Sample Program Submissions from Past Winners
Scholarship and Learning-Semester Submissions
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The academic program put on this semester by (chapter) that is considered to be the best would
be the academic certificate for outstanding academic achievement. At the beginning of every
semester, certificates are made for members who were named to Dean’s list or President’s list
during the previous semester. This means that the members achieved either above a 3.5 GPA or
they had earned a GPA of 4.0. For those that earned a spot on the President’s list, a gift card is
also given to the establishment of their choice. This program has been something that has
impacted the members of (chapter) and their academic performance. The certificates are given
to members at one of the first chapter meetings of the semester. This gives those members the
time to feel recognized for all of the hard work and effort that they had put in over the past
semester. This program was one of the best this semester for that reason. Knowing that
(chapter) recognizes and appreciates the work you have put into school, encourages members
to do the best that they can. By recognizing these members in front of the entire chapter, they
not only are recognized by the executive board and advisors but by their peers as well.
At the end of Alumni Weekend in November 2012, Brother Matt (last name) sat down to talk
with current undergraduates about his adjustment from Miami college life in Oxford, Ohio to a
job with Nestle that involves a lot of traveling. Brother (last name) is on the road at least 15
hours a week traveling to different clients in the South (Georgia, Arkansas, Louisiana,
etc). Hearing Brother (last name) talk about how his education at Miami and through (chapter)
helped younger brothers realize what an impact (chapter) can have on undergraduate life in
Oxford. This event more than any other we had last year showed (chapter) how the
organization enhances the collegiate experience through lifelong friendships and the bonds that
tie us together.
Scholarship and Learning-Yearly Submission
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Beta Tau prides itself on being a chapter filled with talented, intelligent women who excel in a
variety of fields of study. We are excited to have 43 members on the Dean’s list as well as 2
members on the President’s list this semester. As sisters, we try to create an open environment
for helping one another and studying together. We encourage all members to host study tables
in our suite and to tutor one another when necessary.
All members who make it to the Dean’s list are recognized at the beginning of the semester at
chapter and are given a personalized certificate and an “Awesome (chapter)” pencil. Members
who received a semester GPA of 4.0 and are on the President’s list are given all of the above in
addition to a $10 gift card to Chipotle. While these are fantastic motivators for keeping your
GPA above a 3.5, we also have a weekly tradition called the Skippy Jar. Every Sunday at chapter
an empty Skippy peanut butter jar is passed around and any member who did not skip class over
the past week is invited to put their names inside of it. At the end of chapter, the VP of
Intellectual Development pulls out one name. That person is commended for attending class all
week and is given a $5 Starbucks card. Although this seems like something small, it happens to
be a huge motivator for members. People look forward to the end of chapter to see who will
win each week.
For members who are under our GPA requirement, we have an academic program run by the VP
of Intellectual Development as well as a more intensive program run by one of our advisors.
Our advisor, (name), has been a great resource for members who have a particularly hard time
with academics. She checks in with them on a weekly basis and creates a personalized
incentive-based program. Aside from the help that Kara provides for 1-2 members at a time, the
VP of Intellectual Development works with members who are below our standard of a semester
GPA of 2.8. Any member that does not meet that requirement for one semester is placed on
academic probation while members that do not meet the requirement for more than one
consecutive semester is placed on social and academic probation. All of these members are
required to complete an academic program where they must earn positive points by doing a
variety of activities. The program is effective because members who are below are standard are
held accountable throughout the semester and are given incentives to keep their grades up.
The VP of Intellectual Development has also put on programming for the entire chapter around
finals to discuss ways to deal with stress. Additionally, Beta Tau participates in a national
(chapter) program called My Journey. The programming and discussion topics from My Journey
deal with factors that can accelerate as well as diminish academic performance. Pledge classes
are given the opportunity to discuss these as a group and come up with solutions to our
collective problems and how to be supportive sisters.
Overall, the sisters of the Beta Tau chapter of (chapter) exceed the expectations in the pillar of
Scholarship and Learning because we implement programming to commend those that are
doing positive things academically as well as encourage and work with members that are
struggling. Additionally, we support one another, study together, and discuss factors that could
hinder our academic performance. As can be seen with our high GPA requirement, we take
academics seriously and want each of our sisters to do well.
