June 15, 2010
Dear Eric:
The End‐of‐Year Chapter Evaluation Team, composed of students, faculty, alumni and staff, recently completed the annual comprehensive review of your chapter and the materials submitted on behalf of your organization for the 2009‐2010 academic year. The Office ofFraternity and Sorority Affairs has designed this review process in an effort to support the chapter’s continued compliance with the Recognition Policy for Fraternities and Sororities and the Fraternity and Sorority Community’s Core Principles. It is in this advisory capacity that the team makes comments and recommendations to identify each chapter’s strengths and provide guidance for areas of improvement. The evaluation team assigned a category rating, 1 (exceeds expectations), 2 (meets expectations) or 3 (does not meet expectations), for each section of the eport. These ratings are then compiled for a chapter raw score.
Click here to download the full report.
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Thanks to the generosity of Peter Heylin '65, two stunning lions once again grace the entrance of Hillcrest, the home of NY Alpha.
The actives did a great job filling them with cement, mounting them, and painting them.
Click here to see more of the lions, as well as other photos from the spring 2010 semester.
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The new Delta pledge class was recently challenged by the active brotherhood to match our current philanthropic and charity initiatives. Consequently, the Delta pledge class recently began a three-tiered "Change for Change" drive. Essentially, they are asking for monetary donations from friends, family, alumni, peers, and community members, and are subsequently giving it to three major organizations.
The first organization the new members raised money for is the American Red Cross Haiti Relief and Development Fund, for which they raised nearly $1,000. The second organization the new members raised money for was the American Cancer Society's annual Relay for Life, held in Barton Hall on the Cornell campus, for which they raised nearly $2,000 in registration fees and donations. Lastly, they are currently raising money for the Children's Miracle Network, which the national Sigma Alpha Epsilon organization officially sponsors. Their goal is to exceed $1,000.
It's great to see the "new guys" take such a proactive role in working for the greater good.
-- Peter Young '11
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The active brotherhood and alumni association of New York Alpha stood out among the best at Cornell University and in the country last year. The last time New York Alpha received any award from the national organization or at Cornell University was in 2005 when the active brotherhood was recognized as an outstanding chapter at Cornell and also received the prominent Zeal Award from Sigma Alpha Epsilon.
Every year, it is more difficult to be recognized as an outstanding chapter because there are higher expectations for the chapter to meet. Last year, only three out of the Interfraternity Council's 43 chapters received the Most Outstanding Chapter Award at Cornell University, and New York Alpha was among those recognized. On the national level, New York Alpha was nominated for every award derived from the fraternity's 12 Core Areas. New York Alpha was recognized as one of the top six chapters in the nation last year out of 232 chapters from across the nation. New York Alpha was a Zeal finalist, national runner-up in scholarship, honorable mention in ritual, and received one of the 27 Chapter Achievement Awards given to the most outstanding chapters in the nation.
While the undergraduates have done an outstanding job in recent years, so has the New York Alpha Alumni Association, and last year it was recognized as the best in the nation. The Alumni Association of New York Alpha received the "Zeal Award" of all alumni associations and was recognized as the nation's Most Outstanding Alumni Association in Sigma Alpha Epsilon. This is the first time in New York Alpha's history that the alumni association has been recognized with this award. The alumni association also received national runner-up accolades for having one of the national fraternity's outstanding websites: www.sae-cornell.org.
Phi Alpha,
Curtis Roddy '10, Preceptor
car49@cornell.edu
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"Province Nu just finished its own leadership school, hosted at Cornell University by New York Alpha. The full-day program was a mix between a province business meeting and a leadership school. Undergraduate members had an opportunity to share ideas within the province and to hear presentations from prominent members of the SAE realm."
See the full story and photos on the Province Nu site.
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The undergradaute brothers enjoyed a successful Parents' Weekend, held April 24-26, 2009. In preparation for the event, EA Curtis Roddy '10 prepared a look at the chapter and its leaders for SAE parents. View his work, here.
"Brotherhood is for life"
--Hal Sieling '62
When I heard my name announced as the next eminent archon of NY Alpha, it was one of the proudest moments of my life. The following is from the beginning of my speech: Change is what we need right now.
