Pi Veteran Celebrates 100th Birthday

As the newest recipient of the Borradaile Alumnus Award for outstanding achievements, perhaps the most astonishing thing about Paul Ignatius, Southern California ’39, is that he had not yet won it.

 Ignatius was born to first-generation Armenian parents in Glendale, CA, on November 11th, 1920. After joining the Pi and graduating from Southern California in 1942, Ignatius served in World War II as a Commissioned Lieutenant in the U.S. Navy, primarily as an Aviation Ordnance Officer in the Pacific.

Upon his return, Ignatius attended and graduated Harvard Business School with an MBA in 1947. Ignatius has had a varied and remarkable career, including Secretary of the Navy under President Lyndon B. Johnson, Assistant Secretary of Defense, Under Secretary of the Army, and Assistant Secretary of the Army. He has served as Chairman, President, and CEO of the Air Transport Association, President of The Washington Post, and Executive Vice President of The Washington Post Company. He founded Harbridge House Inc., a Boston-based consulting and research firm.

Now nearing his 100th birthday, Ignatius is retired. He has authored two books “On Board: My Life in the Navy, Government, and Business” and “Now I Know in Part: Stories of My Growing Up.” Ignatius has been inducted into both the Phi Kappa Tau and the USC Hall of Fame and received honors at the Armenian American Museum and Cultural Center. His wife of 72 years, Nancy, passed away in 2019. Together they had four highly successful children. His grandson, Isaac, is now a member of the Pi colony.

On May 23rd, 2013 the Navy announced that an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer would be named after him. The USS Paul Ignatius was commissioned at Port Everglades, Fl on July 27th, 2019 with Ignatius in attendance.

Tightrope is Finally Here!

The Chapter Services team has partnered with Plaid to offer the Tightrope Education Program for our associate members. Phi Kappa Tau is committed to ensuring that you have the safest and most rewarding college experience possible, and we feel that Tightrope will be a perfect tool for this. 

Tightrope is a research and data-driven program consisting of online courses and optional in-person chapter activities to provide practical training on:

• Alcohol and Other Drugs

• Hazing

• Sexual Misconduct

• Mental Health

This program is fully replacing the partnership Phi Tau has had with GreekLifeEDU over the past 4 years. Similar to GreekLifeEDU, the expectation for participation is that all associate members must complete this program prior to their initiation, including Spring 2020 associates who did not complete GreekLifeEDU.

We have attached instructions on how to access the program. We have sent follow-up communication to your chapter Presidents and BOG on how to track an associate member’s completion of the program here shortly.

Thank you in advance for your participation and we wish you the best this semester!

Muhlenberg Doctors Make Generous Donation to Pre-Med Program

Dr. Thomas Burkholder, Muhlenberg '67, and his wife Dr. Judith Burkholder have made a major gift to their alma mater.

Both graduates of Muhlenberg’s natural science program, Thomas went on to attend Temple University’s School of Medicine and Willis Eye Hospital and become an ophthalmologist. Judith attended Hahnemann Medical College, now Drexel University College of Medicine, and became a physician specializing in internal medicine. Both credit Muhlenberg’s excellent undergraduate program with setting them up for med school success.

“The pre-med education that Muhlenberg has provided for decades is excellent, and medical schools were aware of their rigorous program and the quality of the students graduating from Muhlenberg,” Judith shared.

A rendering of the Burkholder Quadrangle

Now retired, the Burkholders have made a generous donation to the school, including financial support for pre-med students from underserved populations. “Privilege is a very real thing,” Thomas said, “A lot of people don’t have the chance to attend college or to attend and graduate medical school. Hopefully, this gift will enable some people to fulfill that dream.”

Muhlenberg will dedicate the Burkholder Quadrangle this fall as a thank-you for the gift, which will include a seating area and landscaped garden. The gift will also be used in support of an expansion to Seegers Union, a building on campus that provides space for advising, and Muhlenberg’s Career Center.

Read the original story here.

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Pi Colony Wins Rise of Troy Award Second Year in a Row

For the second year in a row, Pi colony at University of Southern California has won the prestigious Rise of Troy Award.

The Troy Award seeks to recognize a chapter who demonstrates excellence and outstanding growth in recruitment and intake efforts, education, retention, and engagement, and efforts of its members to promote growth and stability of their organization.

