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit in Snowbird, Utah.
With more than 35 years of leadership and learning experience, Curt is actively involved in helping others find success within Sigma Chi and within the leadership development industry. He is a Certified PDP professional and a certified trainer of Tracom SOCIAL STYLE™. Curt is currently prinicpal at Strengths Inc., serving in the role since June 2019. He assists clients in increasing profitability by maximizing the potential of their people.
Within Sigma Chi, Curt specializes in training and development of all Sigma Chi members. He served on Sigma Chi’s Leadership Training Board, Alumni Services Team and Education and Leadership Board before joining SCLI’s board of directors. Curt helped Sigma Chi formalize its first alumni facilitation training program and now helps consult with the Sigma Chi Facilitators Academy as SCLI gears up for accreditation.
Curt also has served as session coordinator and guide at the Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit and as a longtime faculty member at Krach Transformational Leaders Workshop.
Dr. Friedman has served Sigma Chi for fifteen (15) years, in roles including: Chapter Advisor for the Theta Eta Chapter at the Missouri University of Science and Technology (MS&T), facilitator at the Krach Transformation Leadership Workshop, undergraduate representative and committee member of the Alumni Services Team, committee member of the Education and Leadership Board (ELB), member and chairman of the Metrics Committee, and member of the Sigma Chi Leadership Institute Board. He received a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from Purdue University in 2012 and received his B.S. in both Civil Engineering and Architectural Engineering from MS&T in 2007. In his free time, he enjoys traveling with his wife, listening to podcasts, perfecting his barbeque recipes, woodworking, boxing/kickboxing, and a nice glass of Scotch.
Brandon currently works as the Associate Director of Student Engagement at Arizona State University for the Memorial Union and Student Pavilion after also serving ASU as assistant director for the Dean of Students office, west campus. Before coming to ASU, Brandon worked at his alma mater at the University of Miami as the director of events and senior associate director of the student center complex.
Brandon loves to volunteer his time to assist in the development of Sigma Chi undergraduate students. He serves as a guide for the Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit program, and he has served on the risk management faculty at Krach Transformational Leaders Workshop.
Cory works as the senior business development manager at Allergan. He received his Masters Degree in Business Administration in 2006 from the University of Denver’s Daniels College of Business.
Cory remains active within Sigma Chi’s leadership landscape, now as a director within Sigma Chi Leadership Institute. He is a 10-time Krach Transformational Leaders Workshop faculty member and a three-time Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit faculty member. Cory has facilitated numerous province workshops for the Rocky Mountain and Northwestern provinces and conducted brotherhood retreats for the Montana, Denver, Northern Colorado, Wyoming and Boston chapters. Rigler also has served on the Fraternity’s Preparation for Brotherhood Committee; on the Horizons and Balfour Leadership operating boards; and as a Cornerstone mentoring program facilitator.
Matt Skoy received his bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from North Dakota State University and master’s degree in Education Administration from Iowa State University. He is currently a doctoral candidate in Institutional Effectiveness at North Dakota State University. His dissertation is focused on the disconnect between what employers expect from college graduates in terms of their leadership skills, and what skills graduates possess upon graduation. Matt started his career at North Dakota State University and served for 11 years in Student Affairs. When he was the Director of Student Activities, Matt was responsible for leading his department and creating curriculum designed to ensure growth and development of students, faculty, and staff. After his time at NDSU, Matt joined the private sector and is currently serving as the Learning and Development Manager at a fast-growing biotechnology company called Aldevron. Matt has held several different positions throughout his career, but one element remains consist. Learning has always been a component. As a life-long learner, Matt is passionate about providing value to others through intentional learning and development. When Matt is not at work, he is blessed to be a husband and father of three. Matt believes his life is a blessing and takes nothing for granted.
