november 2012 e-communicator
DESCRIPTION
Mostly monthly e-Communicator of Phi Delta Chi Pharmacy FraternityTRANSCRIPT
Edited by GVPC Michael Nelson
e-CommunicatorPHI DELTA CHI PHARMACY FRATERNITY
November 2012
GRAND PRESIDENTAmy Valdez (Beta Iota)12663 SW Springwood DriveTigard, OR [email protected]
GRAND PAST PRESIDENTBrandon Sucher (Beta Rho)3333 Regis Blvd, H-28Denver, CO [email protected]
GRAND VICE PRESIDENT FOR COLLEGIATE AFFAIRSLexie Turner (Alpha Iota)255 Patroon Creek Blvd #1109 Albany, NY [email protected]
GRAND VICE PRESIDENT FOR ALUMNI AFFAIRSLindsay Watson (Beta Nu)1160 N. Quincy St. Apt #207Arlington, VA [email protected]
GRAND VICE PRESIDENT FOR COMMUNICATIONSMichael Nelson (Theta)3333 Regis Blvd, H-28Denver, CO [email protected]
GRAND VICE PRESIDENT FOR STUDENT AFFAIRSRyan Costantino (Eta)23A Smith St.Boston MA, [email protected]
EXECUTIVE DIRECTORKenny Walkup (Alpha Upsilon)116 N Lafayette, Suite BSouth Lyon, MI [email protected]
In This Issue...• GrandPresidentAmyValdez: Founders’DayGreetings
• Communications:UpdateonWebsiteDevelopmentandThe Communicator
• GreatLakesRegionNews: BrothersearnIndianaPharmacistsAssociationawards
• AlumniAffairsUpdate: ExaminingthePastandOrganizingfortheFuture
Happy Founders’ Day 2012!
•PhiDeltaChiWebsite
•PhiDeltaChiMerchandise
•PhiDeltaChiJewelry
•PayAlumniDuesOnline
•LinkstoChapters
•NationalOffice
•RegionalOfficerApplication
•AlumniFoundationsProgram
•PhiDeltaChiFlickrPhotostream
•UpdatedPledgeManual
Fraternity Links
Eleven Brothers ~ November 2, 1883
Charles Edward Bond
Franklin Herbert Frazee
Llewellyn Hall Gardner
Calvin Pomeroy Godfrey
Adolph Gustave Hoffman
Arthur Gilliam Hopper
Charles F. Hueber
George Pawling Leamon
Arthur Sidney Rogers
Azor Thurston
Albert Tenney Waggoner
e-Communicator November 2012Page 2www.PhiDeltaChi.org
FOUNDERS’ DAY GREETINGS
Grand President Amy Valdez (Beta Iota)[email protected]
You are all familiar with the old saying that “history repeats itself.” Why do we “repeat history” and celebrate Founders’ Day?
First of all, I would say that Founders’ Day is a commemoration day.
It is a day for remembering, reflecting, and paying tribute, by being grateful for our Brotherhood. In many ways Founders’ Day is similar to Thanksgiving, Independence Day, or Labor Day, except that it applies only to our own Brothers instead of to the whole nation. All of these days are commemorative days. The facts of history which surround each of them remains the same and we repeat the facts and events each year to remind us of what we have to be thankful for. We try to pay tribute to those who “blazed the trail” for us, so to speak. Going even deeper than remembering, I believe Founders’ Day is also a time for us to be reminded of our responsibilities. It is all well and good for us to recall the details of how Phi Delta Chi was started and to remember with nostalgia the early members who wrote our constitution to which we still adhere, but unless we take action, it doesn’t mean much. So Founders’ Day comes along with a special reminder that we do have a responsibility to live our mission, vision, and values everyday. It’s a time when we rededicate ourselves to fulfill those responsibilities. This is what separates us, I believe, from other groups or clubs meeting once or twice a month to work on projects. We live the spirit, the glow, that special certain something that sets Phi Delta Chi apart from all other organizations, and
gives to each one of us that unique, yet humble pride we feel in being a Phi Delta Chi Brother.
It may seem strange that all of that could have been planned and written so long ago and still be good for us today. After all, things do change and 1883 was over a hundred and twenty years ago. Things change. People don’t! All of the principles apply to us each as individuals and as long as we choose to live them, we further Phi Delta Chi’s mission. If the Founders could come back today, they would probably be very surprised to see how large the Brotherhood has become and to see what we are now. Although they might be surprised, and undoubtedly pleased, they probably would have expected us to make that kind of progress, too. Evolution and growth mean life to an organization. Take this time to honor our Founders as well as the charter members of your own Chapters. Without their vision, our growth would not be possible!
Alterum, Alterius, Auxilio, Eget!
Amy Valdez, R.Ph.
Grand President
Additional information about the Founders is available at the Phi Delta Chi website.
Brothers,
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GRAND VICE PRESIDENT FOR COMMUNICATIONS MICHAEL NELSON (THETA)[email protected]
Website Update
Work continues on creation of our new website. We have passed our original planned launch date of August 2012, but for very good reasons.