The Pi Colony’s official statement:

As the University of Southern California’s newest expansion, the Pi Colony of Phi Kappa Tau is proud to be the university’s largest expansion in the last fifty years. After the contraction of Greek Life within the last decade at USC, Phi Tau is determined to demonstrate that Greek Life can thrive and be a positive influence on the Trojan community. After starting with 22 members, Phi Tau has proudly associated over 40 members since its re-colonization in the fall of 2018. As the newest addition to the Row, we are committed to leading by example and serving as a role model for the rest of the USC community as we continue to grow and change the culture of Greek Life as USC. Under the leadership of former President Seth Novosel and current President Ralph Sun, Phi Tau has led the way in nearly every single metric. Our members are smart and well-engaged in the USC community, as over 70% of our members were involved in other student organizations and over 40% of our members hold leadership positions in such organizations. Phi Kappa Tau has demonstrated that any chapter, no matter how small or new, can make a big impact and serve as a role model for the USC community.

In 2019, Pi Colony won the Rise of Troy Award for the first time, as well as the prestigious Trojan Greek Emerging Leaders of the Year award. Go Far!

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Join us for the SeriousFun For All!

Last year, Phi Kappa Tau accepted the Excellence in Philanthropy Award to celebrate our long-term partnership with SeriousFun Children’s Network at the gala in New York City. This year, now our 25th anniversary, the event is online and FREE for all to attend!    

Join Jimmy Fallon, Mark Hamill, and many more in celebrating the life-changing magic of SeriousFun camps. If you’re able, you can even create a watch party with your Phi Tau brothers. Every dime you raise will support Keep the Campfires Burning, a campaign launched to support camps as they continue serving campers and their family members safely in this crisis through innovative alternative programming, and also ensure that camps are in a position to welcome campers back when it is safe to do so. 

The event is premiering three times throughout the day on Facebook and YouTube live at 6 PM JST, IST, GMT, ET, and PT. We would love for you to join us!

Click here to RSVP!

September Recruitment Roundup

The University of Lynchburg with their 2020 Associate Class

Recruitment is well underway for many campuses and while chapters have had to find new ways to engage potential brothers, Phi Tau men are rising to the occasion.

Here are the top three chapters reported so far:

The new Associate Class at Texas State

• Nebraska Wesleyan – Upsilon: 19

• Washington State - Alpha Kappa: 17

• Texas State – Gamma Psi: 24

If your chapter is looking for ways to capture the attention of potential new members on your campus, bookmark our recruitment resources here. We have branded templates, a national recruitment video, schedules, Snapchat filters, and graphics – all for you to use.

Did you have a great virtual recruitment? Share it with us here.

The full 2020 brotherhood at the University of Idaho

Welcome Back Message 2020

15 September 2020 - Oxford, OH: From the Office of the CEO

I hope you had a great summer! I have compiled a few updates for you to review ensuring you have a successful year with Phi Kappa Tau. Remember you play a key role in safeguarding every member and guest when they attend one of our events. You make the difference.

My team and I look forward to working with you and your brothers this year. Should you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to me directly at ceo@phikappatau.org.

Fraternally,
Wm. Tim Hudson
Chief Executive Officer

Phi Kappa Tau and COVID-19

COVID-19 has fundamentally changed the way in which fraternity will operate in the near future. As we adjust to life with COVID, there are key reminders to note as we move through this very unique academic year:

• All chapters should defer to guidelines set by their institution. Review the policies of your campus, state, and local health departments. Check these platforms regularly for any relevant updates and take their instructions seriously.

• Refer to this page by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on information regarding the Coronavirus outbreak. Here you will find information on how it spreads, early symptoms, and prevention.

• Wear a Mask when around people you do not live with.

• Practice Social distancing when in public.

• Schedule regular cleaning for your chapter facility or other applicable common spaces.

May we all represent the lines of our creed which call on us to be good and loyal citizens and to discharge our obligations to others as each member is asked to do their part and help mitigate the spread of the virus to family, friends, and community members. 

Phi Kappa Tau Mark of Distinction program

The National Fraternity rolled out the updated Mark of Distinction program for new associate members during Fall 2017. All chapters and colonies are expected to fully adhere to the program during the association process of new associates as outlined. This program will allow for a more controlled education program for new associates to take part in and learn the values of Phi Kappa Tau.
If you have any questions about the program, please reach out to your chapter’s success manager.

Phi Kappa Tau and Tightrope

Phi Kappa Tau is committed to ensuring that you have the safest and most rewarding college experience possible. That's why we've partnered with Plaid to offer the Tightrope Education Program for our associate members. 
Tightrope is a research and data-driven program consisting of online courses and optional in-person chapter activities to provide practical training on:

• Alcohol and Other Drugs

• Hazing

• Sexual Misconduct

• Mental Health

This program will replace the partnership Phi Tau has had with GreekLifeEDU over the past 4 years with its requirement of full associate member participation.