Education and leadership are the cornerstones of Jim’s Sigma Chi and professional life. After enlisting in the US Army in 1988, he became a US Army Instructor in 1992. After graduating with a B.A. in History, he earned a graduate degree in secondary education and taught in the public education system for four years. In 2014, while a Special Agent serving as an instructor at the US Secret Service Academy, Jim earned his Masters degree in National Security and Strategic Planning with an emphasis in Leadership and Ethics from the US Naval War College. Within Sigma Chi, Jim served as Headquarters Staff from 1994 to 1996 and later dedicated his life to volunteer service in the pursuit of leadership development. Most notably, as Chairman of the Jordan Initiative, Jim led the rollout of Sigma Chi’s Preparation for Brotherhood program, a hybrid curriculum featuring an in-person and eLearning curriculum. He also led the creation of Sigma Chi’s Ritual for Life new member education program. Jim is an advanced facilitator within Sigma Chi’s Facilitator Academy after more than two decades of serving on the faculty of Krach Transformational Leaders Workshop.
Jim Cogdal, BRADLEY 2003, became the executive director of the Sigma Chi Leadership Institute on March 21, 2019. He previously was the senior director of membership development at International Fraternity Headquarters in Evanston, Ill. He has worked at Sigma Chi Headquarters since June 2010. He attended the Horizons Huntsman Leadership Summit in 2000 and also two Krach Transformational Leadership Workshops, in 2001 and 2002. Since then, he has been enamored with connecting with Sigma Chi members through transformational leadership development opportunities.
Jim served as one of the principal architects for the Fraternity’s Preparation for Brotherhood new-member education program, Ritual for Life new member education training program, the Crossroads values-based decision-making program about alcohol and drugs, the Sigma Chi Facilitator Academy and the onboarding of Sigma Chi’s learning management system, Sigma Chi Online. He is a master certified instructor in Tracom SOCIAL STYLE™.
With Greenberg as international president in 2014, Jim took the lead on developing Sigma Chi’s inaugural mental wellness program for its 16,000 undergraduates. Since then, Jim and his team have developed the Keller Zibilich Strong Arms eLearning program, a six-course mental wellness experience that is required for all new members in 2020.
Jim lives in Arlington Heights, Ill., with his wife, Jenny, and their daughter, Emma.
Robert Rabe, M.ED, M.Div., is the associate executive director of the Sigma Chi Leadership Institute. He was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio and decided to pursue his undergraduate studies just across the border at Northern Kentucky University in Mental Health and Human Services. His undergraduate studies involved four practicums that addressed systemic societal and mental health issues, ranging from social health education to inner-city gang violence. Upon completion of his B.S. in Mental Health and Human Services, Robert began his graduate studies at St. John’s University in theology and social justice where he earned a Master of Divinity. Due to a deep love for the city of Chicago, especially the lakefront, he accepted a job at Career Colleges of Chicago where he served as an academic advisor and professor of communications and ethics. Building upon his educational background and recent professional experience, Robert accepted a job facilitating ropes courses and team-building retreats for high school students at Loyola Retreat and Conference Center, which led to his decision to become an administrator and teacher at Mother McAuley Liberal Arts High School on the Southside of Chicago. During his time as a teacher and administrator, Robert completed a Master of Education in Educational Administration (Pk-12) from Marymount University in Arlington, Virginia and began his doctoral studies at Cardinal Stritch University in Leadership in Higher Education. After 11 years of high school administration and teaching, Robert accepted a position to serve on the Leadership Team for Catholic Schools in the Archdiocese of Chicago where he was charged with developing a standardized religion curriculum with common summative assessments for approximately 80,000 students. Robert was very excited to be recruited by Sigma Chi to serve as Senior Director of Curriculum and Instruction. He was initiated into the Sigma Chi brotherhood at the age of 43 and has a deep passion for the mission and educational future of Sigma Chi. Robert has authored several articles and books, including a high school religion textbook, The Bible: The Living Word of God, that is used in Catholic high schools throughout the US. Robert is looking forward to 2020 when he will complete his Ph.D. in Leadership in Higher Education!
The Sigma Chi Leadership Institute is comprised of three professional staff teams focused on curriculum development, leadership programs and online learning.
