The Golden Eagle FIJI THETA TAU CHAPTER OF PHI GAMMA DELTA VOLUME 31, No.3 Fall/Winter 2009 2009: A Year of Excellence T HETA T AU F AMILY DAY AWARDED FIRST TRADITION RE- C HENEY C UP ! EVER VIVED WITH GREAT SUCCESS ! \r\nTFI is proud to introduce the 2009-10 Lineup of Online Donation Programs. TFI’s Online Donation Programs are powered by PayPal and are completely secure. All you need to get started is an Email Address and a Credit or Debit Card. The 1848 Club-Monthly $18.48 per month HTTP://WWW.1848CLUB.NET The 1848 Club-Annually $221.76 per year HTTP://WWW.1848CLUB.NET/ANNUAL The 527 Club$5.27 per month HTTP://WWW.527CLUB.NET Why PayPal? Convenient Secure Easy to Use Why Donate? Foundations for the Future: Your monthly donations will help lay the foundation to form a capital campaign committee and successfully launch a campaign. So, while these monthly donations will not directly allow us to build a new house, portions of your donations will be earmarked for campaign expenses. This will help ensure that our capital campaign committee will have the funds to move forward with all due diligence. For the Betterment of the Chapter: a secondary goal of the Online Donation Programs is to support the Chapter’s Graduate Relations efforts. The ability to “raise the bar” in the area of Graduate Relations and Graduate support is paramount to both the Chapter’s goal of one day winning the coveted “Cheney Cup” and TFI’s goal of one day providing them a new chapter house. Benefits for Donors: Beyond the knowledge that you are “giving back” to the organization that gave so much to you during you college years, you will receive other rewards as well. Currently, donors receive gift certificates redeemable at Pig Dinner weekends. We are also exploring a variety of other ways to recognize Club members. Questions or Comments: please contact John Solis at donations@TTUFIJI.COM \r\nThe G olden E agle Fiji Fall/Winter 2009 THETA TAU VOLUME 31 No. 3 L ET TER FROM THE P RESIDENT Dear Graduate Brothers, I would first off like to introduce my new cabinet and myself for this upcoming term of office. My name is Tad Engle and this will be my second term as a cabinet member of this chapter. During the 2009 year, I served as Corresponding Secretary. On my term of corresponding sec I was able to meet a lot of you and actually put together one or two of these Golden Eagles as well. This current cabinet is looking forward to not only working with the under- graduate chapter but also expanding our relations and influences with our graduates. Coming off of last years term I was able to learn a lot from the 2009 president Dustin Turner was able see exactly what had to be done in the 2010 year for us to continue striving for the excellence only Phi Gamma Delta can offer. As always this past year our cabinet and rush chair were able to attend Academy in St. Louis were we learned a lot, which will benefit us as we work, through this next year. This last fall was great semester for Theta Tau. We achieved what we had been looking to do for over thirty years and brought home the Cheney Cup! This is a great accomplishment for our chapter and the brother’s morale could not be higher. Brotherhood is at an all time high as well with new events and a very passionate brotherhood chair. I would also like to make a point to mention that we have S PECIAL POINTS OF INTEREST : • President’s Letter • TFI Plans for the Future • Homecoming 2009 • BCA update • Graduate Spotlight– Field Secretary Jon Vaughn • Graduate Spotlight - Mike MacIndoe • Chapter Updates (Continued on page 8) TFI P LANS FOR THE F UTURE Brothers, Over the past few years, I’ve come to realize that when it comes to writing the TFI Update for the Golden Eagle Fiji, getting started is always the hardest part. Once I get going, though, the momentum slowly builds until I reach the point where the words seem to come almost automatically. It’s almost as if the article begins to write itself. Our plans to realize our dream of a new Chapter House are beginning to unfold in much the same way. All that we needed was a starting point - that first sentence - and it came in the form of the preliminary house plans. 