Community Service and Philanthropy-Semester Submissions
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Our best community service and philanthropy event for spring 2012 was a dinner that
we hosted with the (chapter) sorority and members of the Butler County Board of
Developmental Disabilities in the (chapter) suite. Our national philanthropy is considered
an outreach program, which means that we not only raise money for our cause, but
actively participate in it.
We first raised money to host this event, and then invited people with disabilities to
enjoy an evening with us in which they could simply have a fun night and not feel that
they are treated differently because of their disability. This event went very well and
was one factor in our national fraternity recognizing our chapter with a Volunteer
Relationship Award with the Butler County Board of Developmental Disabilities in that
school year.
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Within (chapter) we participate in and sponsor numerous philanthropies, among those we
consider the Hospital Outreach Bags to be the best. For this program, members of our chapter
helped make craft bags for the organization, The Painted Turtle. This organization has a
program called “Outpost” that helps bring some fun to children who are receiving treatments,
undergoing surgeries or other medical procedures at various Children’s Hospitals. Volunteers at
The Painted Turtle set up pretend campsites at the hospitals and play games and make crafts
with the children. Because some children cannot make it out of bed to do certain activities, our
chapter made craft bags for The Painted Turtle to bring to the Children’s Hospitals, so those
children can still do activities and crafts in bed with their family and friends. Each craft bag
consisted of a zip-lock bag filled with: a handful of various shaped foam stickers, a glue stick, and
8 crayons. Our entire chapter gathered in the suite and put 100 of these craft bags together and
mailed them to The Painted Turtle on November 5th. A few weeks after, we received a thank
you note from The Painted Turtle to thank us for our helpful donation.
(chapter) considers the Hospital Outreach Bags the best fall program connected to community
service and philanthropy. For one reason this philanthropy was associated with one of (chapter)
national philanthropies and it close to our hearts. In contrary to most philanthropy, the service
we did was not just a monetary donation and everyone in the chapter was able to see the final
product we mailed which made it extra special to us. I believe this enabled our chapter to really
connect with the children we made the craft bags for, and this created enthusiasm among the
chapter members. In addition, this program really stood out because of its efficiency, our
chapter was able to complete this project in one day and have it mailed to The Painted Turtle
the next day. This was important because The Painted Turtle was in need of more craft bag
donations. Furthermore, it allowed our chapter members to really work hard in creating our
craft bags quickly, efficiently, and correctly, while bonding as a chapter. (chapter) felt comfort
and a sense of satisfaction knowing that we were putting smiles on sick children’s faces, which
ultimately made this philanthropy project all worthwhile.
Community Service and Philanthropy-Yearly Submission
 Whether it is as a group or as individuals, (chapter) continues to set the bar when it comes to
Community Service and engagement. As individuals, (chapter) members donate at least 5 hours
of community service every semester to an organization of their choosing. Several Brothers
donate time to the Oxford Choice Community Food Pantry, through Alpha Phi Omega Service
Fraternity, Animal Service Adoption, Habitat for Humanity, and several other organizations.
Brothers also stand out in the Miami community for their contributions to community
service. (name) (’13) served on Inter-Fraternity Council as Vice President of Community Service
and Philanthropy. He helped organize the Habitat for Humanity event that raised over 40,000
dollars from the overall Miami community and $15,000 from the Greek community. He also
helped organize events like Pledge-a-Meal, the Bone Marrow Drive, and the Blood Drive. He is a
stellar example to the entire Greek community for his contributions to the Oxford
Community. (name) (’14) is also a stand out when it comes to community service and
philanthropy. Brother (name) organized one of the biggest Dance Marathon teams for (chapter)
and he regularly participates in other community service events with (chapter)
Brothers. (chapter) as an organization has registered 600 hours over the past year.
(chapter) is also very successful with its big philanthropy events each semester, Stuff the Bus
and BasketBrawl. Along with (chapter) sorority, (chapter) was able to add a record number of
teams to participate in BasketBrawl. The amount of money raised ($3000) and Greek members
in attendance (just under 500) were both new records. (chapter)’s proceeds went to CASA, an
organization that helps foster children and (chapter) donated all proceeds to the development
of the Armstrong Student Center.
