By Adam Cantley, assistant director of fraternity and sorority life, University of Delaware
As a self-admitted NPC fan boy, I was excited to learn that the Executive Committee would be visiting the University of Delaware on Saint Patrick’s Day. I began lobbying for this visit in December knowing that they would be a short drive down the road in Baltimore while attending the NASPA conference. When I finally received confirmation of the visit, I began piecing together the schedule with the help of the executive office. We had three main priorities, connecting with students, connecting with various administrators and a group photo. Let’s be honest, no one loves a group photo like Adam Cantley.
After a brief introduction to campus, our community and quick tour of our council offices and resource room, we hosted a breakfast meeting for the committee. It allowed them the opportunity to connect with the deputy provost, the vice president of student life, the dean of students and other student involvement administrators. It was exciting to see the Executive Committee having honest conversations with campus administration. Topics were being batted around the table that included managing organizational growth, priorities for women in education and where NPC fits in the future of higher education. Everyone at the table, including our current College Panhellenic president, was seen as a valued partner. As a professional, it reenergized me knowing that a variety of people were in the conversation and could be an ally to me in the future.
We then moved into the meeting with our collegians and campus advisors. The meeting started with a roll call and NPC Chairman, Jean Mrasek, encouraging women to “Throw what you know!” Then each NPC Executive Committee member shared part of her personal sorority story. It was inspiring to hear these women explain why they joined and continue to advocate for the Panhellenic experience. Each story had a different twist. Whether they were a legacy, told people they would never join or simply signed up for recruitment to meet new people, each one provided a moment to connect with an undergraduate in the room. Then they let those women share their stories. It was great for me as an advisor to hear why our women are inspired to be involved at the University of Delaware. As advisors, we get wrapped up in the rules, rosters and phone calls. We forget we are giving women the ability to have an experience that is truly unique and life changing if it is done well.
Next the chairman called our women to action. She spoke of the power of these women to come together and affect change in not only the fraternity and sorority community, but on all of campus. This was by far the most powerful part of the visit. It challenged collegians to not accept the status quo and to address problems in our community. As an advisor, I talk to them all the time about their collective power as a community. Seeing these five women highlight that message and highlight lifetime membership truly drove that home. I have already seen our women reference this in meetings and in program development.
If ever presented with the opportunity, I would encourage all my colleagues to host one of these visits. It assists you in building a connection with upper administration, but more importantly, it highlights to collegians the true power of leveraging their membership on campus and throughout their life. Finally, it provides you with an amazing group photo that you can immediately blast throughout all your social media channels.