2009 was yet another hectic year for us. As you know, we spent the first six months or so in the application process for rezoning of our property, as well as several adjacent properties. Our proposal went through without a hitch, and was approved unanimously. With the first major hurdle being cleared, we were finally able to set our sights on the acquisition of the neighboring property. The second half of the year, unfortunately, was mostly spent dealing with home maintenance issues. Roof repairs, mold testing, and a major sewage backup took up most of our time. It seemed that each time an issue was resolved, another one would jump in to take its place. Luckily, these issues are now behind us, and have only helped to strengthen our (Continued on page 4) TFI President Matt Leonard \r\nP AGE 2 V OLUME 31 N O . 3 T HETA T AU R ECEIVES F RATERNITY A WARDS FOR 2009 The Cheney Cup is awarded to the undergraduate chapter which demonstrates the greatest all-around efficiency in scholarship, fraternity relationships, and general collegiate activities. First Place: Theta Tau at Tennessee Tech University The Coon Plaque is awarded to the undergraduate chapter that has produced the best chapter publication for the preceding academic year. In other words… The Golden Eagle Fiji! First Place: Theta Tau at Tennessee Tech University The Brightman Trophy is presented to the undergraduate chapter which best demonstrates that "Phi Gamma Delta is not for college days alone" by maintaining and improving relations between the chapter and graduate brothers. Third Place: Theta Tau at Tennessee Tech University The Zerman Trophy (known as the Archons Trophy prior to 1986) is awarded to the undergraduate chapter which excels in promoting the involvement of brothers in student government, the campus newspaper, and extracurricular activities. Honorable Mention: Theta Tau at Tennessee Tech University The Jordan Bowl is awarded to the undergraduate chapter which is judged to have achieved the highest comparative scholarship among the undergraduate chapters for the preceding academic year. Third Place: Theta Tau at Tennessee Technological University The Haynes Award is presented to the Fraternity’s most outstanding Section Chief. Second Place: Brent Ellis (Tennessee Tech 1999) Third Place: Brian M. Douglas (Tennessee Tech 1998) The Crowder Cup is awarded to the faculty advisor determined to be the most outstanding in the Fraternity based on personality, leadership, rapport with the chapter and assistance to the chapter in its relationship with faculty members and the host institution, as well as encouraging the undergraduate members to realize their full academic potential. First Place: Dr. Jed Young (Purdue 1984) - Tennessee Tech University The Coulter Cup is awarded to the graduate brother who has contributed the most to an undergraduate chapter through service in a capacity other than as a Purple Legionnaire or General Officer. Third Place: Matthew S. Leonard (Tennessee Tech 2001) The Durrance Award is presented to the graduate brother who is judged to be the most outstanding Purple Legionnaire (chapter advisor) in the Fraternity, "judged on the basis of personality, leadership, rapport with chapter, and fraternity service." Third Place: Bo W. Byers (Tennessee Tech 2006) \r\nG OLDEN E AGLE F IJI P AGE 3 Fiji Academy — Theta Tau’s 2010 Cabinet and Volunteer Graduate Leaders Accept the Cheney Cup at the 2010 Fiji Academy in St. Louis. Introducing the 2010 Cabinet members President—Brother Tad Engle is serving his second consecutive year on cabinet (Cor. Sec. 2009) and before that serving as the Public Relations Chair. Tad is a junior Accounting major from Franklin, TN and a member of the Beta Omicron pledge class. Recording Secretary— Brother TJ Yates will serve as this years Rec. Sec. after previously serving as the Rush Chair. TJ is a junior Manufacturing and Industrial Technology major from Gallatin, TN and is a member of the Beta Xi pledge class. Corresponding Secretary—Brother Brooks Robinson will serve as this years Cor. Sec. after previously serving as the Athletics Chair and is also the captain of the Tech Rugby Team. Brooks is a junior Mechanical Engineering major from Nashville, TN and is a member of the Beta Xi pledge class. Treasurer—Brother Jeremy Govero will serve as this years treasurer after previously serving as the MS Island Week and Relay for Life Chair. Jeremy is a senior Elementary Education major from Cleveland, TN and is a member of the Beta Xi pledge class. Historian—Brother Chris VanDeven will serve as this years Historian after previously serving as the Homecoming Chair. Chris is a senior Civil Engineering major from Cookeville, TN and is a member of the Beta Mu pledge class. \r\nP AGE 4 V OLUME 31 N O . 