Our Executive Board’s first semester brought many new experiences. We began as nine individuals excited to come together under the mission of improving our chapter of Cal Psi, but soon formed a cohesive group that strived to provide a stronger academic, social, and spiritual environment to support our members’ college experience.
We emerged from our summer break ready to build momentum off of our first semester’s accomplishments and finish our term strong. Our Chaplain James Rominger drafted a thoroughly revised set of bylaws, which was voted into effect in our first chapter meeting of the semester. Included in these bylaws were new policies of attendance, philanthropic involvement, and member development. Our Executive Board felt it was important to put these values and membership expectations into writing, while still ensuring it was a collaborative process the entire fraternity was in support of.
Our next task was fall recruitment, the most important aspect in shaping our chapter’s future. Thanks to months of event planning and recruitment training workshops led by our VP of Recruitment, Nick Mason, we were able to onboard our largest ever sigma class of twenty-eight members.
However, this semester also brought unforeseen difficulties. On consecutive days, the Pepperdine community faced the tragedies of the Borderline shooting and Woolsey fire. All of a sudden, philanthropic plans and fraternity events took a backseat to assure everyone’s safety. In seeing the incredible amount of alumni who reached out and provided support to our chapter in those chaotic days, I was reminded of the enduring strength there is in the SigEp bond.
It is moments like those that make me especially grateful to have been a part of this past year’s Executive Board. When a fraternity is able to unite individuals from a variety of backgrounds and beliefs under a common vision, the group is capable of not only leaving a mark on its members but on the community around it. Our chapter has greatly shaped who I am over these past four years, and I hope that I was able to do my part in giving back. I can’t wait to see what Cal Psi will do next.