Day 2

David Stollsman opened up this morning with a memorable, distinct, and comical speech. He is an engagingly powerful speaker who did a remarkable job delineating the prevalent issues with Greek stereotypes today. He showed us a slideshow of Greek brothers and sisters who were reflecting poorly on the Greek community through various means, including binge drinking, hazing, and unprofessionally inappropriate attire. One portion of his 75 minute presentation I won't forget was when he said that each Greek in the crowd was relieved when he or she did not see their letters in the montage. He addressed this because he believed we were thinking too independently. After all, if poor Greek images are portrayed by separate fraternities and sororities, then it has nothing to do with us. However, in reality, it is essential to Greek life's growth to maintain a strong comradery within the Greek community. Most importantly, we're not bound to collaborating with only our fraternity or sorority. We should always be working with all other Greek organizations because we share similar goals and objectives individually as well as in a group setting.

The first educational session I attended dealt with conflict management and even presented a detailed step by step process to address a conflict appropriately.
1. Identify there is a problem
2. Identify what is keeping you from acting.
3. When addressing the person, use the word, "I" instead of "we" because it less intimidating and offensive towards the person you are attempting to help.
4. Explain your concern calmly and respectfully.
5. Help the individual create a plan to address the concern.
6. Always offer support to the individual
7. Check in with the individual to ensure Step #5 is being followed unless the conflict is no longer existent.

I found the information garnered from this session helpful and resourceful, and I look forward to utilizing it in the future.

I went to an intriguing session earlier today on dynamic recruitment, which was presented by Matt Geik and John Rodriguez. Matt's enthusiasm was a significant factor in the success of the workshop. He elaborated on several key concepts John informed us of during chapter meetings. For example, there are three recruitment secrets. 1. You can't recruit who you don't know. 2. People don't join organizations. People join people. 3. You scare people. Be more normal. When meeting new people, it is vital to not shove Greek life down his or her throat. Instead, he advocated for the "F Them" treatment, which involves talking to the potential new members about family/friends, favorites, future, fun, and where they are from. Greek life should be the last thing you should be talking to them about because it creates an obvious sense of discomfort. Another important aspect of this session was the small activities approach. When attempting to integrate a PNM into a group setting to familiarize them with your brothers or sisters, do not exceed a group of 3-7 people. This approach's success is contingent upon doing an activity that is normal for them as well as maintaining the +1 ratio concept. The last part of the session I found insightful was the Values-Based Selection Process (VBSP). This involves having a sheet of paper describing your Greek organization's specific values and ideals you envision your PNMs to possess. After meeting with the PNM on several occasions, hand them this paper and ask them how they feel about it. This takes the interrogative pressure off you and allows the PNM to display any concerns with joining your organization in a more friendly and cooperative manner.

I attended another one of David Stollman's presentations later in the day, and it was just as passionate as his first. The topic was money and how we can finance doing almost anything in Greek life with the right mindset. He broke up the presentation into five solutions. The first called for recruiting new sources of income, which was described in further detail through recruitordie.com, RBC consultations, RBC coaching, national headquarters, and through the assistance of your Greek advisor. The second solution encouraged us to collect what is owed. To decrease the frustration of this inevitably arduous task, Stollman suggested various plans to ensure the fulfillment of these payments, including membership agreements (usually in contract form), explaining credit implications, collection agencies, and even going after the alumni who owe money. His third solution was the simplest and recommended lower expenses, which can be exercised by creating a budget, holding to the budget, and "keeping it simple." Solution #4 was to find alternatives. Stollman elaborated on this solution by explaining the benefits that can be brought about from SGA, local communities/companies, bartering, national headquarters, alumni, and other student organizations. His last solution encouraged fundrasing, and this became increasingly interactive for the entire group as a myriad of ideas were discussed. These ideas included a date auction, dance marathon, "volunteering" at Gillette Stadium, among many others.