Saturday, March 6, 2010
VIDEO TALKING ABOUT NEVER LETTING ANYONE TELL YOU WHAT YOU CAN OR CANNOT DO!!!!!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tjYoKCBYag
My Perfect World:)
Describe your perfect world. What role does sorority and fraternity life play in achieving that perfect world?
My Perfect World..... hmmm... so I think my perfect world would be a world...
where we do not get caught up in the rush of life and that we enjoy the small things in life.
When someone gives you a card on a random day just because they want to let you know how much they care about you not b/c you did something for them.
When we sit down and enjoy each others company and not think in the back of our head I need to go to this or that or I need to be here or there.
My perfect world has people committing to one person versus skipping around from relationship to another and doing whatever someone wants to do b/c they can rather than valuing the relationship and respecting the other person in the relationship
Where we all live a life of purpose not just living day to day
Where we value each other for whom we are inside not for our appearance on the outside.
Where values dictate individual actions versus other people’s responses (what they think you should do)
Where people commit to one person for life, not quit and get a divorce when things get hard and he/she may just not want to fight for what they originally said they would die for.
Where on any given night, people can socialize and enjoy each others company without the presence of alcohol
Where women and men respect themselves and others
Where we are not content with status quo and where we know that there is always room to improve
Where the color of one’s skin does not dictate who that individual is
Where mediocrity is not enough and where excellence is desired
Where people can be who they are and do not need "liquid courage" to be ourselves
Where we all work hard everyday to create a better world for the generations to follow.
Where we build character among young people and where later in life we expect those individuals to act with integrity.
Where we strive to make a difference in the life of someone who is less fortunate each day not just during the holidays or when we have extra time
So I guess a large part of my world would be more about RELATIONSHIPS and more about VALUES and being content with the gifts that we were given and be SATISFIED with WHO WE ARE not who we think other people WANT US TO BE.
Thinking about my world I feel that sorority/fraternity life could play a significant role in my perfect world as S/F life represents a values-based community committed to elevating its members to become better sisters/brothers, better people. So if my perfect world existed and students came to school with high standards and expectations for themselves as well as others then F/S life would serve to perpetuate those believes and behaviors as well as serve to foster the development of their character. S/F life would serve as a support for those men and women to continue to believe in what they were taught as youth.
It is kinda hard to think of a perfect world b/c if the world was perfect then the current problems of hazing, excessive alcohol consumption, petty women, and other immoral activities would not exist. So as I have already stated, F/S life would serve to perpetuate the values that we, as individuals in this perfect world, strive to uphold--service, true and honest friendship, leadership, scholarship, personal growth...
My Perfect World..... hmmm... so I think my perfect world would be a world...
where we do not get caught up in the rush of life and that we enjoy the small things in life.
When someone gives you a card on a random day just because they want to let you know how much they care about you not b/c you did something for them.
When we sit down and enjoy each others company and not think in the back of our head I need to go to this or that or I need to be here or there.
My perfect world has people committing to one person versus skipping around from relationship to another and doing whatever someone wants to do b/c they can rather than valuing the relationship and respecting the other person in the relationship
Where we all live a life of purpose not just living day to day
Where we value each other for whom we are inside not for our appearance on the outside.
Where values dictate individual actions versus other people’s responses (what they think you should do)
Where people commit to one person for life, not quit and get a divorce when things get hard and he/she may just not want to fight for what they originally said they would die for.
Where on any given night, people can socialize and enjoy each others company without the presence of alcohol
Where women and men respect themselves and others
Where we are not content with status quo and where we know that there is always room to improve
Where the color of one’s skin does not dictate who that individual is
Where mediocrity is not enough and where excellence is desired
Where people can be who they are and do not need "liquid courage" to be ourselves
Where we all work hard everyday to create a better world for the generations to follow.
Where we build character among young people and where later in life we expect those individuals to act with integrity.
Where we strive to make a difference in the life of someone who is less fortunate each day not just during the holidays or when we have extra time
So I guess a large part of my world would be more about RELATIONSHIPS and more about VALUES and being content with the gifts that we were given and be SATISFIED with WHO WE ARE not who we think other people WANT US TO BE.
Thinking about my world I feel that sorority/fraternity life could play a significant role in my perfect world as S/F life represents a values-based community committed to elevating its members to become better sisters/brothers, better people. So if my perfect world existed and students came to school with high standards and expectations for themselves as well as others then F/S life would serve to perpetuate those believes and behaviors as well as serve to foster the development of their character. S/F life would serve as a support for those men and women to continue to believe in what they were taught as youth.