Our Stuff the Bus Philanthropy is one of our favorite events of the entire year. We teamed up
with (chapter) Sorority for the first time to help put on this event. This year we collected just
under 2000 pounds of food. We raised more physical food in 2011, but realized we also needed
to place an emphasis on money for the Food Pantry as well, which has never been done
before. Money can help the food pantry provide for members of the Oxford Community and
more personal and specific needs. We were able to collect over 800 dollars cash between
winning a school spirit award through CAC and asking for donations before a Miami home
Football Game.
Our Chapter exceeds this pillar because it is constantly looking at new and better ways to help
the Oxford community. Rather than put on the same event every year, (chapter) challenges it’s
members to organize events that raise more money, involve more people, and do more for the
community. (chapter), collectively and individually, sets the bar for Miami Greeks. Whether it
be supporting a new philanthropy (Four Brothers ran The Flying Pig Half Marathon in Cincinnati
for the Alzheimer’s Association), winning awards for our spirit towards philanthropy (our
Homecoming Parade advertising Stuff the Bus with (chapter), as well as an award for AD PuttPutt for best hole), or improving existing philanthropies (Stuff the Bus and BasketBrawl),
(chapter) continually tries to be gentlemen in the pursuit of excellence in community service and
philanthropic efforts for Oxford, Miami, and the Greek communities.
Leadership and Values-Semester Submissions
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The executive board of any organization is its heart and soul. The women in (chapter) who step
up to dedicate their time to being a leader are what keeps us evolving and changing for the
better. The most important thing to us is that our sorority functions as one central unit guided
by the leadership of the executive members. In order to ensure our members fully appreciate
what it takes to make this happen we felt that they must be educated on the duties and
responsibilities of the leadership roles in our organization.
Last spring we held a workshop with our members and explained more in depth the
characteristics that were necessary to fulfill each executive board position or any leadership
position in (chapter). We not only explained what each position does, but what kind of woman it
takes to handle these responsibilities in an effort for girls to better understand what it takes to
run our sorority. For example, the president serves on all committees, is a liaison between our
sorority, nationals and Panhel, and it takes an ambitious member with strong communication
skills to fulfill this role. In addition, we hope that this education will help prepare the upcoming
member classes to take on these leadership positions.
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Recruitment is a year-long process for (chapter), thus the education and training of ethical
recruitment is a year-long process and ethical recruiting is our foundation for this training. The
first recruitment meeting with (chapter) members is comprised of reviewing and discussing
ethical recruitment rules and guidelines. Our chapter members are then continually taught and
instructed at each bi-weekly meeting for the entirety of the fall semester to never buy a
potential new member anything, to never make promises to a potential new member that she
will become a (chapter) through formal recruitment, and to never refer to a potential new
member as a "little." Our chapter members are reminded that as we set out to recruit quality
women for (chapter), our main purpose, however, is to recruit quality women to join the Greek
community as a whole. We are to represent the Greek community well and proudly. This can be
accomplished by following ethical recruitment guidelines and by adhering to the rules to ensure
that every potential new member has a fair and rewarding formal recruitment process.
