Openminded
 

Fellow Brothers,
I read your threads and ponder what exactly your vision for this Fraternity and the purpose of our HQ Executive Director and staff are? I am a brother of the Epsilon Tau Chapter and will be going to Convention in Chicago, my 2nd Convention. It was at my first Convention that I truly felt the Nile Green run through my blood. I had only seen one side of Delta Sigma Phi and that was through my own Chapter. At Convention however, I heard the arguments, heard the stories, and grasped all the knowledge and information I could.

I read your threads and can only wonder what type of perceptions you have. You bash Hockman consistently but do you ever look at it from his perspective? He transitioned the Fraternity through one of the toughest times this Fraternity has ever had. Dealing with declining numbers in men rushing to the dry housing issue, he was there. He had a vision and he stood by it; of course not everyone will like it but he truly helped get our Fraternity where it is today. If you like Wiley, where do you think he learned it?

I would just hope that after reading all your threads understand that when you go to Convention, think about Nationals, and when you hear the controversial issues, look at it from all perspectives. From all frames of mind. You will be amazed at the perspectives you don't see and the enlightenment you will obtain.

I would hope that you understand that I'm not attacking any one of you, but that I really hope you get the experience of a lifetime that I did at Convention that has truly made me the Delta Sig that I am today. My hopes are to someday go to work for our HQ or go to Graduate School to become a Greek Advisor and I just offer my thoughts to you if you have any questions or concerns. Whether it be about Rush at a school where dry housing is looked down upon to leadership in your Chapter. Therefore, I hope to meet any Delt Sig's that look at this and I hope to share story after story and idea after idea. My name is Scott but i go by Kilo and I am and always will be a proud member of Delta Sigma Phi Fraternity!

YITBOS
-Kilo-

Kilo,

I, like you, really got energized by Delta Sig at my first convention in 1985. The convention offers three levels of experience: educational, political, and social. You are absolutely correct about convention giving brothers a national perspective, far greater than the chapter experience alone.

I would also agree that we need to look at the important issues of the last several years from all sides. I think National, Jon included, made a grave mistake in 1999 when they unilaterally mandated AFH and tried to use the Select 2000 decision of 1997 as justification. Clearly, the membership doesn't want major changes implemented from "on high" without their input. Time after time I have seen our membership make the tough decisions: banning Little Sisters, Code of Conduct, Chapter Service Fees, etc. When the argument is compelling, our members will do what is right for the ENTIRE fraternity.

However, I have never been convinced that AFH was something we HAD to do. You are correct that Jon had his principles and stood by them, but National exists to serve the members--not vise versa as others seem to believe. The bottom line is under Jon's leadership service to chapters suffered. The undergrads are paying the bills and on the front lines everyday--they are the customers. As a businessman, I know if your customer's are unhappy you won't last long.

My major concerns about Jon's tenure were the willingness to let chapters fold (as they were deemed unworthy), lack of expansion, lack of services (including COW's, etc.), and an overemphasis on AFH. Banning alcohol is not the answer, it is only an attempt to avoid the problem. Our responsibility lies in educating our members on the responsibile use of alcohol, not just putting it off until they enter the real world. While we concentrated on this, other things suffered.

The fraternity is only a powerful instrument when all three parts work together in harmony: undergraduates, alumni and HQ. I am confident we can come together in Chicago this week and form a common vision for where Delta Sig should go in this century. Thanks for your comments and I hope to meet you in Chi-town.

YITBOS,

Jim Knoll '83
Gamma Epsilon - San Jose State