Transforming Brotherhood: Research Initiatives to Strengthen ΣAM Experience

Undergraduate Benchmarking

When the Octagon made the investment to collaborate with Dyad Strategies, the initiative seemed more befitting of a tech startup than a century-old fraternity. Yet this forward-thinking partnership offers something invaluable: concrete evidence of how Sigma Alpha Mu shapes young men's lives beyond anecdotal stories.

Dyad Strategies specializes in helping mission-driven organizations demonstrate their impact through meaningful research. Rather than simply analyzing historical trends, Dyad examines the lived experiences and cultural dynamics within the groups they serve. With an assessment portfolio spanning numerous Greek-letter organizations over the past decade, Dyad brings sophisticated research capabilities to Sigma Alpha Mu. This partnership enables Sigma Alpha Mu to gather quantitative evidence demonstrating to what extent chapters authentically practice our Creed and embody our eight core values. The multi-year study, which just launched this fall, will systematically evaluate undergraduate experiences and chapter environments.

Dyad researchers will be learning about how undergraduates understand the fraternity's principles, our heritage as a fraternity founded by Jewish men, and the strength of our brotherhood. Beginning in fall 2025, we have asked every undergraduate member to participate in a private digital assessment examining how fraternity involvement influences their decisions, perspectives, and character development. The evaluation framework includes standard measures of brotherhood quality, community connection, loyalty to the organization, relationship with alcohol, perspectives on hazing, and reasons for joining. Uniquely, the research also investigates how members internalize and demonstrate our eight core valuessimplicity, holiness, purity, justice, sincerity, fraternalism, idealism, and truth - while exploring their engagement with our Jewish heritage.

The research will not only reveal what members experience, but also how those experiences differ between chapters, where opportunities for improvement exist, and how engagement drives broader personal growth aligned with our Creed's teachings.

Because Dyad serves numerous fraternities and sororities, the assessment provides benchmarking opportunities for chapters within Sigma Alpha Mu and relative to other participating fraternities and sororities on their campus.

Headquarters staff are working closely with Dyad throughout this research initiative. Staff members will utilize these detailed findings to provide targeted chapter coaching to help officers and advisors make data-driven operational improvements. Having access to such thorough evidence will transform how the fraternity approaches chapter development and coaching. Beyond problem identification, the data will also highlight success stories worth celebrating across our fraternity.

"We are thrilled to be a partner in Sigma Alpha Mu's quest to become a more data-driven organization. By helping the fraternity better understand the impact of membership and the culture of undergraduate chapters, we will make the Sigma Alpha Mu experience more enriching and fulfilling for the next generation of brothers," shared Dyad CEO Dr. Gentry McCreary.

We will highlight core findings from the research in the coming months.

Supreme Prior Benji Bearman shared, "This project advances our fundamental purpose of developing men that exemplify our core values and honor our Creed. The research will generate compelling evidence of the transformation occurring through Sigma Alpha Mu. In turn, we are excited to work with supporters to invest additional resources at targeted opportunities to enhance the membership experience."

The opportunity to make this multi-year investment in research is one that the Octagon has committed to funding. Sigma Alpha Mu will need additional financial and volunteer resources to invest in our leadership development, chapter resources, and other identified opportunities for intervention. The Octagon is very enthusiastic about the partnership's potential.