Vol. IV, Issue 2
Chapter awarded as ‘Best Greek Organization of 2012’ On February 7, the JCU Student Union named the Beta Theta Pi as John Carroll’s Best Greek Organization of 2012. This award is given to the fraternity or sorority which best demonstrates three criteria: a dedication to service and academic achievement, a strong presence on campus, and contribution in building up the community both on and off campus. Former Student Union Vice President for Student Organizations Bill Cook, who was in charge of choosing the recipient, said, “comparatively with the other [applications] we received, [Beta] represented what we believe the award should be.”
The new team for 2013 (L-R): Markus Creachbaum ‘15, Immer Chriswell ‘16, Paul Mullin ‘15, Drew Kostiuk ‘15, Ken Clar ‘14, Steve Henderson ‘15, Drew Wagner ‘15, Pat Anzevino ‘15, Tommy Collins ‘15.
Meet the New Executive Board for 2013 The eve of Thursday, November 29 was a long one for the brothers of the Eta Epsilon Chapter — the night of elections for positions on the 2013 executive board. Beginning at 8 p.m. in a quiet conference room in the Dolan Science Center, the race began.
As a whole, the Eta Epsilon Chapter posted a 3.26 GPA last spring and a fall GPA of 3.18 which earned the highest cumulative fraternity GPA on campus. Both GPAs
This year’s elections were particularly crucial given this school year marks the chapter’s sixth year on campus, often recognized as an important transitional period for newly founded chapters. Also, it was time for a new president with John Jackson ‘13 graduating this
See BEST GREEK ORG, page 3
See EXEC, page 4
INSIDE This Issue
Letter from the President Exec. goes to Chicago 2013 Exec. Board highlights Through the Eyes of a Child
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Carroll’s Got Talent Bence Toth’s AFLV experience Super Bowl celebration Catching up with Bill Worms
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Vol. IV, Issue 2
A Letter from the President Ken Clar ‘14
Dear JCU Beta Brothers, Alumni, Family and Friends, I’m honored to address you as the 5th president of this fine chapter of Beta Theta Pi at John Carroll University. John Carroll is an incredible place, and one that’s changed my life since I came on campus in 2010. The education, students, faculty members and culture of the school is one that I have truly embraced and cherished. Amid all the involvement I’ve had on campus, be it anywhere from sports to campus ministry, I know for a fact that there is no other organization that is as powerful an experience as Beta Theta Pi has been for me. Fraternity, when done right, is an incredibly powerful thing. To have 48 brothers around you to revel in your accomplishments and pick you up through your hardships is something that not many will be able to understand in their lives- but I’m proud to be a part of that experience. I find an enormous amount of excitement and opportunity within this pride and I look forward to leading our chapter to another great year! With a great year in mind, we dove feet first into the semester! We happily welcomed the New Year, and at the same time, welcomed brothers back from all over the world. Troy Murphy returned after a semester abroad in London, and we also had brothers volunteering their time to serve others in Immokalee (Florida), New Orleans, and Guatemala.
week, holding events such as a “Whirleyball” event off campus, a game night with our philanthropy- Milestones Autism Organization, and a pasta dinner with more than 10 Beta alumni in attendance! On Friday of that week, we hosted our annual philanthropy event “Carroll’s Got Talent” to benefit Milestones Autism Organization. My sincere thank you to all who came out to support this great cause! Our brothers kept their service strong, as we volunteered at the annual Red Cross Blood Drive held on February 12 and as a group gave over 100 hours together in assisting at the event! Later that week, brothers delivered roses across campus on Valentine’s Day to fundraise and spread some gentlemanly cheer, and topped off the week with a Date Party dance! Men who strive to be Gentlemen, Leaders and Scholars can accomplish more together than we can alone. Together, we’ve been acknowledged as the “Greek Organization of the Year” on John Carroll’s campus, and amidst our busy schedules have achieved a 3.18 GPA for the Fall semester, maintaining our position above the all male, all campus and all fraternity average GPAs on campus. I look forward to the exiting new year that is upon us, and I want to extend my sincere thank you to those who have been and will continue to be a huge support to make Beta Theta Pi such a powerful experience!