Phi Kappa Tau Risk Management Policy

With the Fall 2020 academic term shortly underway, be sure that you are taking time to review the Fraternity's Risk Management Policy. This policy ensures that every chapter is providing a safe environment for all members and guests.

Furthermore, during the semester, chapter officers and advisors will work to educate every member of the chapter regarding the Phi Kappa Tau Risk Management Policy. The first program they will hold is the Risk Management Policy Overview by Oct. 15. Take a moment to review the policy before the meeting and bring any questions you might have with you.

Please take some time to review the policy by clicking here prior to the beginning of the academic year.

Phi Kappa Tau Good Samaritan Policy

To encourage members and chapters to act without fear of disciplinary action The Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity has two Good Samaritan policies, one for individual members and guests and another for the chapter itself. Remember to always call emergency services by dialing 911 for anyone needing immediate medical attention.

Please read and familiarize yourself with our full Good Samaritan policies by clicking here.

Dispute Resolution Policy

Effective Aug. 1, 2010, Phi Kappa Tau new members, existing members, and alumni making claims for personal injury, claims for damages to property, or disputes of any nature are referred for resolution through the Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity Claim and Dispute Resolution Program. This means that you and Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity will be bound to use the Claim and Dispute Resolution Program as the primary and sole means of dispute resolution. If you are unable to resolve a claim or dispute arising out of your membership or participation in any Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity-related activity, under the terms of the program the claim or dispute will be submitted to binding arbitration instead of through the courts. If legal action is instituted, the court will be requested to refer the matter back to the Claim and Dispute Resolution Program for final resolution.

This program is binding on all Phi Kappa Tau new members, existing members, alumni, chapters, House Corporations, foundations, alumni organizations and the National Fraternity. YOUR DECISION TO JOIN OR ACCEPT MEMBERSHIP OR CONTINUE YOUR CURRENT MEMBERSHIP IN THE PHI KAPPA TAU FRATERNITY AFTER AUG. 1, 2010, MEANS YOU HAVE AGREED TO AND ARE BOUND BY THE TERMS OF THIS PROGRAM AS CONTAINED IN THE PLAN DOCUMENT AND RULES, A COMPLETE COPY OF WHICH IS AVAILABLE FROM THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS: as a download on the national website or through request from the Executive Offices at Travis Robinson. This will be true both during your membership and after your membership, should you terminate for any reason.

Likewise, the terms of the Claim and Dispute Resolution Program are binding on Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity; the terms can only be modified by providing advance notice of the change to members. While both you and Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity retain all substantive legal rights and remedies under this program, you and Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity are both waiving all rights which either may have with regard to trial by jury for personal injury, property damage, contract, or any other related matters in state or federal court. This plan covers any legal or equitable claim for personal injury, property damage, equity or breach of contract, arising out of any tort, statute, contract or law.

Click here to view the Dispute Resolution Policy.

Want a refresher on any other policies or governance updates?

You can visit our Governance & Policies page to view all of Phi Kappa Tau’s policies as well as the Constitution & Statutes by visiting phikappatau.org/governance. If you have any questions about a policy or section of governance, please reach out to your chapter’s success manager.

Transylvania Alumnus named Chief Commercial Officer of Professional Racing Team

Jason Bitsoff, Transylvania ’94, has been named Chief Commercial Officer of Chip Ganassi Racing. He will be responsible for revenue generation across the various teams that compete in NASCAR, IndyCar, and Extreme E.

Bitsoff comes to the role after 13 years at Feld Entertainment. He landed sponsorships for Monster Energy Supercross, and has a background with the Rockets, Predators, and as well as serving as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University for their Masters of Sports Management Program.

Chip Ganassi has been involved in the racing industry for over 30 years. The Chip Ganassi Racing team includes three cars in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES and two cars in the NASCAR Cup Series. Overall his teams have 19 championships and more than 220 victories including four Indianapolis 500s, a Daytona 500, a Brickyard 400, and many more. Bitsoff will be based out of their corporate office in Pittsburgh.

Read the original press release here.

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109 Ways to Stay Connected for 109 Days

There are officially 109 days remaining in 2020. While we are all searching for ways to stay connected, the Chapter Services team has put together a list of socially-distant or virtual ways you can continue to grow and strengthen your brotherhood.

Check out 109 ways to stay connected for 109 days!

