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| Delta Zetas attending UIFI - Taylor Hansen (Xi Psi, Grand Valley), Bridget Coppola (Xi Psi, Grand Valley), Annie Black (Gamma Delta, Penn State), Amanda Devane (Pi Beta, Hartford), Chelsea Clements (Gamma Kappa, Kent State), and Jessa Knust (Iota, Iowa) |
Leadership. Values. Character. Ritual. By the end of the week, these four words hung in the front of the dining room at the Alpha Omicron Pi house at Indiana University. If I had to describe what I learned in my five days at the Undergraduate Interfraternity Institute (UIFI), those four words easily sum it up. The North-American Interfraternity Conference offers 11 sessions throughout the summer of UIFI to any student involved in fraternity/sorority life. I had the honor of receiving a scholarship from the Delta Zeta Foundation to attend UIFI and I could not be more grateful. Without the Foundation’s assistance I would not have been able to have this once in a lifetime experience.
The week began with breaking into small groups and getting to know each other through team building activities. The next four days then consisted of large and small group meetings. These meetings were full of debate, reflection, and the sharing of ideas. We discussed the negative stereotypes that are placed on fraternities and sororities and what we can do to eliminate them. We were then given time to personally reflect on our chapters and come up with a plan on how we can make them better. On the third day we put one of our values, service, into action and spent time volunteering at various charities throughout the city of Bloomington. One of the most powerful as well as my favorite activities was one evening when we shared our creeds and mottos.I realized that although the words are different for each organization, there are common themes that all motivate us to be better women and men. The seven Delta Zetas in my session stood and recited our Creed and I was truly moved and listened to our words with a new perspective.
The two parts of UIFI that were most valuable to me were the people I met and the new perspective I was given. This experience gave me the opportunity to meet and network with incredible facilitators as well as with other students. The facilitators were all inspiring and completely dedicated to bettering the lives of fraternity men and sorority woman. Each had different ideas and perspectives to offer, and their advice about how to elevate our chapters was invaluable. Connecting with other collegiate members was just as rewarding. Being around students with similar goals and expectations for their organizations was inspiring. Through encouragement, we inspired each other to make a difference. I’m confident that I will remain in contact with these people for the rest of my life and will seek their advice and encouragement in times of need. Attending UIFI also gave me the confidence that, although I am one person, I still have the ability to make a difference on not only my Delta Zeta chapter, but on the entire fraternity/sorority community. This newfound perspective has really sparked me to recommit to the values that Delta Zeta instills in its members. UIFI has inspired me to inspire my sisters to rethink what it means to walk in the light of the flame.
Thank you again to the Delta Zeta Foundation. Without your scholarship I would have never had this amazing opportunity. I hope that more and more Delta Zetas are able to have this experience. It truly does change your life.
In the Flame,
Chelsea Clements
Gamma Kappa
Kent State University
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