It is kinda hard to think of a perfect world b/c if the world was perfect then the current problems of hazing, excessive alcohol consumption, petty women, and other immoral activities would not exist. So as I have already stated, F/S life would serve to perpetuate the values that we, as individuals in this perfect world, strive to uphold--service, true and honest friendship, leadership, scholarship, personal growth...
Thursday, March 4, 2010
CUTEST BOY EVER!!!!!!! YOU HAVE TO WATCH THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PS. HE LIVES IN SPRING HILL, TENNESSEE WE ARE PRACTICALLY NEIGHBORS... well sorta like 45 mins:) fun fact!!
Change starts today!
Describe in your own words, the dilemma – and the opportunity – facing the Fraternal Movement.
So I am a fourth year at Ohio State, and still the same problems that I realized existed after attending UIFI my freshman year still persist today so to me I think our biggest dilemma is that we know the problem exists, but we are not doing anything to change it. Maybe, we are doing things, but is it really working? Obviously, fraternities and sororities cannot be transformed in a day, but shouldn’t we have made more progress by now? What has changed? Hazing still exists on campuses, individuals still drink too much, we still have apathetic members, we still have members who have checked out as seniors and said that it is not their problem anymore, or there is the member that says they are too busy to change anything. Yet, how ironic that member is the one that sleeps in or that you see sitting on the couch watching tv hour after hour or has plenty of time to go out on the weekend. Isn't it crazy how time just magically appears when there is something that someone wants to do...
So I guess that means to me that the dilemma also lies in our Recruitment Process. How does that member who just wants to be a bystander always get in? Are they good at acting like they are all about the values and action? Yet, once there in the problem still persists... what about our NEW MEMBER PROCESS... Are we educating these men/women to understand what is expected of them? I do not think so. Yes, we share our philanthropies, our creed, and our founders... but I feel that sometimes it just STOPS there. Yet, this should not happen. Education should continue throughout one's fraternal experience. We should be encouraging growth, development, and maturation during one's entire experience. We should be educating our new members on our values, and we, the one’s educating them, we should be practicing those values each day, as you cannot expect something from someone when you yourself are not holding yourself to the same standards…
What would our community be like if we incorporated our values into our meetings, our conversations with potential new members or even students in our classes? What would people say if they heard a sorority woman or a fraternity man say, “last week my brothers and I went and visited elderly women at the nursing home.” Hmm… I think they would be impressed, but that won’t do it all… Friday night, these fraternity men and sorority women should remain classy and not represent our community poorly. For instance, I know we have all said this before, but I will say it again b/c these actions still occur in our community… all of our positive actions become overlooked and ignored when just one individual embarrasses him or herself by drinking too much and blacking out. I do not think that there is anything wrong with drinking, but I do think that moderation is key.
HOWEVER, the fraternal movement has such potential, and it starts today, not tomorrow or with next year’s Exec but with our community and us. I feel like we have already started to take progressive steps especially with what Panhellenic has done. I know I wrote about this in my other blog, but I really think that you can already see changes in our community by just talking about our values. Today, I went and participated in the Reading Program with the City Schools. What a cool experience! If you do not have class tomorrow, you should definitely go! Anyways, I was talking to Zach, the VP of Student Life who coordinated the event with Dr. J, and I was asking him how many participants they had. He responded, “About 200, and he proceeds to say how he is so impressed with Panhellenic and sincerely appreciated our support.” Now, a lot of the push for these participants came from women serving as Panhellenic leaders such as our delegates and directors. I think we had approximately 16 women from PHA Council reading, and I am pretty sure Kristen Darnell and Amanda Chin sent me the names of 10 Alpha Xi Delta women. My point is that we have the potential to CHANGE our COMMUNITY, and the fact that such few people generated this much support within such a short amount of time proves that ONE individual can make a DIFFERENCE. So the opportunity is there, and I think that we recognize that the problems exist, but now it is time for more ACTION and less discussion. In short, I believe the OPPORTUNITY is there for us to CHANGE and make the fraternity and sorority life the organization that EVERYONE wants to JOIN if we just focus on returning to a VALUES-BASED community that is COMMITTED to EDUCATING our members throughout the EXPERINECE and addressing the NEEDS of our community by helping others realize WHY we exist.
So another long blog... guess paraphrasing is not my forte….
So I am a fourth year at Ohio State, and still the same problems that I realized existed after attending UIFI my freshman year still persist today so to me I think our biggest dilemma is that we know the problem exists, but we are not doing anything to change it. Maybe, we are doing things, but is it really working? Obviously, fraternities and sororities cannot be transformed in a day, but shouldn’t we have made more progress by now? What has changed? Hazing still exists on campuses, individuals still drink too much, we still have apathetic members, we still have members who have checked out as seniors and said that it is not their problem anymore, or there is the member that says they are too busy to change anything. Yet, how ironic that member is the one that sleeps in or that you see sitting on the couch watching tv hour after hour or has plenty of time to go out on the weekend. Isn't it crazy how time just magically appears when there is something that someone wants to do...