3 TFI P LANS FOR THE F UTURE C ONT TFI Board/Committee Members President - Matt Leonard Treasure—Tom Caldwell VP Information Management –Justin Givens VP of Expansion -Justin Cumby VP Property Management and Chapter Relations –Zeke Shaver VP of Fundraising –John Solis VP of Graduate Relations – Bill Scott Councilor –Lee Wray Councilor –Brent Ellis Councilor (Section Chief) -Brian Douglas Purple Legionnaire –Bo Byers Chapter President - Tad Engle Webmaster –George Titsworth resolve. Our next priority is the acquisition of the adjacent property, and we have every reason to believe that this goal is an attainable one. I don’t really have any details about this to share at the moment, but I hope to bring you all some good news at this year’s Pig Dinner. we couldn’t be more proud of them. After all, they did bring the CHENEY CUP to Theta Tau! On behalf of the entire house corporation, I’d like to extend our sincere thanks and congratulations to these guys for all their hard work. They definitely deserve it. As always, the undergraduate chapter has been an absolute pleasure to work with over the past year, and In closing, I’d like to thank all my fellow house corporation members for all of their hard work. You guys don’t even need me – I’m just here to write the Golden Eagle Fiji update. “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”, and gentlemen, we are on our way. Fraternally, Matt Leonard ‘01 President, Tech Fiji, Inc. Perge! F IJI F AMILY D AY The once popular tradition of Phi Gamma Delta hosting activities on Tennessee Tech’s Family Day had gone away for several years. But this year, Brother Matt Brocato and his committee set out to revive this annual custom. Interest from all of the brother’s family was high from the beginning and the turnout did not disappoint. Over 50 family members spent the afternoon taking their first steps into the Fiji House, looking through pictures and slideshows, and enjoying refreshments. Many compliments were received from parents about the hospitality shown by the brothers and pledges. This spurred the creation of the TTU Fiji Parent’s Association to give parents updates on chapter news, such as philanthropies, intramurals, and 2009 Fiji Parents Day fraternity activities. In the future, it is planned that parent volunteers will take charge of planning things as family day and other events. This will be a great step to showing parents, who may have been skeptical at first, what a great environment the fraternity offers their son. This year was a great success and we hope for it to continue far into the future. \r\nG OLDEN E AGLE F IJI P AGE 5 TFI and the Theta Tau Chapter would like to thank the following Graduate Brothers for their generous donations to the Hal Balthrop 1848 Club Brandon Jennings 1848 Club Jay Banasiak 527 Club Ricky Jett 1848 Club Bo Byers 527 Club Justin Jolly 1848 ClubΑ John Canaan 1848 Club Michael MacIndoe 1848 Club Logan Cardwell 1848 Club Justin Medlen 1848 Club Brad Carter 1848 Club Jay Parker HC Donor Ryan Cizmarik 1848 Club James Peevyhouse 1848 ClubΑ Ben Clark 1848 Club Zeke Phillips 1848 Club Chris Cramer HC Donor Paul Polpanich 1848 Club Paul Cronin 1848 Club John Rector 1848 Club Will Crunk 1848 ClubΑ Taylor Redden 1848 ClubΑ Brian Douglas 1848 Club Mark Referrin 1848 Club Keith Edmondson 1848 Club John Reinhardt 1848 Club J Brent Ellis 1848 Club Oliver Rick HC Donor Todd Fairley 1848 Club Mitch Robinson 1848 Club Troy Fairley 1848 Club Rob Simpson 1848 Club JR Gillette 1848 Club John Solis 1848 Club Justin Givens 1848 Club George Titsworth 1848 Club Kevin Givens 1848 Club Brandon Walters HC Donor Brian Grooms 1848 Club Chip Walton 1848 Club Mason Guy 1848 Club Chris Weaver 1848 Club Matthew Hayes 1848 Club Todd Weaver 1848 Club Tim Hemken 1848 Club Eric Weber 1848 Club Stacy Hunt 1848 Club Randy Wilmore 1848 Club Michael Hurt 1848 Club Lee Wray HC Donor Brad Jenkins 1848 Club Α =Annual Membership \r\nP AGE 6 V OLUME 31 N O . 