Alpha Sigma Chapter
Alpha Sigma Chapter (Founded 4 November 1991; Reactivated 20 April 1998) is located at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. The chapter was refounded by Alpha Kappa Chapter alumnus Rebecca "Becky" Halloran and is a member of the Capitol Region.
Contents
Chapter History
Founding
In the spring of 1997, Becky Halloran, from Alpha Kappa Chapter, moved to Richmond and found that there had once been a chapter at Virginia Commonwealth University that had been inactive since 1993. The more she thought about it the more it made sense to reactivate the chapter.
Re-Activation
Getting Alpha Sigma re-started was a little more difficult than Rebecca had expected. Not being a VCU student or employee, getting lists of eligible potential brothers was difficult and even once a list of all students with a 3.0 GPA was obtained the graduate students, first semester freshmen, second semester seniors, and special students had to be weeded out.
On March 23, 1998, the first of several organizational meetings was held in the University Commons Theatre. On March 30, 1998, the first group of officers for the reactivated Alpha Sigma was elected. The elections were like pulling teeth since many were unsure of what they were getting into with the fraternity, much less jumping right into a leadership position.
Finally on April 20, the Charter class of the reactivated Alpha Sigma was inducted after taking the membership exam. The induction ceremony was the first official ceremony for the new Alpha Sigma. Rebecca and several visiting brothers from Alpha Kappa performed the induction ceremony for the Charter class of 33 new Brothers and welcomed them to the Phi Sigma Pi circle of Brotherhood with the fraternity grip, greeting, and song. And from that moment on the rest is Alpha Sigma History!
The Active Chapter
The Chapter currently has 21 Brothers, all of whom are active in Phi Sigma Pi and other campus organizations from athletics to honor societies to service groups.
Chapter Symbols
The Chapter colors are purple, gold, and white.
The Chapter mascot is Siggy the frog.
The Chapter's 2007-2008 Rush slogan is: My Fraternity Has GIRLS!
Chapter Chant
At the beginning of every meeting the entire Chapter stands to sing "Brothers Are We" and yell...
A-S that's us, We leave the rest back in the dust! A-S that's why we dominate Phi Sigma Pi, A-S it's true, we lead the pack at VCU, And if you can't respect that- You can kiss our A-S-S, Biatch!
Executive Board
Alpha Sigma currently has a nine position executive board which meets every week before regular business and initiate meetings. Officers are elected each spring to serve the fraternity during the following academic year. In 2006, due to the dwindling size of the Chapter and need to re-energize the recruitment process the Chapter split the Recruitment Advisor office into a co-chair position. In 2008, this action was modified to create two separate positions: Recruitment Advisor and Public Relations Advisor, to boost the chapters presence on campus.
2008-2009 Alpha Sigma Executive Board
- President - Jet Aiken
- Vice President - Emily Dugan
- Parliamentarian - Andrew Harris
- Secretary - Michelle England
- Treasurer - Laura Bacon
- Historian - Annastasia Alexander
- Recruitment Advisor- Phillip Vaughan
- Public Relations Advisor-Christian Wright
- Initiate Advisor - Caitlin "Cat" Canney
Past Chapter Presidents
- Kristen A. Fox (2007-2008)
- Rose L. Durbin (2006-2007)
- Raphaella Teschner (2005-2006)
- Rose L. Durbin (2004-2005)
Chapter Events & Activities
Founder's Weekend
Alpha Sigma celebrates the National Fraternity's founding with a Brotherhood Dinner and the Chapter's re-activation with a Formal Dance, service event and fellowship festivities with Brothers, Alumni and other Chapters.
Fundraising For Fun
The Alpha Sigma Chapter has recently begun developing a relationship with the campus sport/concert venue the Alltel Pavilion at the Stuart C. Siegel Center. Every semester the Brothers work a concession stand inside the stadium and serve customers hot dogs and popcorn, while showing their Phi Sigma Pi pride and being Rowdy Rams cheering on the VCU teams.
The Brothers also frequently work at Diversity Thrift, a local thrift shop that supports the Richmond Gay Community Foundation- an organization dedicated to improving the lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered people through funding and education. Brothers work for a fraction of the cost of part-time employees, thereby conducting a service for the store and making a little profit while we're at it!
Semesters of Service
Alpha Sigma's most recent service chair has set up a system of themed service events for the semester, to give the Chapter a service focus and direction. The Fall 2007 semester hosted events focusing on the impacts of poverty with events like:
- Teach For America Coin Drive
- Volunteering at the Central Virginia Food Bank
- Habitat for Humanity Volunteer Orientation
- Feeding the Freedom House Respite Shelter
The biggest event thus far has been a Military holiday drive to send four soldiers stockings overseas and adopt a stateside family with a parent deployed for Christmas. The Chapter chose to adopt a family in Reaford, NC, with four children from ages 7 to 15 and a father currently serving in Afghanistan. The Brothers graciously donated to a Family Gift Fund to buy the children one big present- a Nintendo Wii! When advertised on campus, students, alumni, and faculty donated everything from Chapstick and sunscreen to Kool-Aid and magazines to send in the holiday carepackages to Iraq. Due to the immense positve response of the Brotherhood and the campus community, the Chapter is considering making this an annual service event.
Cultural Enrichment Through Scholarship
Alpha Sigma takes extreme pride in their urban location and the immense cultural diversity on campus. The Chapter celebrates this demographic with a variety of Scholarship field trips to events, including:
- VCU Symphony Orchestra
- Virginia Holocaust Museum
- Arabic Film Festival
- Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
- VCU French Film Festival
Social Cures for Stress
The Alpha Sigma Chapter recognizes the importance of all three foundations for the tripod including socializing! The Chapter works to host events throughout the semester to give Brothers an excuse to take a step away from the books and bring friends to hang out with the Brotherhood for a good old dose of fun. This semester the Chapter has focused on stress relieving events like late night milkshake runs, movie dates, stress management night and dancing (gotta love those endorphins)!
Notable Alumni
- Christy Marie Borbidge (Charter Class)
- Jason Walters (Alpha Class)
- Bernita Eddings (Alpha Class)
- Author of the Chapter Chant
- Lauren Bradshaw (Omicron Class)
- Vice President (2005-2007)
- Rose Durbin (Lambda Class)
- Vice President (2005-2007)
Chapter Honors and Awards
National Awards
University Awards
- None to date
Other Awards
- Richard Cecil and Clauda Pennock Todd Tripod Scholarship Recipient (Jet Aiken - 2008)