Before the end of the Fall semester, (chapter) held a five-hour Ethical Recruitment Workshop
with chapter members to remind members how to recruit ethically, and to refresh members on
recruitment rules and logistics. Our chapter members have been encouraged throughout the
entire semester to discuss the new recruitment structure with positivity, as well as all other
Panhellenic events, such as Greek Move-in, Grillin with the Greeks barbeque, and Greek Mega
Fair. We've practiced answering common questions of a potential new member in ways that will
encourage and entice the potential new member to becoming Greek. (chapter) by-laws and this
year's revised Panhellenic recruitment rules were read aloud and discussed at the workshop as
well. We also had Lauren Fingers, Panhellenic VP Standards, come to one of our bi-weekly
recruitment meetings to talk to our chapter members about risk management and how to best
represent our chapter, as well as the Greek community. Our members have been encouraged to
contact myself, (name), or our President, (name), with any concerns or questions in regards to
ethical recruitment. In addition to our bi-weekly recruitment meetings and our Ethical
Recruitment Workshop, chapter members were provided a Recruitment Manual at the
beginning of the semester with all ethical recruitment tips in writing. As leaders we want to
make sure that our actions are always ethical which is why this this program is so vital which is
why we believe it to be our best fall program related to the leadership and values pillar
Leadership and Values-Yearly Submission
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2012 was another year in which the Miami chapter of (chapter) exhibited our capacity to be a
leader in the Greek Community. Our passion for leading stems from our national mission
statement – “We Will Lead”. Becoming leaders in the Greek community and in our campus as a
whole is something that we constantly strive for. Individually, our members hold many
leadership positions on this campus. The past two Presidents of the Student Senate have both
been members of (chapter), as well as many Senators. We have leaders of various other
organizations as well, including the president of the Culinary Association; and executive officer
in the PSE business fraternity; Commodore of the Sailing Club; multiple justices on the Student
Court; two members of the National Society of Leadership and Success; a leader of the Concert
Board of Campus Activities Council; several Resident Advisors in residence halls across campus;
an owner of an apparel company; and many other members involved across campus in various
roles. As a chapter as a whole, we strive to be an example for the rest of the community. Our
risk management policy has been the class of the Greek Community for years, and our new
member education process is an ideal program for new members.
Our chapter develops leaders by participating in several national conferences put on by our
national organization. Every winter, our entire executive council attends the Mid-Year
Leadership Conference in St. Louis. This conference teaches our exec the various tools and
strategies to become effective leaders within our chapters and the greek community as a whole.
Our chapter also sends a couple men to the (chapter) College leadership summit every summer
in Charleston South Carolina. This conference is a focused week of leadership training, preparing
younger members to go on and lead their chapters. Our national organization takes leadership
very seriously, and we were honored to be presented with the Champion Master Chapter award
from nationals, which recognized us as being an exemplary chapter.
Brotherhood and Sisterhood-Semester Submissions
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As a medium size Fraternity on Miami’s campus, (chapter) has the ability to get to know one
another on a personal level, as if we were nuclear family members. As each pledge is going
through the Pledge Education process, he is asked to sit down with each brother individually to
get to know one another better. There is no quiz or test that follows these meetings; it is simply
a way for the Brotherhood to grow closer together. (chapter)’s learn about each other’s
families, career plans, backgrounds and experiences, among several other topics. It is during
these meetings that Brothers find commonality in shared passions. Whether it be a sports,
philanthropy, career interest, or another commonality, Brothers become closer on an individual
basis. This may not seem like a program to some, but through this process every Brother knows
something unique and individual that sticks out in their mind.
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The best program for the fall semester that connects to Brotherhood and Sisterhood would be
our Police Officer Sisterhood. An officer from the Miami University Police Department came to
talk to our chapter on September 9, 2012. I was in contact with the Police Department for
several weeks before the actual sisterhood where I explained what we were looking for, how
many girls would be in attendance, and what we needed to do to get them to come. The
Sergeant that I was in contact with sent another officer to talk to our chapter and he did a great
job. There were 115 chapter members in attendance and the officer spoke for about an hour.
The officer and I discussed that what would be talked about which was mainly drug and alcohol
safety, which are prevalent issues on any college campus especially Miami which is one of the
reasons why we consider it to be the best. The officer was completely honest with our chapter;
he explained what officers look for when they are out on duty, cleared up common
misconceptions and myths, and told us how to stay out of trouble when we go out and how to
safely throw a party, which we all appreciated. Another thing that we appreciated was how safe
he made us feel just by talking to us, he told us about his life growing up and where he went to
college, he told us serious and funny stories about his time on duty, and tips for our we should
react in certain situations. Towards the end of his presentation, he provided his contact
information and insisted that we contact him whenever we may need his help. He also allowed
time for questions which our members took advantage of. Girls asked nonstop questions for
over 30 minutes and the Sergeant answered them fully and honestly. The program took much
longer than we expected due to the high engagement and interaction between the chapter
members and the officer. The results of this program were overwhelmingly positive, showing
that 100% of the members enjoyed it, which made this by far the most successful program we
have had in many years. The best part about this program was that our members left with more
information than they came in with. Therefore their overall safety and drug and alcohol
awareness had increased, thus giving us a peace of mind.
