Educational Programs

Educational Grant

Beginning with the 2003-2004 Academic year, the Endowment Fund has made an annual grant of $500,000 or more to the Fraternity to support the educational programs of the fraternity. This grant covers all educationally related costs to the following programs: Brother’s in Action, My Brother’s Keeper and Kappa Sigma University.

This grant also covers the educational expenses of both Leadership Conferences and Grand Conclaves. As you can see, your continued support of the Endowment Fund is vital in the continual education of our undergraduate brothers.

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Educational Programs / Brothers in Action

Brothers In Action is centered around the four pillars of Kappa Sigma: Fellowship, Leadership, Scholarship and Service. Using these guiding principles, chapters learn to focus their efforts through goal setting in order to ensure the entire chapter is working together toward its goals.

A major component of the BIA programs is the focus on the new 60-day Pledge Education program and an emphasis on membership development beyond initiation. Those chapters that commit to making a change in their operations, specifically their pledge education programs, will find that BIA is the missing component between average and great chapters.

The Epsilon-Psi chapter (Lambuth) has embraced the Brother In Action program and has seen success beyond our imagination. This past fall, the chapter recruited 25 men and initiated 20. This pledge class is viewed as one of the best in recent history. After switching to the 60-day Pledge Education program, they realized that a semester long pledgeship was too long. Their initiation rate was the best they’ve ever had as the pledges were more focused and interested in their pledgeship because it was shorter and the program makeup was better. By using BIA, Epsilon-Psi has poised itself to become one of the elite chapters in Kappa Sigma.

Brothers at Nu-Zeta (Wisconsin-Oshkosh) have also seen success using the BIA program. Last fall, the chapter brainstormed on many areas of operations and programming, including its pledge program and especially retention. What they realized was their historically long pledge period was the main reason many of the pledges that had joined Kappa Sigma at Nu-Zeta did not make it to initiation. So they decided to give the 60-day program a try and the results have been great! They initiated more pledges than before and the quality of their pledge class was the best in their history. These new brothers are fully capable and all set to catapult their chapter to the next level. Nu-Zeta is now the top chapter on campus with the highest grades, rush numbers, campus involvement, philanthropy and community service. These brothers are getting the job done, and the difference is BIA.

The results are real: chapters that use BIA will improve. All the chapter needs to do is decide whether it wants to be an average chapter…or a great chapter.

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Educational Programs / My Brothers Keeper

My Brother’s Keeper, Kappa Sigma’s award winning substance abuse program, has been helping brothers for over 25 years. The leadership & Education Commission recently revised and expanded the program, to address topics other than alcohol abuse, including drug abuse, date rape and mental health.

"As atmospheres on college campuses have changed in recent years, the need arose for MBK to adopt and address additional issues," noted Leadership & Education Commissioner Christian Nascimento. "The revised program reflects the challenges that our undergraduate brothers face every day on their campuses."

At the 2007 Grand Conclave in Miami, Fl scores of alumni volunteers will be trained as facilitators of the "new" MBK. DGM and Leadership & Education Deputy Commissioner Derek Marchman is spearheading this effort, which has charged facilitators with bringing MBK to every Kappa Sigma chapter in the U.S. and Canada.

The revamped MBK not only focuses on dangers other than alcohol abuse, but also utilizes the Star & Crescent as the structural basis for the program. It has received strong initial reviews from undergraduates, who have commented that the expanded program, in addition to aiding in the awareness of potentially abusive behavior, also helps chapters proactively keep members focused on Kappa Sigma values.

More than a hundred undergraduates and alumni have participated in the program already this school year, spanning geographies as diverse as Kansas, North Carolina, Tennessee, Idaho and Arkansas.

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Educational Programs / Kappa Sigma University

The Kappa Sigma University program was officially launched in Philadelphia, Pa in November 2005. This curriculum continues to benefit undergraduate and alumni brothers across North America. Based on early successes, requests for the program have ranged from Southern California to upstate New York.

The Kappa Sigma University is a character and values based leadership program, designed to help our brothers reach their fullest potential. The initial curriculum has been based on the general principles of personal character. Planning has already commenced for a second segment on leadership that will be rolled out this fall. R. Greg Dixon, DGM, Central Oklahoma, summarizes that the program "addresses core issues that brothers will need throughout their lives."

Leadership & Education Deputy Commissioner Derek Marchman facilitated Kappa Sigma University programs at district and multidistrict conclaves all across the country in 2006. Hundreds of brothers attended each event. One undergraduate (who preferred not to be named) commented that if his chapter had heard the presentation three months earlier it might have helped them avoid being placed on probation.

"At Kappa Sigma University, I was reminded of a primary core concept – take personal responsibility and realize that YOU control what happens," commented Worthy Grand Scribe Jody L Bailey, who attended the session in New Mexico.

The Leadership & Education Commission is aggressively rolling out the Kappa Sigma University to the entire Fraternity.

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