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NATIONAL HISTORY:
Carter Ashton Jenkens, the 18-year-old son of a minister, had been a student at Rutgers University, New Jersey, where he joined Chi Phi Fraternity. When he transferred to Richmond College in the Fall of 1900, he sought companions to take the place of the Chi Phi brothers he had left behind. He found five men who had already been drawn into a bond of friendship and urged them to join him in applying for a charter of Chi Phi at Richmond College. The request for a charter was forwarded to Chi Phi only to meet with refusal. Chi Phi felt that Richmond College was too small for the establishment of a Chi Phi chapter.
Wanting to maintain their fellowship, Carter Ashton Jenkens, Benjamin Gaw, William Carter, William Wallace, Thomas Wright, and William Phillips decided to form their own local fraternity.
The six original members found six others also searching for a campus fellowship neither the college campus nor the existing fraternity system could offer. The six new members were Lucian Cox, Richard Owens, Edgar Allen, Robert McFarland, Franklin Kerfoot, and Thomas McCaul.
The 12 met in October, 1901, in Gaw and Wallace's room on the third floor of Ryland Hall. They discussed the organization of a fraternity they would call "Sigma Phi." The exact date of this meeting is not known. However, the meeting was probably held before the middle of the month, because the 12 Founders are named as members on November 1, 1901, in the first printed roster of the Fraternity. Jenkens is listed as the first member.
A committee of Jenkens, Gaw, and Phillips was appointed to discuss plans for recognition with the faculty at the college. These men met with a faculty committee, where they were requested to present their case. The faculty committee requested that the new group explain:
The need for a new fraternity since chapters of five national fraternities were on the campus and the enrollment at Richmond College was less than 300.
The wisdom of this attempt to organize a new fraternity, with 12 members, seven of whom were seniors.
The right to name the new fraternity Sigma Phi, the name of an already established national fraternity.
Jenkens, Gaw, and Phillips answered:
"This fraternity will be different, it will be based on the love of God and the principle of peace through brotherhood. The number of members will be increased from the undergraduate classes. We will change the name to Sigma Phi Epsilon."
The turn of the 20th Century found Sigma Phi Epsilon poised for continued excellence and a renewed emphasis on the Fraternity’s mission, “Building Balanced Leaders for the World’s Communities.”
To answer the demand for leaders, SigEp pioneered the Leadership Continuum, the first such development program of its kind in the fraternity world. In 1999, with support from the Sigma Phi Epsilon Educational Foundation, the Carlson Leadership Academies were expanded to reach more undergraduate participants and heighten the undergraduate experience. Also in 1999, a new leadership experience, designed to develop leadership skills in SigEp’s most promising members, found its debut. Named after Frank J. Ruck, University of Michigan (Michigan Alpha), ’46, Past Grand President and President of the North-American Interfraternity Conference, the Ruck Leadership Institute teaches the few to lead the many.
To facilitate the needs of the newest brothers, 2001 saw the addition of the New Member Camp, now called EDGE, to the Leadership Continuum. This program, which focuses on acclimation to college and substance abuse prevention, has fast become a favorite event for all new SigEps. At the pinnacle of the Leadership Continuum, SigEp expanded its leadership experience out into the world. In May of 2001, the Sigma Phi Epsilon Educational Foundation began the Balanced Man Quest to Greece. A handful of Balanced Man Scholars are selected to travel to Greece each summer, sharing common readings and learning of the origin of the Balanced Man Ideal.
When combined, these four programs—the EDGE, Carlson Leadership Academy, Ruck Leadership Institute, and Balance Man Quest to Greece—create a formidable arena for undergraduates to hone their leadership skills. Truly, with 258 chapters, over 14,000 current undergraduates, and over 250,000 lifetime members, Sigma Phi Epsilon is Building Balanced Leaders for the World’s Communities.
LOCAL HISTORY:
It all started in February of 2000 with four men who were selected by National Representatives to bring back Sigma Phi Epsilon to the University of Maine. Those four men, Oscar Sparrow, Theodore Pietz, Alex Arroyo, and Joshua Higgins, set out to start something different. They didn't want to just, "start up a frat," they wanted to start a dream. Now, Sigma Phi Epsilon at the University of Maine has made that dream a reality. Shortly other men followed their idea Russel Peters, Gustavo Burkett, and Ian Muir set the stage for successful recruitment.
During the 2001 fall semester, SigEp at UMaine had grown to almost 40 men, and had got back their chapter house on College Ave. The thought of regaining their charter developed into something that could be accomplished in the near future. From there, a chartering committee was formed, headed by Oscar Sparrow and Gustavo Burkett. Their goal was to prepare a charter petition, and organize the events that would take place on chartering weekend. After many months of hard work, Burkett and Sparrow put the finishing touches on the petition, and sent it to Nationals to await their decision.
In the meantime, Maine Alpha kept up their hard work. They had attained a 3.17 average GPA, which was higher than any other fraternity on campus. They also were competitive in intramural sports, winning championships in racquetball, track, and soccer. Maine Alpha had done over 800 hours of community service, and had been very involved in other campus activities. In addition, Maine Alpha was well represented on campus by having six Order of Omega members, seven Sophomore Owls, three Senior Skulls, the Inter Fraternity Council President, the Residents On Campus President, and many student senators. Maine Alpha had also established an organization called B.E.A.R. (Brothers Engaged Against Rape), which is part of the National Men Can Stop Rape Program based in Washington, D.C. Through this organization, the Brothers of Maine Alpha organized events on campus dealing with Sexual Assault Awareness, and assisted other organizations on campus with other Rape and Sexual Assault Awareness events.
