My Final Blog Post

What a long strange trip its been.

I never would have guessed on Thursday at 1PM just how weird our group of Greeks was capable of being. That being said, I wouldn't have had it go any other way. The whole BSU delegation was great, and I'm really glad we were all able to get along and share the experience together. I especially want to thank Maribeth for being our fearless leader, as well as the always supportive BSU community, and everyone at NGLA who worked to put together a great program.
      Before I went to NGLA I considered myself to be more of a quiet, reserved leader who led by example, but now I feel I have a better idea of when to speak up. I normally prefer to sit back and listen to problems before I set to work with a written action plan, but my experiences this weekend have really opened my eyes to the fact that people within my chapter often look to me for answers, so I need to be more proactive and act before any problems arise.
     I was able to attend a multitude of educational sessions on topics ranging from alumni relations to officer training. I'm still in the process of refining my many pages of notes into organized packets for all of my brothers to study and learn from, but everyone already seems excited about the new ideas coming their way. NGLA has inspired me to push my brothers to levels they never thought they were capable of reaching. I may have been the Kappa Delta Phi delegate, but to me that only means its my responsibility to transfer knowledge to them.
      What I'm most excited for now that I'm back in Bridgewater is working with our eight new pledges. Each one of them has expressed interest in becoming more involved on campus and eventually taking leadership positions. Their pledge process is really going to pick up some steam this week, and I want Kappa Delta Phi to exceed their expectations of what a brotherhood is. In the next four weeks they'll be bonding together as a pledge class, and learning how our chapter operates. Our pledge counselor has done a great job of communicating with them, and putting together the educational programs, but some of the sessions and speakers at NGLA made me realize that the entire fraternity should really be more involved in pledging. I think that by the time the pledges are initiated they feel comfortable with every brother. If they are familiar with the entire fraternity, and see us acting out our values on a daily basis it will prove to them that they made the right choice in joining Kappa Delta Phi.
     Four days of fun and learning experiences away from school was awesome, but now its time to become grounded in reality again. I've got a messy room to clean, midterms to study for, events to plan, and of course new initiatives to put forth within my chapter. It's been real NGLA, but I'm signing off of the blog for the last time. Once again, thanks to Maribeth, and everyone involved for making the best of a good situation, and congratulations to my friend and tour guide buddy Jesslyn Lowell on her Greek Leader of Distinction award.

Goodbye NGLA blog

Dylan (The Dragon Slayer) Curtis
AKA DC
AKA The Comic
AKA PT