What New Members Need

As your chapters and colonies engage in your new member education I would like to reinforce the 'education' part. In my experience working with Tau Delt chapters, and other chapters at the college where I work, many times issues with chapter operations and programming usually center around a lack of understanding of when to best teach the skills it takes to be effective chapter leaders. Do you wait until they are finished and initiated? Or when they hold a chapter leadership position? Or only when called up in a committee?

I suggest adding this sort of education during the new member education program. That way it connects the ideas of developing leadership with being a strong brother, and that the chapter and colony benefits from the leadership development in tangible ways.

1. Encourage community service and philanthropy: One easy program to plan is a passive program around our national philanthropy, Feeding America. We require our brothers to get involved locally to support their local Feeding America food banks, but do all of them understand issues surrounding poverty and hunger? Encourage new members to research poverty and hunger statistics in your city or county and make posters to advertise why donations to the food banks make a real difference, making the donations personal to the campus and the community. This also allows them to learn how to advertise on-campus in ways that attract positive attention, and why our fraternity consider this type of service relevant and important. Plus the posters can be used at future programs hosted by the chapter regarding philanthropy and community service.

2. Reflect on skills it takes to be a chapter leader: Hopefully during your selection of your new member class, you thought about the skills each man was bringing to the chapter - but do the men know and understand what you saw him in and what else he can and should learn to be a better leader? Ask the men to write a short essay on his strengths he could bring to the chapter and what skill he wants to learn before taking on chapter leadership roles. Then connect the men with an on-campus leadership workshop so they go and learn that skill! This also brings up a great conversation between the new men and their Big Brothers, so that their education is now directed toward their personal development.

3. Develop recruitment strategies: Some of the best men to recruit your next class are the current men - they are typically closer in age and taking classes with the men you want to meet. So ask the current class to plan an on-campus event. It doesn't have to be a recruitment event, but all events sponsored by the chapter are unintentionally recruitment events since they showcase the best the chapter has to offer. Good events could be a game-room pool tournament, flag football pick-up game on the campus green, a video game release party in a dorm - it doesn't need to be so large it becomes impossible. But we all know that successful programs are always in the details - so teach them now to look at the details of their first program based on your campus policies. There are multiple rewards for this - you get an on-campus event, an alcohol-free program, a leadership development experience, a recruitment event for the next class, and you've taught your newest members how to recruit!

Ultimately, your newest members need to have these skills reinforced in positive and educational ways. Being an effective chapter leader isn't accidental - it takes time, effort and energy. So why not put the time, effort and energy into the start of the process before they finish instead of putting in extra time, effort and energy after they are done? Figure out what could or would work most effectively and your new members (and the chapter) will be most appreciative!