So I guess that means to me that the dilemma also lies in our Recruitment Process. How does that member who just wants to be a bystander always get in? Are they good at acting like they are all about the values and action? Yet, once there in the problem still persists... what about our NEW MEMBER PROCESS... Are we educating these men/women to understand what is expected of them? I do not think so. Yes, we share our philanthropies, our creed, and our founders... but I feel that sometimes it just STOPS there. Yet, this should not happen. Education should continue throughout one's fraternal experience. We should be encouraging growth, development, and maturation during one's entire experience. We should be educating our new members on our values, and we, the one’s educating them, we should be practicing those values each day, as you cannot expect something from someone when you yourself are not holding yourself to the same standards…
What would our community be like if we incorporated our values into our meetings, our conversations with potential new members or even students in our classes? What would people say if they heard a sorority woman or a fraternity man say, “last week my brothers and I went and visited elderly women at the nursing home.” Hmm… I think they would be impressed, but that won’t do it all… Friday night, these fraternity men and sorority women should remain classy and not represent our community poorly. For instance, I know we have all said this before, but I will say it again b/c these actions still occur in our community… all of our positive actions become overlooked and ignored when just one individual embarrasses him or herself by drinking too much and blacking out. I do not think that there is anything wrong with drinking, but I do think that moderation is key.
HOWEVER, the fraternal movement has such potential, and it starts today, not tomorrow or with next year’s Exec but with our community and us. I feel like we have already started to take progressive steps especially with what Panhellenic has done. I know I wrote about this in my other blog, but I really think that you can already see changes in our community by just talking about our values. Today, I went and participated in the Reading Program with the City Schools. What a cool experience! If you do not have class tomorrow, you should definitely go! Anyways, I was talking to Zach, the VP of Student Life who coordinated the event with Dr. J, and I was asking him how many participants they had. He responded, “About 200, and he proceeds to say how he is so impressed with Panhellenic and sincerely appreciated our support.” Now, a lot of the push for these participants came from women serving as Panhellenic leaders such as our delegates and directors. I think we had approximately 16 women from PHA Council reading, and I am pretty sure Kristen Darnell and Amanda Chin sent me the names of 10 Alpha Xi Delta women. My point is that we have the potential to CHANGE our COMMUNITY, and the fact that such few people generated this much support within such a short amount of time proves that ONE individual can make a DIFFERENCE. So the opportunity is there, and I think that we recognize that the problems exist, but now it is time for more ACTION and less discussion. In short, I believe the OPPORTUNITY is there for us to CHANGE and make the fraternity and sorority life the organization that EVERYONE wants to JOIN if we just focus on returning to a VALUES-BASED community that is COMMITTED to EDUCATING our members throughout the EXPERINECE and addressing the NEEDS of our community by helping others realize WHY we exist.
So another long blog... guess paraphrasing is not my forte….
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
PHA CHANGE AGENTS....
So I don't think I could be more excited for what we are doing within PHA! We have completely restructured our meetings, and instead, of the mundane announcement after announcement, we are having meaningful discussions and planning events for areas in our community where we see the greatest need. If you have read any of my blogs, I mentioned how we have "A" Weeks and "B" Weeks. "B" Weeks are lead by our delegates, and they are focused on a different values of our community. "A" Weeks are suppose to be announcements, but we have changed them to include 15min of announcements, 35min of productive work, and 10min of updates from the small groups for the large groups.
Now, I know I did not get hear everything about the VPs meeting, but I did get to hear their updates from Ina and Stephanie planning to educate chapters on hazing to Sam and her Recruitment team transforming our website.. So exciting!
I think what I am really impressed with is our Delegates. Usually Delegates feel like they are just messengers, and that their position is not really valued so what they do during "productive time" is have a discussion with Tyler and me. This week we talked about what a PHA Delegate is? Is the position valued? and what is PHA?
I think it was so cool to listen to the delegates say that their chapters did not perceive their position as valued until lately when we they said how they were able to say how PHA meetings have transformed and how now they have a role in leading the B weeks. Just listening to them talk, you can tell that they are excited and feel like they have a purpose at the meetings. They started talking about what else needs to change in the community and how they perceive PHA as the GLUE that holds the COMMUNITY together. How cool! So if you cannot tell, I am really really excited!
I think that the affect that delegates are having are apparent in how many volunteers we are sending to read in the City Schools this Thursday and Friday. We have 58 women going to read to children!!!