To keep our fraternity sustainable, and give this experience to others, we kicked off our recruitment
The Bridge Builder
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Adam Tome ‘15
Volume IV, Issue 2 Winter 2013
Public Relations Chair / Editor
The Quarterly Newsletter of the Eta Epsilon Chapter of Beta Theta Pi
Public Relations Advisor
Joel W. Mullner ‘07
www.jcubetas.org
Yours in __kai__, Ken Clar
President, Eta Epsilon Chapter
Contributors:
Kenneth M. Clar ‘14 Markus J. Creachbaum ‘15 Benedek T. Toth ‘14
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Vol. IV, Issue 2
Eta Epsilon Receives ‘Best Greek Organization’ BEST GREEK ORG, continued from page 1
ranked above the all-male, all-fraternity, and allcampus averages for each semester. Alongside academics, the chapter has also been busy performing service over the past few months. Brothers have been actively involved with Milestones Autism Organization, Project Citizen (tutoring of grade school students), a Red Cross blood drive at Landerhaven, and John Carroll programs such as the Labre Project and Immersion trips to Immokalee, Florida; New Orleans; and Guatemala over winter break. When asked about the award, Tim Ficke ‘15 said, “All of us are constantly working to better ourselves as men of principle and gentlemen, leaders, and scholars. This award is a testament of what Beta does.”
Betas Excel in Student Union and IFC Representation Brothers continue to step up as campus leaders in 2013
New Exec. Board Travels to Chicago for Keystone Conference During the weekend of February 22-24, the executive board traveled to Itasca, Illinois (just outside of Chicago) to attend Beta’s annual Keystone Regional Leadership Conference. With roughly three dozen other chapters in the North Central region, they spent time learning how to better perform their duties in the chapter by attending individual officer tracks and educational sessions led by volunteers and fraternity officers. The team also focused on establishing a fresh set of goals for the new calendar year. The nine members (which included Alumni Relations Chair Bobby Traver ’16) had an exhausting but fun weekend together and with other brothers throughout the region. One night, dozens of brothers from John Carroll, Kentucky, and Indiana filmed their own version of “The Harlem Shake” in their hotel room! Overall, it was a truly valuable and enjoyable learning experience for the new executive team to prepare them to govern the chapter to the best of their abilities.
Student Union Executives Tim Ficke ‘15: Executive Vice President Steve Henderson ‘15: VP for Student Organizations 2015 Senators Elliot Schermerhorn ‘15 Tim Johnson ‘15 2016 Senators Connor Hines ‘16 Cole Hassay ‘16 Tim Schifferle ‘16 Interfraternity Council Bence Toth ‘14: President Kahim Chan ‘15: VP of Finance & Administration Chris Casey ‘15: VP of Judicial Affairs & Risk Mgmt.
The 2013 executive board from top to bottom: Tommy Collins ‘15, Bobby Traver ‘16, Ken Clar ‘14, Steve Henderson ‘15, Markus Creachbaum ‘15, Pat Anzevino ‘15, Drew Wagner ‘15, Drew Kostiuk ‘15, and Paul Mullin ‘15.
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Vol. IV, Issue 2
President
New Exec. Board Elected
Ken Clar ‘14
EXEC, continued from page 1
May after two terms holding the presidency. Given the circumstances, everyone in the room knew it would take time to choose the right people to lead the chapter through the current transitional period, where 21 of the current 48 brothers are members of the sophomore class of 2015. Finally at 4:00 in the morning after hours of nominee speeches, deliberations and voting (with plenty of extended time allotments), all nine positions were successfully filled with the faces that will lead the chapter this year.
Goals:
- Improve overall brotherhood through effective and constructive accountability. - Enhance efficiency of chapter operations by improving communication and organization.
“As my father always told me, ‘If you're not having fun, you're doing it wrong!’”
Here’s some background on the new executive team for 2013:
Treasurer
Pat Anzevino ‘15
Vice President
Markus Creachbaum ‘15
Secretary
“My goal is to create a culture of accountability, where brothers hold each other to the standard of Beta and also assist each other in living the five core values. Also, I would like to focus on our brotherhood. I want to strengthen the fraternal bond we share with each, which can only enhance each individual’s experience in Beta.”