As you all know, I wrestled for Cornell for almost two years, and the day I stopped wrestling was one of the biggest decisions I ever made, but I found SAE. Wrestling was my life. I was a three-time state champion, a four-time state finalist, the second-ranked 152-pounder in the nation as a senior in high school. I wasn't the president of Student Council, but I was a captain of my wrestling team for three years. |
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I worked my tail off all year long and led my team to two Team State Final appearances, winning the Team State title as a senior. I always wanted to be the best, but I also wanted my team to be the best. The point I am trying to make is not that I was this great wrestler, and you should all know that, but rather understand that when I do something, whether it's wrestling or anything I do, I want to be the best at it and get the most out of it. I knew back then that Sigma Alpha Epsilon is a remarkable place and your experience as a brother is what you make out of it. I've realized that many things throughout life are complicated and sometimes seem impossible, but with the passion in your heart and the help of others, you can achieve great things.
That's why I decided to run for president and have our first annual brotherhood retreat. Each year, there is always an officers' retreat to go over goals and to start the year off on the same page, but why not do that with every brother in the chapter? At the end of the day, it's about all of us. An officer is elected into his position because he is a workhorse and wants to get the most out of his experience while he is at Cornell. That's great, but being in a fraternity shouldn't just be a resume builder; it's much more than that. It shouldn't just be a place to socialize and party; it's much more than that. It shouldn't just be a place that you call home; it's much more than that. That being said, this year's fall retreat was astounding.
It took place August 30, 2008, at Robert H. Treman State Park. We had 100-percent participation (excluding valid excuses) from the brotherhood this year, and our chapter advisor, Ron Demer '59, joined us, too. We started the day off with an introduction of all of the officers and their plans for the coming year.
The morning was a more relaxed setting for the guys as we broke off into groups of older and younger guys. We also had two transfer students join us this year, and it was a really good experience for them to meet the rest of the brotherhood as well. We stayed in the groups for almost an hour, catching up on summer stories as well as meeting each other for the first time (many juniors were abroad last semester and hadn't met the new guys yet). After an hour, we gathered into a big group circle and each of us (over 50 actives) told the brotherhood something we didn't know about each other.It was a lot of fun, and the guys thought it was one of the best parts of the retreat.
We then ate lunch prepared by our chef. After lunch, many guys played a pickup game of football while others just relaxed or played some frisbee. Watching the guys have fun and not complain about having to be somewhere (other than chapter or a social event) was very exciting for me. We then returned to the pavilion to start some work. The afternoon portion of the retreat was a little more serious; the topics of discussion were based on the 12 Core Areas of the True Gentleman Initiative. Many great ideas were expressed, and some have already been implemented this year. We had discussion for two hours and then returned to Hillcrest.
The feedback from the brotherhood was remarkable, and I'm already in the process of planning our spring retreat, which will take place sometime in May. The brotherhood retreat is something I hope will be continued in the coming years. It is a great way to begin the year and a great way to end the year. In the beginning, you get together and catch up on everything that happened over the summer.
You establish goals and standards for the year and strive to achieve them. At the end of the year, you assess the chapter and see what you did right and work on what you might not have accomplished. By doing this, everyone is more involved, and the chapter achieves great things through the help of the brotherhood and not through just a small number of officers. In closing, I hope this year proves to be another successful year for the brotherhood at NY Alpha.
We've already started out successful, and I expect nothing less than the best from our house when the year comes to a close.
Phi Alpha,
Curtis Roddy '10
Eminent Archon
car49@cornell.edu
Powers van der Mandele '09 -- Ag&LS, Hamilton, NY; Social Chair 2007
Jason Davis '09 -- Ag&LS, Jefferson City, MO; Social Chair 2008
Michael Glamore '09 -- Engineering, Melbourne, FL; Houseman 2008
Svante Myrick '09 -- Ag&LS, Hamilton, NY; EDA 2007, IFC VP
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About 25 actives and 25 alumni participated in a networking event road trip, held at the Cornell Club in New York City.
A great time was had by all, and we hope to make this an annual event. Earlier in the day, the actives did enjoyed Paint Ball Experience on Long Island.
For full details, go to the SAE Sports News page.
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