Community Service: 

1. Participate in a Blood Drive with the Red Cross. 

2. Perform a street or highway cleanup. 

3. Contact the Civic Engagement office (or similar) on campus and ask what volunteer opportunities are available. 

4. Have a “Service Day” where one Saturday every brother performs an act of community service no matter where they are located. Advertise this across social media channels.  

5. Do a park cleanup with your local park. 

6. Make face masks that you can donate to local charities. 

7. Contact your local United Way to see what opportunities are available to help serve the community. 

8. Volunteer as a poll worker on Election Day. 

9. Volunteer for Meals on Wheels. They have great social distancing guidelines. 

10. Host an online voter registration drive to encourage others to perform their civic duty. 

Philanthropy:

1. Fundraise using CrowdChange for SeriousFun Children’s Network and do a peer-to-peer fundraiser. Split the chapter into teams and compete head-to-head. 

1. Encourage brothers to donate to causes that they are passionate about in their communities and track brother’s donations. 

1. Create a SeriousFun Bingo board on social media; whoever gets a coverall first gets a prize. 

1. Host a fundraiser on Instagram Live or Facebook Live and pin a comment to an online donation form for a cause your chapter is passionate about (SeriousFun Children’s Network, Local Animal Shelter, etc.) 

1. Host a virtual 5k or race and encourage participants to do it wherever they are and fundraise for a cause. 

Scholarship:

1. Have “study groups” and encourage brothers to study together virtually via Zoom or Google Hangouts.  

2. Digitize study resources that are in the house so all brothers can access it via a shared online folder. 

3. Revisit your scholarship plan. What needs changed? Or Developed? 

4. Use apps like ‘Studytable’ to connect with others outside your chapter with similar topics. 

5. Invite an academic advisor to speak at your next chapter meeting on remote learning and study techniques. 

Risk Prevention:

1. Discuss how we can do our part to limit risk during COVID. 

2. Host a seminar on how you can have safe social events for when in-person events resume. 

3. Review the risk management policy. How does this change with COVID? 

4. Host a discussion with a campus professional about mental health resources available to members. 

5. Assess event programming around socials and ensure that all members are trained for when in-person events resume. 

Communication: 

1. Develop a social media strategy with the PR Chair and brothers in marketing, communications, public relations, etc. majors.  

2. Create a ‘Brother of the Week’ marketing strategy. 

3. Add a LinkTree link to your Instagram account. 

4. Create an ‘Alumnus of the Month’ campaign highlighting an alumnus from the chapter for exciting news (new job, child, marriage, etc.) 

5. Organize chapter photos into a shared folder for you to reference in future years. Drip these through Social media. 

6. Do a social media campaign using #GoFar talking about how joining Phi Tau helps your members go far in life. 

7. Determine your general posting strategy for your Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook profiles. 

8. Ask the Executive Offices for custom branded fraternity graphics for your chapter. 

9. Join the other IFC chapters on campus and do PSAs (Public Service Announcements) around campus policies and being a Good Samaritan. 

10. Create a ‘Throwback Thursday’ campaign ask alumni for old photos to post on chapter social media. 

11. Update your chapter website on ChapterSpot by accessing the WebsiteApp on ChapterSpot. 

Alumni Relations:

1. Send a message to your alumni updating them on what the chapter is doing this Fall and how you’re adjusting to COVID. 

2. Call your alumni and share with them how the school and chapter are doing. 

3. Send alumni hard copy mailers or postcards. 

4. Post on social media via the chapter’s public channels to showcase what the chapter is up to this Fall. 

5. Post in the alumni Facebook group to update alumni on what classes and campus is like during the Fall. 

6. Host an Alumni AMA webinar.  

7. Host Instagram takeovers for alumni. 

8. Do an Instagram or Facebook live interview with chapter brothers or alumni and ask them about why they chose Phi Tau and about what they’re passionate about. 

9. Create an alumni mentorship program for new members. 

10. Find a way to help celebrate the seniors that graduated in May 2020 via your social media or at Homecoming 2021. 

Membership Development:

1. Come up with a strategic plan for the chapter’s future.  

2. Work with individuals to revisit what they want out of the fraternity. 

3. Host a virtual ritual discussion and talk about the multiple Phi Kappa Tau rituals. 

4. Host a discussion about Phi Kappa Tau’s initiation ceremony and review the ceremony. Contact your chapter’s success manager for a resource on how to facilitate this conversation. 