Recruitment Chairman Drew Wagner ‘15
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Immer Chriswell ‘16
Scholarship Chairman Drew Kostiuk‘15
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Vol. IV, Issue 2
Risk Manager
Member Educator
Tommy Collins ‘15
Steve Henderson ‘15
Goals:
Ritual Chairman
- To educate the chapter about our risk management and crisis management policies in order to provide a safer and more fun environment and culture within the chapter.
Paul Mullin ‘15
Fun Fact: I love cheese! I like to try every flavor.
Through the Eyes of a Child
Markus Creachbaum ‘15, Vice President and Arrupe Scholar
Once a year on the first Saturday of December, Beta comes together with the Arrupe Scholars and gives the gift that keeps on giving to over 100 students from two of the less fortunate Catholic schools in Cleveland. During Through the Eyes of a Child, children from Saint Thomas Aquinas and Saint Francis schools are paired with a buddy at John Carroll to do Christmas related crafts, read Christmas stories, and even visit Santa Claus! After all this plus a delicious lunch, the day finishes up with a dance party for the kids in the gym and a special gift from their buddy. More often than not, this is the only gift the children receive for Christmas. The students of Saint Thomas Aquinas and Saint Francis live at or below the poverty line, which means they often never get to experience all the joys of a real childhood. Through the Eyes of a Child is a simple way for them to get part of their childhood back.
(L-R) Tim Johnson ’15, Chris Casey ’15, Ken Clar ‘14, and Anthony Frank ‘16 eating lunch with their buddies for the day.
Walking around that day, there were children hoisted upon buddies’ shoulders, hands were held, and smiles were present everywhere. This year, Through the Eyes of a Child was a wonderful experience and an uplifting way to end the semester for everyone involved.
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Vol. IV, Issue 2
‘Carroll’s Got Talent’ Raises $835 for Milestones Autism Organization
On Friday, February 8, the chapter hosted its fifth annual campuswide talent show, Carroll’s Got Talent, in JCU’s Kulas Auditorium. Each year this event is held to raise money for the chapter’s philanthropy, the Milestones Autism Organization, located in Beachwood, Ohio. This year Brother David Radulovich ’15 organized the event which sold 178 tickets and raised a total of $835. The show consisted of a dozen acts performed by students and a couple guest performances from students who benefit from Milestones’ services. Performances included a number of solo and group songs and dances. However, the show was stolen by Freshman Christina Pratt blew the crowd away by performing Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You”
freshman Christina Pratt who brought the crowd to its feet with her incredible rendition of Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You.” Her performance earned her high praise from the judges and first place in the talent show. Brothers Greg Petsche ‘13 and Spencer German ‘13 acted as the hosts of the show and entertained the crowd in between acts with their clever humor and “Minute to Win It” games where random audience members were chosen to complete challenging, yet laughable, tasks on stage in order to win gift card prizes donated by local restaurants and businesses. Dave Vitatoe, JCU’s director of alumni relations, Patti Taylor, JCU’s parking coordinator, and Fr. Bernie McAniff, S.J., JCU’s assistant dean of students, served as the show’s judges. Carroll’s Got Talent is Beta’s biggest fundraising philanthropy event of the year for Milestones. Overall, the event was a success and the chapter is already looking forward to next year.
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www.jcubetas.org
Brothers Greg Petsche ‘13 (left) and Spencer German ‘13 (right) entertained the crowd with their quirky humor throughout the show
Skiviat Accepted to Med School Congratulations to Brother Nick Skiviat ‘12, who was recently accepted to medical school at both Penn State and Ohio University. He is currently deciding between the two. Skiviat is a member of the Gamma class, initiated in the spring of 2009. While at JCU, Skiviat majored in biology and served as Ritual Chairman and Philanthropy Chairman for Beta as well as VP of Programming and President of IFC.