The teams and their members are as follows:
Abigaile VanHorn, Ph.D. hails from the Buckeye State by way of Purdue University where she completed her M.A. and Ph.D. in Political Behavior and Institutions. She taught at the college level for over ten years and conducted research on the scholarship of teaching and learning, women and politics, mentoring, and leadership theory and practice. She has successfully integrated the use of qualitative and quantitative research methods to tell the story behind the data. Her vocational passion lies in the development and implementation of leadership programs for a variety of organizations. Abigaile serves on the national board of directors of Blue Key Honor Society where she works with student leaders across the country in enhancing scholarship, leadership, and service during their academic careers. She brings her expertise in the scholarship of teaching and learning, leadership curriculum development, coaching, and assessment and evaluation to the Sigma Chi Leadership Institute. When not writing curriculum or wielding a survey instrument, she can be found wielding a power tool in the name of home improvement.
Kaitlyn Martin, M.A. is originally from Pittsburgh, Pa, but has spent a lot of her time in the mid-west. Kaitlyn graduated from Robert Morris University (PA) in 2017 with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration concentrated in Marketing and Sport Management. On November 9, 2013, Kaitlyn was initiated into the Iota Alpha chapter of Zeta Tau Alpha Fraternity. Kaitlyn graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 2019 with a Master of Arts in Student Affairs in Higher Education. Kaitlyn’s passion is recruitment. She believes in the Greek experience and has seen firsthand that empowered young men and women, who are taught how to have intentional conversations, and have internalized the values of their organizations, can help bring in forward-thinking members who can change the world and positively impact their organization. In her spare time, Kaitlyn is still trying to figure out how not to be a student, loves spending time with her 7 nieces and nephews, is a fan of a great iced coffee, and continues to give back to her organization by serving as a Recruitment and New Member Education Advisor.
Robert Rabe, M.ED, M.Div., was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio and decided to pursue his undergraduate studies just across the border at Northern Kentucky University in Mental Health and Human Services. His undergraduate studies involved four practicums that addressed systemic societal and mental health issues, ranging from social health education to inner-city gang violence. Upon completion of his B.S. in Mental Health and Human Services, Robert began his graduate studies at St. John’s University in theology and social justice where he earned a Master of Divinity. Due to a deep love for the city of Chicago, especially the lakefront, he accepted a job at Career Colleges of Chicago where he served as an academic advisor and professor of communications and ethics. Building upon his educational background and recent professional experience, Robert accepted a job facilitating ropes courses and team-building retreats for high school students at Loyola Retreat and Conference Center, which led to his decision to become an administrator and teacher at Mother McAuley Liberal Arts High School on the Southside of Chicago. During his time as a teacher and administrator, Robert completed a Master of Education in Educational Administration (Pk-12) from Marymount University in Arlington, Virginia and began his doctoral studies at Cardinal Stritch University in Leadership in Higher Education. After 11 years of high school administration and teaching, Robert accepted a position to serve on the Leadership Team for Catholic Schools in the Archdiocese of Chicago where he was charged with developing a standardized religion curriculum with common summative assessments for approximately 80,000 students. Robert was very excited to be recruited by Sigma Chi to serve as Senior Director of Curriculum and Instruction. He was initiated into the Sigma Chi brotherhood at the age of 43 and has a deep passion for the mission and educational future of Sigma Chi. Robert has authored several articles and books, including a high school religion textbook, The Bible: The Living Word of God, that is used in Catholic high schools throughout the US. Robert is looking forward to 2020 when he will complete his Ph.D. in Leadership in Higher Education!