Aside from the extremely hard work and dedication Maine Alpha had put into their fraternity and their campus to achieve such high honors, they left time for social functions as well. Being a dry, Balanced Man Chapter, they held many dinners and socials with Sororities on campus, including a salsa dancing night, and a murder mystery dinner. They had attended many concerts and plays, and also held house lock-ins for only brothers. They also went on a day retreat to play paintball and have a barbecue. Altogether the Men of Maine Alpha were enjoying their first year back in the chapter house, while balancing demanding and challenging semesters.
About month after Sparrow had sent the petition to the National Sigma Phi Epsilon Headquarters, Maine Alpha received confirmation that they would be receiving their charter, and to go ahead with the plans for the chartering weekend. The weekend required a lot of planning, and so the chartering committee went back to work to organize one of the most memorable weekends the men of Maine Alpha would ever have.
After about three weeks of hard work and planning, the weekend of Friday, May 3rd had finally arrived, and the celebration of a lifetime was about to begin. They started off the weekend with a dinner at the Chapter House with a few of the National Representatives from Virginia. John Schuyler, and Maine Alpha Alumnus Shawn McKenna attended the dinner prepared by the house cook. At the dinner, the past year's events were discussed, along with old stories of living in the house. The rooms were filled with excitement and anticipation of the following day's events. On Saturday, May 4, the day began bright and early with a Brotherhood retreat at the Ramada Inn in Bangor. The retreat started with a breakfast, and progressed into a presentation lead by Brother Shawn McKenna. McKenna discussed, "Today [the retreat] is to get us to celebrate!" He began by delivering a motivational/congratulatory speech. He stressed to the his Brothers at Maine Alpha that, "I owe you," and that, "you all have filled a hole in my soul." Brother McKenna also said that the Brothers of Maine Alpha, "Parallel the original 12 Founding Fathers," and that SigEp at UMaine could possible be one of the best Fraternity Chapter's in America." 1Further along in McKenna's presentation, he played a videotape of Lou Holtz delivering a commencement speech to the University Of Notre Dame. Lou Holtz was a championship football coach for Notre Dame for many years. In his speech, Lou stressed the importance of self-image. He said that the 3 rules for creating a positive self-image were to, "Do what's right, do the best you can, and treat others as you want to be treated!" McKenna's purpose in showing the video was to show Maine Alpha that they were doing it right, and creating for themselves a very positive self-image. More importantly, it was to show Maine Alpha that they need to continue doing it right, and to strive hard to make themselves even better. The retreated was ended with an activity to get Brothers to know each other better, and a traditional pass the gavel in which each brother was given the opportunity to speak their heart and soul during this wonderful occasion.
Later that day, the Brothers of Maine Alpha attended the Alumni Reception to meet with old alumni and share stories of both the past and the present. The reception was held at Jeff's Catering in Bangor, and was attended by a very wide range of classes, including one Brother who graduated in the 50s. The alumni enjoyed the fine snacks and beverages while looking at some of the old memorabilia and pictures that had been at the Chapter House over the many years.
Finally, the time had come for the Brother of Maine Alpha to gather at the Chapter House and ride together to Chartering Banquet at Spectacular Events in Bangor. The Banquet began at 6:00 p.m. with a Cocktail Reception till 7:00 p.m. During the hour, many Parents, Friends, and Invited Guests arrive to partake in the memorable evening. After the reception, the Brothers and Guests ate a fantastic dinner, and soon after the evening's events began. It started with a Welcome address from current Maine Alpha President, Matthew Rodrigue, who introduced the Masters of Ceremonies, Past President Oscar Sparrow and Chartering Commitee Chair Gustavo Burkett. Sparrow first introduced the video presentation of the Chapter's history created by Brother Theodore Pietz. Following the video, The Vice President of the University of Maine, Dr. Richard Chapman, shared his remarks with the Brothers and Guests. Burkett then had the pleasure of introducing the Keynote Speaker for the evening, the Honorable Archer L. Yeatts III. Archer Yeatts was born in 1942 and initiated into the University of Richmond Virginia Alpha Chapter of Sigma Phi Epsilon in 1961. Brother Yeatts has practiced law for 28 years in Richmond, and currently serves as a member of the National Board of Directors for Sigma Phi Epsilon. Judge Yeatts delivered a meaningful and encouraging speech to the Brothers of Maine Alpha, and spoke of what wonderful work Maine Alpha has been doing to the parents and guests.
After Judge Yeatts' address, the Official Charter, Chapter Seal, and Chapter Flag were presented to the Brother of Maine Alpha. The President's Badge was given to Matthew Rodrigue, and finally, the current officers of Maine Alpha were installed as the first officers of the new Maine Alpha. The officers included Matthew Rodrigue as President, Eli Young as VP of Programming, Michael Benson as VP of Finance, Gregory Sinnett as VP of Recruitment, Joshua Bridges as VP of Member Development, Peter Nick Pike as Chaplain, and Andrew Barter as VP of Communications. After the installation final remarks were given, and all of the Brothers of Sigma Phi Epsilon present at the Banquet joined hands to sing the SigEp Anthem. Finally, the night was topped off with a few hours of dancing and rejoicing as the Brothers of Maine Alpha celebrated their charter that they had worked so hard for, and rightly deserved. |
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