3 G RADUATE S POTLIGHT — J ON V AUGHN ‘08 to recolonize a Chapter at the University of Southern California. It's amazing to think that I have a role in restarting a Chapter with such rich History. It's also amazing to introduce myself and hear the good feedback that people from different Chapters have to say about Theta Tau. After his graduation from Tech in December of 2008, Jon Vaughn was selected to become the 158th Field Secretary for the International Fraternity of Phi Gamma Delta. • Best experience as an undergraduate? Definitely Homecoming. Its one of the most hectic times as an undergrad but it's so much fun and its amazing to reconnect with grads, hang out with some awesome sorority women, and win. Now it will be amazing to go back, reconnect with old friends, and meet the gentlemen that are continuing to make Theta Tau one of the best Phi Gamma Delta Chapters in all of FIJI-Land. “I just can't stress enough how important it is to make ‘Not for College Days Alone’ real, whatever that means for you.” • • What made you decide to be a field secretary? I decided to be a field secretary for a few different reasons. The most important being I had such an amazing undergraduate experience the opportunity to continue that experience on an international level really appealed to me. It has given me the opportunity to network, gain valuable experience, and explore one of my passions, traveling. • What are the duties of a field secretary? My duties seem endless. I guess the short version is: Traveling from Chapter to Chapter in any given area (Mine this year is "The Great Plains") live with Chapter for 2-4 days and evaluate that Chapter. The point is to help make the Cabinet and Chairman's jobs easier by teaching them "Best Practices" from Chapter all over the US and Canada. • Best experience as a field secretary? So far , being able • Advice for grads/ undergrads/pledges? For Grads: Get involved ANYWAY you can. Keep in contact with the Undergrads, because they want/ need our support. For Undergrads: Enjoy the experience to the fullest! In the end women come and go, classes/test eventually get passed, but you don't want to look back on your undergrad experience and have regrets for lost opportunities! For Pledges: You WILL get frustrated but just know this is the best experience of your life. Trust that the brothers are looking out for your best interests and get involved with your Big Brother, he can be one of your best resources (Thanks Matt Hayes!) Best way to get involved as a graduate? Call the Purple Legionnaire, President, or the Cor Sec. and ask if there is anyway you can donate your time. Odds are there is SOMETHING you can help with. If you don't have extra time, monetary donations are always a good way to give back. We are currently in the process of gearing up our campaign for our new house but until that is a reality there are many ways to make the current house a little more comfortable. This could be donating Computers, TVs, Equipment for Rush/ Homecoming, etc. I just can't stress enough how important it is to make "Not for College Days Alone" real, whatever that means for you. • After seeing many chapter, how does Theta Tau stack up against the others? This is a loaded question, but I think that its obvious through our successes Internationally that we are a great Chapter, but there obviously areas that we are comfortable in that we could do better and some Chapters that do extremely well in those areas. I spoke recently with a CoWorker about how nervous (In a good way) all of these New Colonies and Chapters make me for the Chapters that are Traditionally "The Best" because they are extremely hard working and their goal is to be "The Best". • Plans after finishing your time as a field secretary? The plan is to find a job but I'm still looking. But I have my degree in Marketing and a year and a half experience being a traveling consultant, so if you know of anything, let me know! \r\nG OLDEN E AGLE F IJI P AGE 7 A NOTHER H OMECOMING VICTORY ! The 2008 Fraternity and Sorority of the Year (Alpha Delta Pi) teamed up for Haunted Homecoming 2009 with some amazing results! Images from Homecoming 2009 Events during the week included: Banner Competition, Fright