During the process of developing our new site, the need for additional functionality was clear if we were to meet our goal of launching a state-of-the-art new website. As a result, it is taking longer than expected for the additional work to be complete. At this point we anticipate a launch date of around January 1, 2013.
Examples of the additional functionality include:
• a “members only” section for Collegiate and Alumni Brothers;
• an alumni locator interactive map;
• a virtual museum for Phi Delta Chi artifacts;
• online archival of chapter publications; and
• conversion of the Achievement Award Program to a 100% online database-driven process.
Fall 2012 Issue of The Communicator
The fall issue will be arriving in your mailbox a little later this year, near Thanksgiving Day. This issue will feature our 2011-2012 Chapter Reports and the 2010-2011 Distinguished Alumni Reports. The 2011-2012 Distinguished Alumni Reports will be covered in the Winter issue, in addition to LDS 2012 coverage.
Fraternally,
Michael Nelson
Three Phi Delta Chi Brothers were recognized at the Indiana Pharmacists Alliance 2012 Awards Banquet on September 21, 2012, at French Lick Springs Resort & Casino in French Lick, Indiana:
• Joseph N. Allegretti, R.Ph. (Alpha Phi Alum) received the Joseph E. McSoley Pharmacist of the Year Award;
• Tyler D. Hensley, Pharm.D. Candidate (Alpha Phi Collegiate) received the Outstanding Student of the Year award; and
• JD Faulkner, Pharm.D. (Tau Alum) received the Distinguished Young Pharmacist award.
Great Lakes Region News
ALPHA • MU • TAU • ALPHA UPSILON • ALPHA PHI • BETA GAMMA • BETA TAU • GAMMA ZETA • GAMMA PI
(L to R) Joseph N. Allegretti, Tyler D. Hensley, and JD Faulkner
e-Communicator November 2012Page 4www.PhiDeltaChi.org
If you attended Grand Council in 2011… or 2009… or 2007, you are aware that there have been significant alumni issues surfacing related to our constitutional structure. After years of discussions, motions, amendments, and tabling, we are taking a step back to examine the Phi Delta Chi Constitution and Bylaws and determine an infrastructure that will move alumni affairs forward in a way that promotes organizing and engaging our Brothers after graduation. If you were not at these conferences, if you are a new Brother of Phi Delta Chi, or if you need a quick refresher, I urge you to read on to get the important background on this topic and details about how we are working to find solutions.
The Inciting Incident
The Texas Alumni Chapter (TAC) was chartered on April 14, 2002 and was given a vote in the Grand Council in 2003. TAC is Phi Delta Chi’s first, and only, recognized alumni organization based on locality, meaning it did not originate from an affiliation with a single Collegiate Chapter. The constitution does not provide clear guidance about these types of groups, and there have been many policy topics and discussions about whether TAC and other similar locality-based associations should be considered “Alumni Chapters” and receive a separate vote in the Grand Council. Granting them a vote could mean that Alumni Brothers who are part of locality-based organizations have their opinion represented twice – once by the locality-based organization’s delegate and again by the alumni delegatae associated with the Collegiate Chapter where they were
initiated. Read below for more details about what the constitution says related to these issues.
The Constitutional Background
Forming Recognized Alumni Groups: Article VI Section 1 of the Phi Delta Chi Constitution states that “when the number of Alumni Brothers of any Collegiate Chapter shall have reached ten or more, they may form an Alumni Chapter” and must create a constitution and bylaws that are not in conflict with those of the Fraternity. It goes on to state, “a similar association may be formed by ten or more Alumni of different Collegiate Chapters residing in one locality.” The main point of the ongoing debate has been relating to these “similar associations”, mainly if they are distinct from Alumni Chapters and what the voting rights are of each of these organized alumni groups.
Purpose of Alumni Chapters: Article VI, Section 1 of the Constitution describes that “the purpose of Alumni Chapters include supporting the Fraternity and its activities and assisting Collegiate Brothers and Collegiate Chapters.” There is no description of the purpose of the “similar associations,” which fuels the confusion about whether these group are distinct from Alumni Chapters.
Voting Rights: Article III, Section 2 describes the composition of voting delegates of the Grand Council. It states, “the Grand Council shall consist of the Executive Council, plus one Delegate from each Collegiate Chapter, one Alumni Delegate from each Chapter not having a duly organized Alumni Chapter, and one Delegate from
each duly organized Alumni Chapter, each Brother having one vote.” The issues:
• The phrasing that Collegiate Chapters without organized Alumni Chapters have an alumni vote infers that voting rights for alumni are linked to their respective Collegiate Chapters.
• The phrase “each Brother having one vote” can be interpreted to mean two things:
ˏ That each Brother serving as a delegate can only vote on behalf of one group of Brothers, or
ˏ That each Brother of the Frater-nity is represented by only one delegate. This would create ques-tions around the voting rights of a locality-based association because Brothers of that group would already be represented by the alumni vote associated with their respective Collegiate Chapter.
