Dear Campus Partners,
Greetings from the Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity Service Center! We hope the new academic year is off to a great start on your campus. We sincerely appreciate your dedication to the Greek system and all that you do to promote the success of Greek life.
We want to share with you some important things going on within SAE and our chapters. Some of these you may know and some you may not. In our effort to ensure a greater understanding of our policies and mission, we are also actively promoting all of the following information to our members, both new and existing, our alumni advisors, house corporation officers, and the parents of our members.¸
Pledging Eliminated
Five years ago, SAE became the first fraternity to eliminate pledging, followed by the creation of our full, 96-hour, bid-to-initiation process. Overall, we have witnessed great success, but there are still remnants of the “two-tier membership” created by pledging. We ask for your assistance in working with the SAE chapter on your campus, identifying any lingering membership requirements that may resemble pledging and/or hazing. The elimination of hazing is and will continue to be, a top priority of SAE.
We do not believe in or support hazing of any kind. If we are alerted to its occurrence, we take every action possible to hold individuals or chapters accountable while helping correct the course.
In August 2018, as a part of our National Leadership School, we hosted and coordinated an educational program titled “Love Mom and Dad.” We have encouraged every member, alumnus, volunteer, and university administrator to watch it. You can find a shorter, five-minute version as well as an extended 20-minute version (which also has a facilitation guide) of the presentation online. If you have not already, we hope you will make time to view it, and we invite you to use it with all of your students whenever applicable.
We also partner with Hazing Prevention.org. They provide an anonymous hotline for students, friends, and families to use whenever there is a concern. We investigate all received calls and act on any information that proves to violate our mission. If you have concerns, you may reach us directly at (847) 475-1856, which is our central office number, or at (888) NOT-HAZE.
365 Recruitment
With the elimination of pledging, there was an opportunity to recruit new members year-round. Thus, we encourage our chapters to look beyond the traditional model of structured recruitment periods, focusing more on relationship development. By finding and bidding men throughout the year based on whether or not they can make a positive contribution to SAE, we can greatly increase our numbers of quality brothers. At the same time, we are sensitive to varying campus policies, and if there is a conflict, we welcome the opportunity to discuss it with you.
Alcohol Policy
On June 1, 2018, we implemented new policies regarding the use of alcohol. We do not permit underage alcohol consumption or the use of hard liquor. Our policy limits alcoholic products to beer, wine, or products below 15% ABV at any events or activities of the Fraternity. This includes any events where undergraduate members are present, even if alumni or parents are participating, as well as any events with a third party licensed vendor. To support academic success and lower risk, we also prohibit the use of alcohol during the beginning and end of each term. You can read more about our policies here.
Minerva’s Shield serves as our official health & safety program. It is a valuable resource and guide that ensures the welfare of our members and the people with whom they interact.
Sigma Alpha Epsilon has a Good Samaritan Policy that anyone, including alumni, should never hesitate to use.
Educational Programs
In 1935, SAE was the first Fraternity to develop and implement a National Leadership School for our members. Today, in addition to scholarships and awards, we offer a variety of programs that include online and peer-to-peer education, our annual Ritual Academy, Executives Academy, Emerging Leaders Academies, and more. These programs and services are available to all of our members throughout their undergraduate experience. We hope you’ll encourage the SAE men on your campus to register and take advantage of these opportunities.
The Record Online
You can still get the latest news and information about the Fraternity anytime by visiting therecordonline.net. This online news magazine is continuously updated and offers useful items for discussion within our chapters. Please encourage your chapters to share their successes so that we can publish their stories.
We are committed to providing a safe and healthy fraternity experience to our members, as well as being a positive contribution to the Greek community. We hope that you will share the successes of our young men on your campus. If you should ever have concerns, we also hope you will reach out to tell us. We know how demanding your job can be, and we want to do our part to be supportive of your efforts. If you have questions about our programs or services, please contact us.
Thank you for your support and dedication.
Sincerely,
Chris Hancock
Eminent Supreme Recorder/Chief Executive Officer
Sigma Alpha Epsilon
Through friendship, scholarship, leadership, and service, SAE finds men with impeccable character and helps them achieve their full potential, letting them rise up to face every challenge placed before them—today and tomorrow. We achieve this by grooming our members to become True Gentlemen.
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