Night Skit. Canned Food Drive. Ghoulish Games Fear Factor Eating Contest. Haunted House, Pep Rally and the traditional homecoming parade featuring the Fiji/ ADPi float & the 30th running of the Kazoo Band. With all these small victories, Fiji and ADPi were able to claim the overall victory of Haunted Homecoming 2009. The Theta Tau chapter was also represented in the homecoming court, with brother Logan Parkhurst (2010) elected as third runnerup for homecoming king. Saturday activities also included a tailgate party sponsored by TFI and the 1848 Club. And the day was capped off with a thrilling 20-13 Tech victory over TSU! If you didn’t get a chance to attend this year, please do so next year. Homecoming is a great opportunity to get in touch with the chapter again. Brother Logan Parkhurst The 30th annual Fiji Kazoo Band \r\nP AGE 8 V OLUME 31 N O . 3 L ET TER FROM THE P RESIDENT C ONT . reached our 4th consecutive over a 3.0 semester in a row. This last semester the brothers of the theta tau chapter received a 3.164 beating every possible average on campus and IFC. This is a huge accomplishment for us as we look to keep the Cheney Cup in Cookeville for another year. The chapter can attribute this high standard of scholastic performance to the new study program the 2009 cabinet initiated last year. This program allows brothers with a 2.5 or lower to still participate in social and sports ac- tivities as long as they receive a certain amount a study hours a week. This and programs like it are being added every year to make sure the Theta Tau chapter continues to strive for excellence. As the 29th Anniversary Pig Dinner is quickly approaching, the undergraduates are growing more and more excited for this year’s events. Nathan Brown and his committee have been working very hard to get all of the logistics taken care of to have a classy and successful Pig Dinner. With the cookouts, golf tournament, and traditional Pig Dinner looks to be a great venue for the unveiling of the Cheney Cup. Lastly I want to thank every single one of you for your continued support for this chapter. The undergraduates cannot express our gratitude enough for this support. I truly hope to see all of you at this year’s Pig Dinner and as always please stop by the house if you are ever in Cookeville the brothers and myself would love you meet you! Thank you. Fraternally, Tad Engle Perge! G RADUATE S NAPSHOTS Troy Fairley ’96 Troy’s wife and former chapter sweetheart, Dena Adams Fairley, was inducted into the TTU Sports Hall of Fame on Oct. 30th, 2009 for her efforts on the women’s cross country and track & field teams. The full story can be found here: http://www.ttusports.com/releases/2009-10/10-15_Adams_Fairley_HOF George Titsworth ’04 and wife, Brandy, are proud parents of their second child, Hudson, delivered on 11/23/2009 at 7 lbs 1 oz and 18 inches long. Congratulations on another bundle of joy! Chris Gill ’04 was wed to his long time sweetheart Brooke Mullis on Nov. 7th, 2009 at the beautiful and historic Martha Berry College in Rome, GA. We wish you both a long and happy marriage! Jared Medlen ’08 was wed to his (and former chapter) sweetheart Lynette Krohnfeldt in Knoxville on January 30th, 2010. Lynette is also the sister of Brother Eric “Herb” Krohnfeldt. Best wishes to the newly wed couple! Michael LeMarbre ’03 and his wife, Becky (another former chapter sweetheart), welcomed their first child and baby girl, Mary Caroline, into the world on 9/21/2009. She came into this world at 8 lbs 5 oz and 20 inches. Congrats on the future Fiji Sweetheart! \r\nG OLDEN E AGLE F IJI P AGE 9 G RADUATE S POTLIGHT -M IKE M AC I NDOE ‘84 What are you doing now? What was your major and what did you pursue right after graduation and where has it lead you now? In 2003 I started a consulting engineering business with my partner (also a TTU grad & a Phi Delta Theta). Our company specializes in Civil, Environmental and Electrical Engineering. We primarily serve clients in East Tennessee. But we also serve clients in neighboring States and even Jamaica. I majored in Civil Engineering. I later returned to school as a part time student and, in 1993 I received my MS in Environmental Engineering from the University of Tennessee. Lisa and I were married three weeks