Delegates: Bylaws Chapter 5, Number 4 further clarifies the alumni vote: “To represent the interests of Alumni Brothers, the voting alumni delegate at regional and national meetings shall be determined as follows. Priority for designation as the delegate of an Alumni Chapter will go first to an alumni Brother initiated at that Chapter, then to an alumni Brother authorized in advance in writing by officers of a chartered Alumni Chapter. Another Alumni Brother may be seated as the Alumni Chapter’s delegate with the approval of the Executive Council acting as a Credentials Committee.” Let’s break this statement apart to look at the areas of confusion:
ALUMNI AFFAIRS: Examining thE Past and Organizing fOr thE futurE
Grand Vice President for Alumni Affairs Lindsay Watson (Beta Nu)[email protected]
e-Communicator November 2012Page 5www.PhiDeltaChi.org
• “Priority for designation as the delegate of an Alumni Chapter will go first to an alumni Brother initiated at that Chapter…” The statement “initiated at that Chapter” creates a gray area because Brothers are not initiated at Alumni Chapters. This may again infer that Alumni Chapters are based on a respective Collegiate Chapter, which creates a distinction from “similar associations” based on locality.
• “…then to an alumni Brother authorized in advance in writing by officers of a chartered Alumni Chapter.” This allows chartered Alumni Chapters to designate a delegate, even if that person was not imitated at “that Chapter.” When standing alone, this phrase may indicate that an organized alumni group based on locality and considered to be an Alumni Chapter may designate a Brother to represent them as a voting delegate. However, when taken in context as part of the previous statement, the term “Alumni Chapter” was linked to being initiated at the respective Collegiate Chapter – directly in conflict with the fact that “similar associations” based on locality are not directly linked to a particular Collegiate Chapter. Does this indicate a distinction between the associations and Alumni Chapters? Who knows.
• “Another Alumni Brother may be seated as the Alumni Chapter’s delegate with the approval of the Executive Council acting as a Credentials Committee.” This statement allows the Executive Council to settle disputes related to who is to be seated as the delegate and to use their discretion to grant permission for an alumni Brother to be seated to represent an Alumni Chapter.
Note: There are various other areas of the Constitution and Bylaws that reference Alumni Chapters and aspects of alumni affairs. Some could be controversial and others are relatively clear.
Summary of Policy Topics
Mounting conversations at Grand Council and Regional Conferences led to policy topics being created to gather input from all chapters and a variety of Brothers on the issues of alumni affairs. Most recently in 2009, the Executive Council was instructed to not charter any further locality-based alumni associations until voting rights were clarified. Two proposed options were brought forward with specific constitutional language revisions at the 2010 Regional Conferences and each was met with varying levels of support:
• Proposal One: Under this proposal, the Fraternity Constitution and Bylaws will be amended to clarify the classification and voting privileges of Alumni Associations with the added provision preventing Alumni Associations from the potential of dominating the vote of Grand Council in the future.
• Proposal Two: Under this proposal, the Fraternity Constitution and Bylaws will be amended to remove the voting privileges of Alumni Associations with the added provision allowing Alumni Associations to have a non-voting delegate seated at the Grand Council with the privilege of being able to speak from the floor, but without a vote.
At Grand Council 2011, the Alumni Affairs Committee moved to accept Proposal 2. There was an amendment to allow Alumni Association members to be seated as voting delegates for their affiliated Chapter’s alumni only if there was nobody else to be seated.
The amendment was approved, but the overall motion failed because it did not receive 3/4th majority required for a constitutional amendment to be adopted. In summary, everyone was confused (and very tired) at the end of the discussion – did not approving the motion as amended mean that locality-based organizations have a vote in the Grand Council and that more could be chartered? Were voting rights really clarified?
A more complete summary of policy topics will be available in a future edition of the e-Communicator.
Developing a Solution
It is time to figure this out, and I believe that we have been approaching this issue wrong. The first step is to identify the right questions we should be asking about alumni affairs, including what are our alumni’s needs, why do they want to organize, and what structure would allow them to remain engaged as they move between different phases of their lives. Once these questions are answered, we have to look at what the constitution and bylaws need to say in order to make that structure a reality.
To accomplish this, a group of Brothers has been convened as an Alumni Constitution and Bylaws Committee. Over the next months, this committee of diverse opinions will try to reach consensus about these questions and will put forward a potential plan for constitutional changes needed to make them a reality. The goal of the committee is to develop consensus around what Phi Delta Chi’s constitution and bylaws need to say to allow our alumni affairs to exist and grow in the best way for our Brothers and brotherhood.
All constitution and bylaws changes will aim accomplish the following things (either directly or indirectly):
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• optimize our organizational struc-ture;
• increase alumni involvement and foster brotherhood on a local level;
• increase alumni participation at the national and regional level; and
• increase dues revenue to the na-tional office.
The proposed constitution and bylaws changes will be supported by documented reasons provided by the
Committee, and Collegiate and Alumni Brothers will have the opportunity to review these proposed changes and provide comment in advance of Grand Council. Refinements will be made as needed to optimize the planned path forward.
If you have thoughts on this issue or have proposed solutions for the committee to consider, I invite you to send me an email describing your input.
Hopefully we can all work together to create the infrastructure our Brothers need to be supported and stay engaged after graduation.
AAAE,
Lindsay Watson