The RussCo Idea Buffet

Fraternities revert to using their non-letter names

The Idea: Many organizations such as my own, Sigma Nu Fraternity actually have other names that they have gone by in their history.  For example one of the original names of Sigma Nu was actually, Legion of Honor. 

The Background: As there has been for so many years, a very distinct stereotype exists about greek letter organizations, namely fraternities and sororities.  So much so that I fear sometimes this stereotype becomes the brand itself to some groups and instead of trying to fight that image they actually try to live it.  So why not revert back to some of the names our groups had before they took on the greek letters.  While the letters do mean something, a phrase in Greek that is meaningful to our members, the name, Legion of Honor, I think speaks even clearer to what we are really about.     

Use a rank/degree system to guide development of members for life

The Idea:  Most fraternities, including my own, Sigma Nu proclaim that membership is for life.  However after graduation there is very little to do as a member, unless you work with a local undergraduate chapter.  To organize and guide the alumni's development process after college, we could develop a degree/rank system similar to what the Freemason's use.  I believe there are 32 different degrees or levels of Freemasonry that can literally take a lifetime to achieve them all.  We could create a similar setup based on volunteer/mentorship with undergraduates, further study of the history/ritual of the organization, donations made (time & money), positions within the different alumni organizations, etc. 

The Possibilities:  Some of the different martial arts systems use coloured belts to signify levels of accomplishment.  The colours are not random but symbolic of where the student is in their development.  For example the 2nd belt is the orange belt.  The color orange       signifies the changes of Autumn, as the student's mind and body begin to       develop and grow as a result of their training.  Then the progression of belts leads to the black belt.  The black often signifying that they now are entering the unknown world of the art and it is now their job to advance and explore new parts of the system.  The point is that after a certain level with any degree system a fraternity may use, it could signify that they are no longer just accomplishing goals but also responsible for advancing the fraternity overall. 

Also when electing the alumni leaders of the whole fraternity on a national level, a certain degree level could be a possible prerequisite. 

Online lectures by successful alumni

The Idea:  A fraternity or university alumni association could leverage some of their successful alumni by asking them to give a lecture via Microsoft Live Meeting, GoTo Meeting, or similar tool.

The Possibilities:  The range of ideas could be massive, from business to government to sports.  The alumni giving the lectures would be happy to be asked to give something other than their money.  The alumni groups organizing these could require that you must be a donor to attend the meeting and use that as a way to get more people giving. 

Focus on greek staffers to get the Collegiate Housing & Infrastructure Act passed

The Idea:  Instead of lobbying congressmen to pass the Collegiate Housing & Infrastructure act, we should instead focus on staff members that are greek alumni. 

The Background:  I would be willing to bet that well over 50% of the congressmen on Capitol Hill have staff members that are greek.  More importantly, from my experience in meeting with so many staff members for fund raising for Sigma Nu, I know that these staff members often are the ones that make the decisions for the Congressmen on how they will vote.  I bet if each of the NIC, NPC, & NPHC groups were to run their databases to see who they have listed on file that work on Capitol Hill it would be mind boggling.  Then just by a simple effort to contact each of these staffers and ask to speak with them instead of the Congressmen we could easily pick up dozens of sponsors and supporters for the bill.

The Possibility:  Once an effort is made to reach out to these greek staffers and get their Congressmen to sponsor the bill we could easily find someone to then introduce the bill into congress. 

Fraternity: Ritual study groups similar to bible studies

The Idea:  Create weekly ritual study groups within each fraternity/sorority that takes a look each meeting at a different part of the ritual such as a history, an oath, a symbol, etc.  They could meet in small groups and function much like a bible study group to discuss these meanings.

The Background:  As an employee of Sigma Nu Fraternity's National Office for over 5 years I know all to well that our chapters do not always have a solid understanding of our history, principles, or ritual.  As I am sure happens in most other groups the only time our members see the ritual is at an initiation ceremony once a semester.  But it is in the ritual that you really get to know what it would mean to be a Sigma Nu.

The Possibilities:  Whether they take the approach to study the ritual like a bible study or engage and debate it like a literary society, the end result is that the ritual comes alive.  This could be a very easy and virtually zero cost method to refocus greek organizations back to their original purposes, which shocking to many is not to be the party house for everyone on campus.  Yes back in the 1800's when many of our organizations were started their purpose had nothing to do with parties.  The other great piece about this is that this could start with a pledge class, a whole chapter, an alumni group, or an alumni club.  No books need to be purchased, everyone already has them, you just need to show up.