after graduation. We’ve lived in Knoxville since 1985 where we raised two kids, Michael a sophomore, and Katy a senior in High School and a future golden eagle. What are your favorite memories of the Chapter? Wow! There are numerous….some can be published and others cannot. The brotherhood, pledging, parties and simply hanging out in the UC (Rhoden Center) were all wonderful experiences. To this day, my closest friends are my Brothers. That will never change! Pledging was a great experience; especially since it coincided with the Chapter receiving its Charter. Being a pledge really helped me learn how to be a contributor. The parties were awesome! The most memorable was the mystery date party (which I wish the Chapter would bring back). My mystery date (Lisa Chambers) eventually became my wife of 25 years and counting. FIJI Islands, Pig Dinners, Brother Retreats (ask Hal his memory of the Booker T. Washington retreat), Parties in the “Old” FIJI house (where Michael now lives), hanging out with Brothers in places named Trailer 8, APT 2, the Desert Inn, and the BFH; and hanging out with Brothers nicknamed Hog Head (my roommate for 2 years), Pie Head, Match Head, and a few others that I best not mention. Why did you pick Phi Gam and what has it done to influence your life? When I enrolled at Tech in the fall of 1979 I literally knew no one on campus! In order to meet some folks, I rushed a couple fraternities (Phi Delta Theta and Sigma Chi) and actually received bids from both. I chose not to rush either. Eventually, I got to know some Brothers who encouraged me to Rush FIJI. Without a doubt, becoming a Phi Gam was one of my best decisions while I was in school. How are you involved as a graduate? And what is the benefit of being involved? First, I want to thank the graduate brothers that contribute many hours to the fraternity. The guys on the TFI committee, the BCA, past and present Purple Legionnaires, and especially Lee Wray - you all do great things for the fraternity. I’m grateful for your commitment. My graduate involvement primarily focuses on current activities with the Chapter. This certainly has been enhanced with Michael’s membership. I attend Rush, Parents weekend, Homecoming and Pig Dinner. Hal, Kerri, Lisa and I started some wonderful tailgate traditions! I also participate in TTU career fairs where I’ve been reunited with several “Old” Brothers. What is your favorite graduate event? No doubt, Pig Dinner. Nothing compares to a roomful of Brothers, past and present. My regret is not knowing many of the guys that attend and being able to distinguish who’s an undergraduate and who’s a graduate. Attending Pig Dinner gives you a real sense of how immense the Chapter has grown. My hope is that more “older” guys find their way back. There are many I (we) haven’t seen in several years. displays an “all for one, one for all” mentality. The Chapter has several good programs. The pledge education program with mandatory study hall pushes the Pledges to balance studying with pledge activities. Use of DD (designated drivers) to assist Brothers after parties is paramount. The fund raising activities for local philanthropies allow the Chapter to give back to the local community. Rush events have become quite a production. Finally, graduate communications are excellent. The Golden Eagle FIJI, email updates, and graduate events provide many opportunities for Graduates to keep up with the Chapter. You are more familiar with the chapter right now with Michael being a brother, what are some good things that you see the chapter doing? First, Michael becoming a Brother is, without a doubt, one of my highlights as a Parent. It’s one of those things you hope will happen, but you don’t want to push it. The Brothers really embraced him when he enrolled at Tech which totally sold him on Phi Gam. And his being a Pledge Brother and now a Brother and roommate with Halston Balthrop is icing on the cake! The Chapter is doing many great things. You certainly can’t be the “Fraternity of the Year” without having excellent leadership and a group of Brothers willing to commit energy to both internal and external activities. As I mentioned earlier, my own experience as a pledge and a Brother helped me learn the value of being a contributor. The Chapter consistently “Attending Pig Dinner gives you a real sense of how immense the Chapter has grown.” \r\nP AGE 10 V OLUME 31 N O . 