Future President

[SigKapChatter]

Originally Posted by PhiMuAlum

I would also like to add, one thing that I started the year I was President of my collegiate chapter was "Pass the Gavel". We sat in a huge circle and passed the gavel to each sister. EVERYONE had a chance to speak if they wanted to and they could say ANYTHING they wanted. Anything that was said in the room STAYED in the room. If anything was found otherwise, there was severe disciplinary action taken.

As I mentioned above, as President, you will hear EVERYTHING. A lot of times, what you hear are several sides to the same story. You learn how to mediate pretty quickly. Passing the Gavel was one way to get these things out in the open and resoleved before there were any further hurt feelings.

I am happy to know that this tradition of Passing the Gavel is STILL being done in my chapter (I won't even tell you how many years that it has been). After our Pass the Gavel Meeting (sometimes it could last a couple of hours), our chapter was always a lot closer and we were all able to see the other person's side of the story.

Phi Mu Alum

It's funny that you mention this because I was thinking I would make it a tradition to bi-monthly have a short sisterhood like "Gavel Pass" during chapter where we talk about what in the chapter is driving us nuts and what we are doing well, also "Cross the Line" where you ask the members who have done or experienced something to step forward--some of the experiences are funny and some are really emotional like abuse and rape. This would be a way to show that these are the kinds of things we can talk about as sisters. My theory is that if we take care of our sisters and our sisterhood, everything else will fall into place--grades, reputation, etc. Are there any more activities like this that would really help us build our already wonderful sisterhood?

[Drolefille]

Originally Posted by SigKapChatter

It's funny that you mention this because I was thinking I would make it a tradition to bi-monthly have a short sisterhood like "Gavel Pass" during chapter where we talk about what in the chapter is driving us nuts and what we are doing well, also "Cross the Line" where you ask the members who have done or experienced something to step forward--some of the experiences are funny and some are really emotional like abuse and rape. This would be a way to show that these are the kinds of things we can talk about as sisters. My theory is that if we take care of our sisters and our sisterhood, everything else will fall into place--grades, reputation, etc. Are there any more activities like this that would really help us build our already wonderful sisterhood?

We had the "cross the line" type of discussions at our retreats. Chapters don't tend to be a time when everyone's ok with doing that.

We did a gavel pass regularly that was simply a time to say anything you wanted, but it was always good. I do recommend that you use something like a suggestion box because people may not feel like they can speak up honestly about issues they're having. But as president, letting everyone know they can approach you with issues is a good thing. At the same time, be willing to delegate those issues when appropriate. You can't fix everything.

[PhiMuAlum]

Originally Posted by SigKapChatter

It's funny that you mention this because I was thinking I would make it a tradition to bi-monthly have a short sisterhood like "Gavel Pass" during chapter where we talk about what in the chapter is driving us nuts and what we are doing well, also "Cross the Line" where you ask the members who have done or experienced something to step forward--some of the experiences are funny and some are really emotional like abuse and rape. This would be a way to show that these are the kinds of things we can talk about as sisters. My theory is that if we take care of our sisters and our sisterhood, everything else will fall into place--grades, reputation, etc. Are there any more activities like this that would really help us build our already wonderful sisterhood?

Only YOU will know your chapter and what is going on (and they will all bring their "stuff" to you because they will want you to be on their side.

As far as having a Pass the Gavel bi-monthly, I personally think that is a bit much. Trust me, you will instinctively KNOW when the time is right. I think once you get through your first one and sisters feel comfortable sharing, more will speak up the next time.

The suggestion box is good, but who will be responsible for reading all the suggestions? I guess it all depends on the size of your chapter. But for a large chapter with 100+ women, you may not have the time to read all the suggestions.

Another suggestion I would make would be to create a Yahoo Group for your members to join. This way, you only have to send out one e-mail.

[Drolefille]

Originally Posted by PhiMuAlum

Only YOU will know your chapter and what is going on (and they will all bring their "stuff" to you because they will want you to be on their side.

As far as having a Pass the Gavel bi-monthly, I personally think that is a bit much. Trust me, you will instinctively KNOW when the time is right. I think once you get through your first one and sisters feel comfortable sharing, more will speak up the next time.

The suggestion box is good, but who will be responsible for reading all the suggestions? I guess it all depends on the size of your chapter. But for a large chapter with 100+ women, you may not have the time to read all the suggestions.

Another suggestion I would make would be to create a Yahoo Group for your members to join. This way, you only have to send out one e-mail.

As far as a box, I've not seen everyone put suggestions in the box. It's more of a "if you have questions/problems feel free" thing. And if everyone IS putting something in there, you probably have issues to address anyway.