Abigaile VanHorn, Ph.D. hails from the Buckeye State by way of Purdue University where she completed her M.A. and Ph.D. in Political Behavior and Institutions. She taught at the college level for over ten years and conducted research on the scholarship of teaching and learning, women and politics, mentoring, and leadership theory and practice. She has successfully integrated the use of qualitative and quantitative research methods to tell the story behind the data. Her vocational passion lies in the development and implementation of leadership programs for a variety of organizations. Abigaile serves on the national board of directors of Blue Key Honor Society where she works with student leaders across the country in enhancing scholarship, leadership, and service during their academic careers. She brings her expertise in the scholarship of teaching and learning, leadership curriculum development, coaching, and assessment and evaluation to the Sigma Chi Leadership Institute. When not writing curriculum or wielding a survey instrument, she can be found wielding a power tool in the name of home improvement.
Kaitlyn Martin, M.A. is originally from Pittsburgh, Pa, but has spent a lot of her time in the mid-west. Kaitlyn graduated from Robert Morris University (PA) in 2017 with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration concentrated in Marketing and Sport Management. On November 9, 2013, Kaitlyn was initiated into the Iota Alpha chapter of Zeta Tau Alpha Fraternity. Kaitlyn graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 2019 with a Master of Arts in Student Affairs in Higher Education. Kaitlyn’s passion is recruitment. She believes in the Greek experience and has seen firsthand that empowered young men and women, who are taught how to have intentional conversations, and have internalized the values of their organizations, can help bring in forward-thinking members who can change the world and positively impact their organization. In her spare time, Kaitlyn is still trying to figure out how not to be a student, loves spending time with her 7 nieces and nephews, is a fan of a great iced coffee, and continues to give back to her organization by serving as a Recruitment and New Member Education Advisor.
Brian was born and raised in Bloomington, Illinois, before attending DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. At DePauw, he majored in biology with a minor in economics, was a member of the varsity golf team, and also served as his chapter’s Consul, Pro Consul, scholarship chairman and Magister. After graduation, he attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to further pursue his interests in science and research. After completing his Masters and Ph.D. studies and research in Molecular and Integrative Physiology while also teaching courses at the U of I, Brian found that his true passion was in working with undergraduate students both within and outside of their fields of study to help them develop and reach their fullest potential. With that in mind, he hopes to have an impact on how our undergraduate membership interacts with their campuses and communities, and how they develop as men and future leaders in their chosen fields by ensuring that Sigma Chi provides leadership programs of the highest caliber.
Jeremy was initiated into the Fraternity in the fall of 2016 at Southern Utah University (SUU) and graduated from SUU in 2018 with a bachelor of science degree in human nutrition, with an allied health emphasis. As an undergraduate, Jeremy was involved in student government as a student senator and held the office Ritual chairman, Pro Consul and undergraduate representative to the Jordan Initiative Committee (P4B/R4L) within Sigma Chi. Jeremy served six years in the Utah Army National Guard as a combat medic and was proud to care for the soldiers of the 222nd Field Artillery Battalion.
Brian was born and raised in Bloomington, Illinois, before attending DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. At DePauw, he majored in biology with a minor in economics, was a member of the varsity golf team, and also served as his chapter’s Consul, Pro Consul, scholarship chairman and Magister. After graduation, he attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to further pursue his interests in science and research. After completing his Masters and Ph.D. studies and research in Molecular and Integrative Physiology while also teaching courses at the U of I, Brian found that his true passion was in working with undergraduate students both within and outside of their fields of study to help them develop and reach their fullest potential. With that in mind, he hopes to have an impact on how our undergraduate membership interacts with their campuses and communities, and how they develop as men and future leaders in their chosen fields by ensuring that Sigma Chi provides leadership programs of the highest caliber.
Jeremy was initiated into the Fraternity in the fall of 2016 at Southern Utah University (SUU) and graduated from SUU in 2018 with a bachelor of science degree in human nutrition, with an allied health emphasis. As an undergraduate, Jeremy was involved in student government as a student senator and held the office Ritual chairman, Pro Consul and undergraduate representative to the Jordan Initiative Committee (P4B/R4L) within Sigma Chi. Jeremy served six years in the Utah Army National Guard as a combat medic and was proud to care for the soldiers of the 222nd Field Artillery Battalion.