3 BCA C ONTINUES TO G ROW AND A SSIST C HAPTER BCA Board of Chapter Advisors Thanks to Our Current BCA Members for Volunteering Their Time! • Bo Byers ‘06, PL, Chairman • JR Gillette ‘05, Finance • Mitch Robinson ‘05, Grad Relations • Paul Cronin ‘07, Grad Events • Luke Denney ‘08, Pledge Ed • Todd Arrants ‘84, Recruitment • ...your name here As the 2009 Fall semester began, we had another Theta Tau graduate step forward and express interest in being part of our BCA. Brother Todd Arrants '84 wanted to know more about what we do and how he could get involved. After learning a bit more Todd decided to join us in aiding our chapter as the BCA Recruitment Advisor. He has now been a part of both a Fall and Spring rush and gotten to see how much Recruitment has changed since the chapter's early years when Todd first became a brother. Although the methods and events have been changed and been improved upon over the years, one thing still remains the same with our recruitment: Quality of Men we seek. That has remained constant and something Todd was instantly able to relate to and work with. The chapter appreciates Todd's willingness to volunteer a bit of his time to help us achieve our goals as well as any other graduate who may be interested. The primary objective of graduate support is to provide the continuity and leadership that is often missing from an undergraduate chapter. Every year there is a change in our undergraduate officers. Every three to four years the chapter’s membership changes. School administrative personnel and Greek advisors alternate their relationships with the Greek system, and there is often a great turnover in school advisor positions. Graduate support fills this void. The entire chapter organization is structured to run without advisors, but at any given time every chapter needs assistance in one or more areas of their operation. Here the role of the advisor becomes invaluable as he helps the chapter define weaknesses and implement plans to overcome them. The advisor’s role becomes especially meaningful when real difficulties are encountered. The Board of Chapter Advisors’ (BCA) responsibility is to assist the chapter committees in setting goals, developing an action plan to achieve a goal, follow-up to see that the action plan is being followed, and to ensure the successful completion of the action plan resulting in the accomplishment of the goal. Each member of the Board of Chapter Advisors should be assigned to one of the primary areas of chapter operations: Graduate Relations; Pig Dinner; Pledge Education; Recruitment; Community Service, Risk Management; Fundraising; Scholarship; Etc. How Do I Get Involved? Each member of the Board of Chapter Advisors is assigned to one of the primary areas of chapter operations such as: Graduate Relations; Graduate Events; Pledge Education; Recruitment; Community Service, Risk Management; Fundraising; and Scholarship. The Purple Legionnaire shall appoint graduate members to serve as a Board of Chapter Advisors. Such appointment shall be subject to the approval of the Undergraduate Chapter and Executive Director. Each advisor shall be appointed for a term of one year and may be reappointed. We are continuing to recruit Graduates to fill positions now! For more information about the specific responsibilities of each position and how you can help, please contact the Purple Legionnaire! (byersbo@gmail.com) \r\nG OLDEN E AGLE F IJI P AGE 11 M.S. I SLAND W EEK Phi Gamma Delta had its annual MS Island week in October 2009 where we set a goal to raise $3000 for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. The events included a banner contest, a dodge ball tournament, and the always popular Miss Fiji Island pageant. Aside from that, we sold pin-ups and mugs. This year Kappa Delta placed first, with Phi Mu placing second and Alpha Delta Pi came in third. Other participants included Delta Gamma, Kappa Sigma, and Alpha Gamma Sigma. This year seemed to have the most participation in quite awhile. In the dodge ball tournament, we had 18 total teams play, 14 girls and 4 guys’ teams. Our pageant had six participants where they had