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Vol. IV, Issue 2
My AFLV Experience Bence Toth ‘14, President of IFC
Honestly, I can’t remember the last time that I woke up at 5 a.m. Most college students cringe at the thought of having to actually wake up and do something earlier than 15 minutes before their first class of the day. However, on the morning of February 7, Brother Kahim Chan ’15 and I had the pleasure of catching a 6 a.m. bus ride to the American Fraternal Leadership Brothers Kahim Chan ‘15 and Bence Toth ‘14 and Values (AFLV) Conference in (far left) along with Greek advisor Holly Indianapolis, Indiana along with Mittelmeier (middle) with other AFLV Nate Napolitano, a member of participants in Indianapolis. Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity. We had the honor of representing John this amazing experience. The Carroll University’s Interfraternity conference is held in conjunction Council (IFC). I serve as IFC with the National Black Greek President, Kahim as VP for Finance Leadership Conference and draws & Administration, and Nate as VP over 2,500 attendees from 25 for Recruitment. Each year, JCU states. The conference ran sends three members from both February 7-10 and offered IFC and the Panhellenic Council to seminars and talks about a wide
range of issues that surround the Fraternal community today. In addition to attending various sessions, Brother Chan and I had the privilege of hearing prominent speakers such as Matt Mattson (of Phired Up! Productions) and David Stollman give keynote presentations about topics such as recruitment and values in fraternal life. Attending AFLV was an experience I will never forget. My time at AFLV not only allowed me to meet people from all over the country, but it also gave new insight and perspectives on what it means to be a leader. Armed with new ideas, Brother Chan and I returned refreshed and ready to lead the fraternal community at John Carroll.
Betas Celebrate Super Bowl in Style This year, the Betas enjoyed the Super Bowl in the Dolan Auditorium while accompanied by the ladies of Kappa Kappa Gamma. Brother Mitch Quataert ‘15 and KKG Alex Miranda ‘15 organized the event which featured the big game on a super-sized projection screen and a buffet of food provided by parents and students that included pizza, wings, chips and dip, pulled pork sandwiches, beverages, and desserts. Despite the half-hour stoppage of play due to the power outage, many Betas and Kappas stuck around to enjoy both the game and camaraderie. This was one of several mixers planned between the Betas and
Kappas for 2013. The fraternity is working on deepening relations within the Greek community at JCU by involving different fraternities and sororities in events such as this and encouraging members to participate in JCU programs and events outside of Greek Life.
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Catching Up With...Bill Worms ‘12 2012 Graduate of the Eta Epsilon Chapter
Bill Worms ’12 is currently living in New York City to work on his master’s in Media Management at Fordham University after interning with Deloitte over the summer. The Bridge Builder recently had the opportunity to catch up with him to see how he’s doing post-graduation. As an undergrad, Bill served as scholarship chair and an assistant recruitment chair while earning his degree in accounting. This spring, Bill is moving back Cleveland and will be going to Africa in August on a mission trip. BB: Why did you join Beta in the first place? BW: I joined fall semester of freshman year. Honestly, I wasn’t going to join a fraternity, but my roommate Andy (Lane) met Joel (Mullner) and he took us to a
Mutual Assistance
BB: Do you have a favorite memory as a Beta at JCU? BW: I’d have to say lip sync and my pledge class retreat because we really clicked with everyone and it’s when we all came together.
Troy Murphy ‘14 with Bill Worms ‘12 at graduation last May.
recruitment event and I loved it. It was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. BB: How has Beta prepared you as a graduate? BW: It taught me how to mature quickly. The networking Beta has given me has really helped me in NYC by taking on leadership positions and talking to people.
Intellectual Growth
Eta Epsilon Chapter John Carroll University 1 John Carroll Boulevard University Heights, Ohio 44118
Trust
BB: Where do you see yourself in five years? BW: Hopefully I’ll have a fulltime job or work as an entrepreneur with some of my buddies. We’ve looked at doing consulting or event planning. Hopefully we can have our own banquet hall where we can host events. BB: Any advice for the current undergrad Betas? BW: Take advantage of all the opportunities. Take a leadership position if you feel you’re ready to lead on campus and get involved in things other than Beta to meet other people around campus, but remember to keep Beta your #1.
Responsible Conduct
Integrity
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Want to go Beta? Know someone who does? Visit www.jcubetas.org/recruitment for information on joining our ranks!