I know I believed that we could create CHANGE in our positions, but I would never had imagined that we could generate such momentum so fast. Granted, we do not have the whole community on board yet, but with our FOUR EXEC BOARDS, and the Panhellenic Delegates/Directors starting to want to create this change I do think it is possible!
Maybe our IDEAL FRATERNITY/SORORITY LIFE won't be just a project but an OUTCOME of all our hard work and dedication to fraternity/sorority life.....
Now, I know I did not get hear everything about the VPs meeting, but I did get to hear their updates from Ina and Stephanie planning to educate chapters on hazing to Sam and her Recruitment team transforming our website.. So exciting!
I think what I am really impressed with is our Delegates. Usually Delegates feel like they are just messengers, and that their position is not really valued so what they do during "productive time" is have a discussion with Tyler and me. This week we talked about what a PHA Delegate is? Is the position valued? and what is PHA?
I think it was so cool to listen to the delegates say that their chapters did not perceive their position as valued until lately when we they said how they were able to say how PHA meetings have transformed and how now they have a role in leading the B weeks. Just listening to them talk, you can tell that they are excited and feel like they have a purpose at the meetings. They started talking about what else needs to change in the community and how they perceive PHA as the GLUE that holds the COMMUNITY together. How cool! So if you cannot tell, I am really really excited!
I think that the affect that delegates are having are apparent in how many volunteers we are sending to read in the City Schools this Thursday and Friday. We have 58 women going to read to children!!!
I know I believed that we could create CHANGE in our positions, but I would never had imagined that we could generate such momentum so fast. Granted, we do not have the whole community on board yet, but with our FOUR EXEC BOARDS, and the Panhellenic Delegates/Directors starting to want to create this change I do think it is possible!
Maybe our IDEAL FRATERNITY/SORORITY LIFE won't be just a project but an OUTCOME of all our hard work and dedication to fraternity/sorority life.....
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
this is pretty funny!! this little girl is crying over justin bieber...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTCm8tdHkfI
40 hours in a day...
So first i just want point out that this is the second time that i am writing this blog... as the first time, i posted and it did not save or something and thus it is gone:(
oh well, what i was blogging about is how there just are not enough hours in the day! i mean wouldnt it be so much better if we had 40 hours in a day? i say that, but i feel like we would just find some way to fill those up too... like last night, we had our exec meeting, and we had so much to discuss and we still didnt get to everything. so it got me thinking about how can we run these meeting more efficently? it makes me think about the 10 minute team that we read in my business management class earlier in the quarter. it talks about how meetings should be 10 minutes of updates and then the remaninder of the meeting should be focused on the development of the org and action.
Now, i do think that pha is getting better at this b/c each week we discuss the topic that we will be discussing at our wed meetings with our directors and delegates. like this week we talked about service/philanthropy.
so i guess what i am asking is how much of annoucements could we cut out to keep everyone informed of what each ind. is doing but keep it short enough that we could focus on our next action steps and value discussions? i brought up maybe meeting up with our exec board one-on-one but then later i was thinking well they already do that with tyler so wouldnt that be redundant? maybe it would be just best to have everyone just do updates for 2 minutes. so that would technically be 10 min (10 min team) then the remainder of the time could be spent on action and value discussion..
i think it is something to consider, but with as fast as the days go, i guess i want us to be as efficient and productive as we can b/c before we now it our 52 weeks will pass by before our eyes...
oh well, what i was blogging about is how there just are not enough hours in the day! i mean wouldnt it be so much better if we had 40 hours in a day? i say that, but i feel like we would just find some way to fill those up too... like last night, we had our exec meeting, and we had so much to discuss and we still didnt get to everything. so it got me thinking about how can we run these meeting more efficently? it makes me think about the 10 minute team that we read in my business management class earlier in the quarter. it talks about how meetings should be 10 minutes of updates and then the remaninder of the meeting should be focused on the development of the org and action.
Now, i do think that pha is getting better at this b/c each week we discuss the topic that we will be discussing at our wed meetings with our directors and delegates. like this week we talked about service/philanthropy.
so i guess what i am asking is how much of annoucements could we cut out to keep everyone informed of what each ind. is doing but keep it short enough that we could focus on our next action steps and value discussions? i brought up maybe meeting up with our exec board one-on-one but then later i was thinking well they already do that with tyler so wouldnt that be redundant? maybe it would be just best to have everyone just do updates for 2 minutes. so that would technically be 10 min (10 min team) then the remainder of the time could be spent on action and value discussion..
i think it is something to consider, but with as fast as the days go, i guess i want us to be as efficient and productive as we can b/c before we now it our 52 weeks will pass by before our eyes...
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