NIC Blog
Fraternal Coffee Orders
Tags: Hazing, National Hazing Prevention Week, NHPW, brotherhood, fraternity hazing, fraternity brotherhood, Living the Ritual
What’s your Fraternal Coffee Order?
Like many early morning risers, I need my morning cup of coffee to get my brain going. This morning, I happened to notice the side of my Dunkin Donuts coffee cup and think how interesting it would be if we approached fraternity life with a similar paradigm.
We all talk about drinking the fraternal Kool-aid, but what if we invested as much time into our organizations' values as we do in our coffee orders.
We all know those people (maybe you are one of them) that order the Triple Grande two-thirds caf., 2 pumps vanilla 1 pump Toffee Nut, Half-Skim Half-Soy, 185 degree, Extra-Foam, Upside-Down Caramel Macchiatto at Starbucks.
Now, what would your Fraternal Coffee Order be? Mine would go something like: one Large, 4 pump Truth, 2 pump Courage, turbo shots of Integrity and Accountability, with extra Brotherhood, a packet of Excellence, and no hazing.
What if our members could rattle off their Fraternal Coffee Orders just as easily as they could their normal drink orders. That would require us to educate our members better on the true values and principles of our organizations.
Some of our members are trying to order items not on the Fraternal Coffee menu: alcohol abuse, hazing, sexual assault, etc. They want to be able to order the Grande, 2 pump Frat Star, triple shot of Black Out, with extra Hazing, and no Accountability. Sorry, but we don't offer that here.
What if No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service became No Accountability, No Integrity, No Membership - respectively.
What if you could wake up each morning and pour yourself a fresh cup of liquid courage with extra shots of values and principles that would help you confront your brothers' poor decisions. The good news is that you can. It's all in your organization's Ritual, Creed, Mission, Values, and Principles.
This week is National Hazing Prevention Week. Take the opportunity to revisit your organization's values and principles. Examine your own Fraternal Coffee Order and make sure it is in line with those espoused values. Then, try to help your brothers with their order.
After that reflection, you might need some ideas to help start building brotherhood. The NIC offers a resource called the "Best of Brotherhood Building". Get your FREE copy by emailing andy@nicindy.org this week (September 19-23, 2011).
Take Comfort In Rituals - Not Hazing
Tags: Hazing, National Hazing Prevention Week, NHPW, brotherhood, fraternity hazing, fraternity brotherhood, Living the Ritual
Take Comfort In Rituals. What do you think of when you see this picture?
Take Comfort In Rituals. What do you think of when you see this picture?
Frankly, it caught me a bit off guard. I hadn’t had the opportunity to enjoy my morning coffee at Starbucks.
I saw this sign in the context of National Hazing Prevention Week and the IMPACT program that I had just returned from. Take Comfort In Rituals. That’s a good, strong statement – as good and strong as my cup of coffee.
It is comforting to know that the brotherhood we enjoy in our fraternities is grounded in the foundation of our Rituals. Our Rituals espouse values bind us. These are ideals such as Truth, Courage, Faith, Power, Virtue, Diligence, Justice, Chivalry, and Brotherly Love. Shared values are powerfully comforting.
Incorporating these into our daily lives (our “little r” rituals) provides us with the comfort to know that we are doing what’s right. Knowing that you are using values to guide your decisions is empowering, even if that decision may be unpopular.
Our Ritual is comforting. Hazing is not.
Hazing is in direct conflict with our values. In replace of our Ritual, hazing leaves us with Lies, Cowardice, Infidelity, Weakness, Dishonor, Defeat, Inequality, Disrespect and Hate. These values leave our friendships and organizations empty.
Take an opportunity to reflect upon the Ritual of your organization. It has all the answers needed to combat hazing.
After that reflection, you might need some ideas to help start building brotherhood. The NIC offers a resource called the "Best of Brotherhood Building". Get your FREE copy by emailing andy@nicindy.org this week (September 19-23, 2011).
NIC Celebrates Another Record Year of UIFI
Tags: uifi
The North-American Interfraternity Conference is pleased to report that 2011 has proven to be another record year for the Undergraduate Interfraternity Institute and has shown that UIFI continues to be the premier undergraduate fraternity/sorority leadership development experience.
Ten national sessions were held on the campus of Indiana University in Bloomington, IN. Through these sessions, a total of 768 students representing 340 different institutions and 113 fraternities and sororities participated in the five day leadership institute. Overall, the NIC experienced record registration for UIFI, with 12% growth over the previous high in 2010.
UIFI provides students with the awareness, motivation, and skills necessary to elevate their chapter, council, or community. Students are challenged to renew their focus on the concepts of standards, values, character, leadership, and congruence. Throughout UIFI, each of these core curriculum concepts are tied to behavior and action.
Beyond the national sessions, 6 additional sessions will be held throughout the summer of 2011, including three campus and three organization specific sessions. In total, over 1200 fraternity and sorority leaders from across North America will have graduated from UIFI 2011.
UIFI would be impossible without the support of the sponsors who provide financial assistance. In 2011, 42 fraternal organizations and their foundations as well as 118 institutions and governing councils provided scholarships for students to attend.
NIC President and CEO Peter Smithhisler states "The NIC owes a sincere debt of gratitude to all of our interfraternal partners and advocates who have made this success possible, including the NIC member fraternities, sororities, and the foundations that provide support for students to attend. We also must thank the facilitators and interns who give so freely of themselves, and most importantly, the students who will go forth and elevate their chapters, councils, and communities. UIFI is a critical part of the work of the NIC and through it, the conference is empowered to achieve greater success in each of our three pillars of advocacy, collaboration, and education."
Founded in 1909, the North-American Interfraternity Conference is the trade association representing 75 International and National Men's Fraternities. Through advocacy, collaboration, and education, the NIC works to ensure that fraternities can operate in an environment conducive to their success.
The Undergraduate Interfraternity institute is a program of the North-American Interfraternity Conference, and is the premier undergraduate interfraternal leadership institute for fraternity men and sorority women in North America. UIFI provides participants opportunities to explore, define, and enhance their leadership skills, personal awareness, commitment to their fraternity or sorority, and grow to expect values based action from themselves and those they lead. Since 1990, over 14,000 students and professionals have participated in UIFI.
