After a long summer, the brothers of Georgia Delta’s Sig Ep chapter have returned to campus; but not empty handed. Four undergraduate brothers attended this year’s 58th Grand Chapter Conclave in San Antonio, TX. Flying out of Atlanta on a red eye had the undergraduates exhausted, however, quickly after arriving at the Grand Hyatt, the group fed off the energy of countless brothers at orientation. Georgia Delta’s executive board came to the River Walk eager to meet members from other chapters and learn how to better our programming; little did we know how enriching our experience would be.
Eric Saul, the current president of Georgia Delta, served as our delegate for the trip. He partook in legislation, learning a lot about altering/adding certain bylaws to our national chapter. When asked about his time at the Grand Chapter Conclave, Eric said, “Our experience at Conclave was awesome. Not only was it a bonding trip for our executive board, it was valuable to see how involved members of Sig Ep are in legislation. Sig Ep is truly a student- run organization.” Eric also mentioned the new legislation passed regarding revised rituals. “One thing I am super excited for is the proposed, and now passed ritual changes. In summary, the changes combine the Sigma and Epsilon Rituals in order to minimize tiered membership. Our chapter’s culture is strong, and this does not affect GA Delta specifically, but it gives new chapters a better platform to do things the right way!”
The other members of the GA Delta Executive board also had a blast at Conclave. From attending programing, meeting brothers from other chapters, and exploring San Antonio, each looks back on the experience fondly. Olen Anderson, our chapter’s alternate, said, “I am very thankful for my conclave experience as a first timer. The opportunity to connect with brothers from across the country and see our fraternity operate at a national level is something I will truly never forget. I can’t wait to attend Conclave for years to come!”
As you can see, GA Delta’s chapter representatives loved the Conclave experience, but was certainly one more thing they had hoped for from their trip to the River Walk: winning the Buchanan Cup. As the awards ceremony took place, the undergraduate representatives eagerly awaited for their chapter’s name to be called for the prestigious award. As time passed, the brothers felt dejected that the application they had worked so hard on might not be enough for the award at this year’s Conclave. Fortunately enough, the brother’s worries went away instantly after seeing a picture of last fall’s Sigma class. Needless to say, they were ecstatic, and the chapter looks forward to carrying this momentum into this fall semester!