The first few weeks of a new member’s experience are the most crucial to determine if he will stay actively involved with the Fraternity. Our brothers at the University of Georgia have improved their new member experience in recent years and have seen considerable success.

Georgia Delta’s former president, Raleigh Garrett, ’12, offered details about his chapter’s new member experience:

SigEp: What are the goals of the Sigma Challenge at Georgia Delta?
RG: Our Sigma Challenge strives to introduce new members to SigEp’s history and values, the brothers in the chapter, and the Greek community at UGA. We do this by having a structured, written program that challenges new members to live up to the same standards we expect from all members in the chapter.

SigEp: How do you keep your program consistent year to year?
RG: The quality of the coordinators and the time and effort they put in to make the Sigma Challenge successful. A great coordinator will result in a successful new member experience. We put considerable time and effort into identifying and selecting the right men to serve as sigma coordinators.

SigEp: What advice do you have for SigEp officers and volunteers looking to improve the new member experience at their chapter?
RG: I would encourage brothers to create an experience that distinguishes their chapter from others on campus. It is also incredibly important that new members understand how that product is different from others.

I would encourage them to do the following:

• Write down your plan and ask for feedback from chapter leaders, alumni-volunteers, and your Office of Greek Life.
• Outline the experience to your new members at their first meeting and describe how it will be relevant to them as young men in college.
• For every activity in your plan, ask yourself the following two questions:
• Is this activity relevant and in line with what a new member on our campus needs?
• Does it align with our expectations for all brothers?
• “Outsource” your new member experience by asking . . .
• Successful alumni to talk about the history of the chapter, their experience as an undergraduate, and what the Fraternity means to them.
• Faculty members to speak to new members about time management, academic success, and expectations faculty members have of students.
• Campus life professionals to talk about campus leadership and involvement.
• Your regional director to meet with new members and discuss the national fraternity.

Inviting even four people to meet with the chapter over the course of the program takes considerable burden off of you as chapter leaders to create and implement programming.

SigEp: How do you differentiate the Balanced Man Program from the pledging experience offered by other fraternities? What are the challenges given the culture at UGA?
RG: It is challenging, but it also provides opportunities. All activities in the Sigma Challenge are relevant to the personal and professional development of a brother. This stands apart from our peers.

Other fraternities on campus assume that our Balanced Man Program is a “cakewalk” because it eliminates pledging. We want our experience to be challenging but we want the expectations to be equal for all brothers, not just our new members. We have been successful because we embrace this difference, communicate it during recruitment and deliver it during the Sigma Challenge.

While recruiting, we look for men who want to be challenged through productive means. We clearly communicate that hazing will not be tolerated and should not be expected by new members both during recruitment and on the first day of the Sigma Challenge. By creating this mindset, we ensure a productive new member experience.

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