Brotherhood and Sisterhood-Yearly Submission
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Our chapter prides itself on the emphasis we put on building a lifelong brotherhood
between our members. A very large portion of our budget every year goes towards
brotherhood spending. We put this money to use in the form of sporting events,
bowling nights, dinners, Founder’s Day Dinner, and other events that bring our
members together. We believe that building a strong brotherhood is the foundation of
any fraternity chapter, so we take that aspect of our chapter very seriously. Our
members care deeply about one another, and the atmosphere of our fraternity is very
caring and sincere. This brotherhood is extended to everyone in the fraternity, from the
oldest members to the prospective new members. Including prospective new members
in this brotherhood is crucial to forming a lasting bond between all of our members. We
also look to share this brotherhood with others, inviting sororities to our house for
dinners and hosting people from the Butler County Board of Developmental Disabilities
to our house to spend a day with the guys. Sharing our profound brotherhood is a very
rewarding experience for all of us.
Community Engagement and Involvement-Semester Submissions
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Last spring we had our newest member class making the adjustment to being (chapter)’s. It can
be an overwhelming time as there is a lot going on in the Greek Community in the spring, in
addition to the duties of a normal student. Our goal is to always make things easier for our
members and one way in which we do this is by assisting them in the selection of housing offcampus. Realtors, leases, utilities, and roommates can be a lot of decisions to make as
freshman, so we help facilitate a new member meeting dedicated to helping them make these
decisions. Older sisters who have gone through the process speak, and they have a chance to
make decisions together as a unified class.
We came up with the education program through our own experiences with the difficulties of
housing in the Oxford community, and want to continue to make the program more beneficial.
Learning how to read a lease, negotiate with realtors, and select the ideal housemates are a few
topics we will go further in depth with this coming year but we are happy to say that we’ve
facilitated each girl having a housing plan that they are happy with and made the selection as
streamlined as possible.
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Our Stuff the Bus Philanthropy is one of our favorite events of the entire year. (chapter) has
hosted Stuff the Bus for 5 years on campus and for the first time this year teamed up with
(chapter) Sorority to help put on this event. This philanthropy is involved directly with the local
Oxford community and our favorite because we’re giving more than just money to the Oxford
Community Choice Food Pantry. We also donate time throughout the fall helping to pass out
the food that we collect. (chapter)Brothers stand in front of Kroger and ask grocery shoppers to
donate any extra food they may buy in the store. Every (chapter) member donates a few hours
in the food pantry or outside of Kroger. We literally “stuff the bus” with donated food in a
rented school bus that is parked outside of Kroger. After the end of the week we take all food
collected to the food pantry. This year we collected just under 2,000 pounds of food, but also
collected $500 cash for the food pantry. We won a school spirit award in the Miami University
Homecoming Parade advertising the event in a school bus, winning Oxford Community Choice
Food Pantry another $300.
Community Engagement and Involvement-Yearly Submission
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Being a part of a sorority on Miami’s campus goes far beyond wearing your letters. It means you
are part of a Greek community, a college community, and the surrounding town’s community.
That is a lot of responsibility and it is important to acknowledge those responsibilities. Engaging
with others outside our own organization will help us grow as individuals and we have so much
to learn from others.
This past year we have started a 5k for local victims of domestic violence abuse, invited a
speaker with personal experience to share her story, engaged the hockey team to assist with the
event, and started a tradition we cannot wait to continue. That is just one event. In addition, we
had members serve as judges for the NPHC Pink Panther pageant and our sorority attended; had
breakfast with two other sororities and shared stories; hosted a breakfast with a fraternity;
invited an uptown business to sell their Greek gear to us to support those in the Oxford
community, and educated our members on how to become part of the Oxford residential
community in living off-campus.
We realize how much we have to benefit by engaging with other organizations and look forward
to continuing to do so. It can be difficult at times to encourage our members to look outside
their sisters for support but that’s what our community is here for. We have tried to host a large
amount of programming to give them those opportunities to engage with members of other
organizations and our greater community. There can never be enough engagement with the
outside community and we are hoping that through continuing to facilitate programs for our
members we can excel in this pillar.