dinner wear, island wear, question and talent. We raised $3,205 and sent 100% of it to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. This eclipsed our previous best total of $2,800 raised last year. We look forward to raising the bar once again in 2010. P HI G AM HAS SUCCESS ON THE ATHLETIC FIELD After recapturing the AllSports trophy last year, Theta Tau is headed in the right directions to be back-to-back champions. Flag Football: Defense was the name of the game this season. In the regular season, Fiji went 3-1 posting three shutouts and outscoring opponents 14213. In the playoffs, Fiji dominated Kappa Sig and Sigma Chi in the first two contest. The finals pitted Fiji vs. TKE on the muddy plains (which was dubbed ‘Game of the Year’). Fiji fell 7-6 with it’s offense being hampered by the conditions, but gaining a good start on their quest for all-sports. Bowling: In previous years, Fiji has been quite competitive in the IFC Bowling tournament but have never been able to capture first. This year Fiji bowlers Jimmy Leeper, Travis Owens, Jess Dillard, Jeremy Govero, and Hunter Crouch edge out the perennial winners, Sig Ep, by 2 pins for the victory!! Soccer: Soccer took on a new format this year, with all teams competing in the open league for the regular season and the fraternities competing in their own playoff. With stiffer competition, Fiji dropped it’s first contest in several years but made a strong showing in the playoffs, beating TKE 5-1 in the finals. Volleyball: Fiji went 4-0 in the regular season, not dropping a single game. Carrying lots of mom- entum into the playoffs, Theta Tau dominated Pike, defeated Sig Ep in two very close games, and fell to a very athletic, well rounded Kappa Sigma team in the finals. Mid-Season Standings Fiji: 82 points Kappa Sig: 69.5 points Sig Ep: 64.5 points SAE: 64 points \r\nP AGE 12 V OLUME 31 N O . 3 N EW B ROTHERS A DDED TO OUR C HAPTER R OLL ! P LEASE JOIN US IN WELCOMING S IGMA PLEDGE CLASS !! OUR NEWEST MEMBERS FROM THE B ETA Luke Laforlette – Secondary Ed. Math Byron Nickens – Chemical E. Bryant Pollard – Secondary Ed Math Stephen Porter - Environmental Agriscience Collin Rountree – M.I.T. Will Scheibe – Computer E. Dustin Smith – Business Cameron Vaughn - Business Jake Walker – Marine Biology Fall 2009 Beta Sigma Brothers Blake Allison – Civil E. Houston Anderson – Criminal Justice Hunter Crouch – Nursing Evan Dirube – Chemical E. Nash Fleet – Computer Science Jason Furcron – Pre Med Nathan Kelly – Civil E. S CHOLARSHIP U PDATE Chapter Reaches 3.0 Goal Again!! Scholastic achievement is very important to the brothers of Theta Tau. After all, scholarship is one of our five values. Last year our chapter performed very well academically, even reaching our long time goal of a 3.0 chapter GPA again! The chapter saw an increase in both pledge and brother GPAs and continues to hold the campuses highest fraternity GPA, while also having the most improved GPA from the previous semester. Comparatively: Spring 2009: Chapter GPA: 3.088 Pledge GPA: 2.797 Combined: 3.067 Fall 2009: Chapter GPA: 3.195 Pledge GPA: 3.056 Combined: 3.163 All Campus: 2.874 All Men: 2.713 All IFC: 2.747 All Greek: 2.892 AgSig: 3.060 SAE: 2.884 KA: 2.871 Sigma Chi: 2.867 \r\nG OLDEN E AGLE F IJI P AGE 13 29th Anniversary PIG DINNER April 24th, 2010 Dinner: Leslie Town Center • The Cheney Cup will be on display • Key Note Address will be given by the chapter founders More details to follow soon. Keep an eye on your email and the website (www.ttufiji.com) for updates & registration information. We hope that ALL of you will make plans to attend. • \r\nIf you have any comments or suggestions about the Golden Eagle Fiji or would like to be featured in an upcoming issue please contact: F U L L C O L O R G O L D E N E AG L E F I J I ’ S N OW A VA I L A B L E O N L I N E ! ARE WWW. TTUFIJI. COM/ TFI/ GEFIJI Jordan Jozwik Graduate Relations Chairman jjjozwik@gmail.com 615-512-5349 (Cell Phone) IMPORTANT DATES: Spring break - March 8-12 Greek Week - April 19-24 Relay for life - April 23 Pig Dinner - April 24th Graduation - May 8 V ISIT US ONLINE WWW. TTUFIJI. COM PERGE`! Brothers Ted Faust (2010), Chapter Advisor Jed Young (Purdue 1984), and Alfred Stewart (2010) at the Pyramid of the Sun in Teotihuacan, Mexico