5. Work with your campus to have a presentation on a variety of different personal development topics. 

6. Host a personal budgeting workshop. 

Campus & Community Involvement:

1. Partner with clubs in a virtual setting.  

2. Participate and support campus programming in virtual endeavors.  

3. Have every member join at least one club or organization on campus outside of the Fraternity. 

4. Host a virtual event between the chapter and another organization on campus for this Fall. 

5. Plan an event between the chapter and another organization on campus for the Spring. 

Leadership Development: 

1. Host a virtual professional development speaker. 

2. Host a resume workshop.  

3. Have somebody from your career services office speak with chapter virtually. 

4. Start an alumni series where you have various alumni speak about their industry/company to the rest of the chapter members. 

5. Have each member set a meeting with the career services office to talk about their professional futures. 

6. Encourage each brother to take a personality test (I.e. 16personalities.com, Myers-Briggs, DISC) and then discuss it as a chapter. 

7. Host a webinar on life skills. 

8. Start an investment group using a stock simulator online and compete head-to-head with other brothers while learning about stocks, markets, etc. 

9. Host a LinkedIn profile workshop with career services and another organization on campus (I.e. sorority) where you build out your profile and connect with your peers. 

10. Invite a speaker to come present on a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Bias topic and host a conversation around a topic. 

11. Get every brother registered to vote and submit an absentee ballot (if applicable). 

Retention:

1. Host a brotherhood event by having a Netflix Party. 

2. Play multiplayer games online. 

3. Utilize a discord server to connect with guys via gaming.  

4. Learn about each other. Have members showcase their hometowns by doing a social media highlight. You can even do hometown tours on a private channel or public social media. 

5. Play a game together. Use jackbox.tv games  

6. Online card games (Poker, cards against humanity, apples2 apples, etc.) 

7. Host a virtual happy hour get together. 

Recruitment: 

1. Social Media ads have been highly beneficial for numerous chapters. 

2. Start a names list of potential new members and distribute among the chapter. This list can be updated throughout the year. 

3. Join campus events (in-person or virtually) and wear your letters and get to know the Freshmen class. 

4. Develop your strategy for Spring recruitment. 

5. Assess how the past 5 years of recruitment have gone to see trends and then do a SWOT analysis on your chapter’s recruitment. Contact your success manager to get numbers on the size of classes over the past 5 years. 

6. Host a recruitment workshop to train members on how to become better recruiters. Contact your success manager for a resource on how to host this workshop. 

7. Perform a name generation game where each brother scrolls through their phone’s contacts and writes down every male student on campus that is not affiliated, offer a prize for the guy he adds the most names. See how many names you can generate and add them to the names list. 

Brotherhood:

1. Implement an early Christmas or secret Santa Event. 

2. Host a Virtual ‘Fun Run’. 

3. Host Virtual campfire chats. 

4. Host Ted-style talks within the brotherhood.  

5. Host a Brotherhood roast. 

6. Host Virtual birthday parties  

7. Host a trivia night. 

8. Do something interesting around meal-time. Breakfast in bed/ Lunch and Learn/ Discussions over Dinner. 

9. Start a podcast. 

10. Build your campus or house on Minecraft.  

11. Host a virtual dinner party where every brother must cook the same meal from a recipe for themselves and then eat together. 

12. Assign weekly “outreach buddies/groups” who are challenged to connect with one another virtually for at least one hour during the week. 

13. Have someone different from your organization or campus council to take over your Instagram story every day. 

14. Put together a playlist on Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, etc. for members to share their current favorite songs or artists. 

15. Watch a sporting event together and start a group chat just for the game. 

16. Send out a member survey to all active members asking them about their goals for the chapter and what areas need to be improved. 

Finances:

1. Review your budget to actual for expenses and revenue. 

2. Create a budget for the Spring term. 

3. Improve your chapter’s budget template. 

Governance/Administration:

1. Review your chapter’s bylaws and make any changes while chapter operations are “slow.” 

2. Host chapter officer elections. 

3. Determine if there are committees the chapter needs to add. 

4. Host a Standards Board Training for members that serve on the Standards Board. Contact your chapter’s success manager for a resource on how to host. 

5. Prepare for officer transitions. 

6. Have chapter officers create a “how-to” guide to pass down to the next set of officers. 

7. Hold a retreat between the Executive Council officers and Board of Governors to talk about roles & responsibilities, expectations, etc. Contact your chapter’s success manager for a resource on how to host this retreat. 

8. Encourage your local IFC to host a retreat and talk about goals for the community. 

Michigan State Brother Receives Perfect MCAT Score

Congratulations to Vik Peddeti, Michigan State AM, who received a PERFECT score on the MCAT.

"Vik is our current scholastic chair and will be returning to campus this fall for his 3rd year at Michigan State, majoring in Mathematics. He plans to further his education by going to med school in the future." #GoFar #ManofDistinction

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