Volume 5, Issue 3 Fall SigEp Scroll

Transcription

1 Volume 5, Issue 3 Fall 2015 SigEp Scroll THE The Alumni Newsletter for Nebraska Gamma RLC Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity - University of Nebraska at Kearney SigEp Buchanan Cup 2015: National Recognition Drives Nebraska Gamma RLC to Achieve More Contributed by Adam Ripp At the 54 th Grand Chapter Conclave in Nashville, Tennessee, the Nebraska Gamma RLC chapter received the highest award that can be presented to a SigEp chapter: the Buchanan Cup. This Buc Cup, the sixth in the chapter s history, is an evaluation of the past two years of chapter operations and places NE Gamma RLC as one of the best SigEp chapters in the nation. Representing the chapter in Nashville and accepting the award was Adam Ripp 16 and Jeremy Knispel 17. Among the accolades that pushed the chapter to this lofty achievement are top ranking amid campus fraternities in academics and manpower, a game-changing Residential Learning Community program with a university class designed for SigEps, extensive philanthropy activity and community involvement, and an established alumni support system. The Buc Cup application was nearly 50 pages with over 100 pages of attached documents. Last year s Chapter President, Adam Ripp 16, led the submission effort with the help of over 25 alumni and undergraduate members. Although the Buc Cup commemorates exceptional chapter performance, undergraduate and alumni leaders realize there is always room for improvement. The review committee hailed the many areas of success in the chapter, but also highlighted some areas for improvement. As Balanced Men, we constantly strive to compete with not only the best fraternities at UNK, but with the top chapters in the county. We ve already applied some of the recommended changes to our chapter and have seen their positive impact, said current Chapter President Joshua Lallman 17. The fraternity continues to attain excellence in all facets of its operations in an effort to make sure this Buchanan Cup is just the start the growing list of future SigEp triumphs. Brothers Ripp and Knispel accept one of the 2015 Buc Cups on behalf of NE Gamma RLC

2 2 Nebraska Gamma s Concert in the Courtyard Raises Money for YouthAIDS Contributed by Nick Stevenson For the last three years, Sigma Phi Epsilon has hosted Concert in the Courtyard to raise money for their national philanthropy, YouthAids. This year, however, was different than any other. Juniors Evan Calhoun and Nick Stevenson were in charge this year and started planning for this event during the summer. They wanted to do something different that would make the event bigger, after seeing Lemon Fresh Day live, they knew that this would be a great band for Concert in the Courtyard. In the past, the fraternity has had one of their brothers, now alumni, Lanny Fuller perform. I saw them perform this summer and really liked their style of music and how they really got the crowd going and they were interactive with the crowd, Calhoun said. All the little details with UNK had to be worked out prior to the concert. We had to book the band and fill out an application to get a grant from Loper Nites. We also had to meet with risk management, police services and business services here at UNK, Calhoun said. Brother Adam Ripp made the posters for the event and Josh Lallman, current SigEp president helped out by talking with the band and getting all the equipment and T-shirts figured out. There was no charge to get into the event, but to raise money for YouthAids; the Sig Eps sold official Lemon Fresh Day T-shirts for $10 each. YouthAids is an international, nongovernmental, nonprofit, funding and health initiative of Population Services International (PSI) that provides humanitarian assistance and brings global awareness to the proliferation of HIV/Aids. Overall, the event ran very smoothly and was a success. If more people knew who Lemon Fresh Day was and how good there are, then I think it would have had more of an interest Stevenson said. It was a awesome night and the crowd and band loved it! NE Gamma Wins Nester Cup For the third semester in a row, Sigma Phi Epsilon won the University s Nester Academic Cup for the Spring 15 semester. Vice President of Scholarship Clark Pohlmeier was pleased to see that the fraternity had again continued its tradition of academic excellence with a 3.34 cumulative GPA. We ve shown success by implementing new programs that have lead to achieving academic excellence. Receiving the Nester Cup for the third semester in a row proves that our chapter is setting the standard high for academics at UNK. The Nester Academic Cup is named after past UNK Chancellor William R. Nester, a Greek life advocate.

3 3 Undergraduate Spotlight: Evan Augustyn Evan Augustyn is no stranger to hard work. After all, when you are a chemistry major applying to go into predentistry school and a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon, excellence is expected. Brother Evan Augustyn is making the most of his academic career by not only taking on the normal class load, but by exploring deeper into his field through active experiments and research. This has provided him with a more practical experience relating to his major and given him many skills that your average student would not be able to experience. Then again, a brother of Sigma Phi Epsilon is not your average student. We interviewed Augustyn to find out more about his work. SS: Describe your current research. EA: Currently I am working on two projects. I have spent the last year or so working on an experiment that deals largely with developing compounds that ultimately could combat Alzheimer disease or Parkinson s disease. Basically what that entails is synthesizing compounds that are similar to Amino Acids that are able to get into the brain and fulfill functions lost to these diseases. SS: If you were to start over, are there any differences you would make to your research or possibly other topics you would pursue? EA: That s a tough question. I actually really enjoy what I am doing right now and the fact that I have a personal tie to it only furthers my ambition for it. Doing this research has actually improved my knowledge in the class and allowed me to do better. I have even branched off of what Dr. Thomas and his research groups is pursuing and have started looking into linking an Amino Acid with a known Cancer drug that has been commonly used. I am actually going to be at the ACS Conference in Missouri during fall break to present my findings to other people in the chemistry field so that has me pretty excited. SS: What is one of the most significant things you have found by doing this research? EA: One of the things I found right from the start was learning more about Alzheimer disease. What I mean by that is I knew that my grandfather had it, but I didn t know the reason behind why he had it. So I was able to gain more knowledge on that through my research. Also, another thing would be that we were able to create compounds that would bind to the protein that we are using at an acceptable level, and through that we are able to expand and keep furthering our experiments Brother Augustyn went on to say that despite his family tie to his research, he doubts he would have pushed himself to accomplish all of these goals without the influence of Sigma Phi Epsilon. The social support that comes natural to brothers means more to everyone then you may now realize. We look forward to seeing what the future has to offer Brother Augustyn and in turn what he has to offer the future.

4 1 2 4 Meet the New Members Brendan Beechley Collin Bond Matt Brunkhorst Chas Canfield Zach Canfield Micah Carlson Douglas Clark Tristan Crook Nick Depke Tommy Ernst Blaine Fisher Jacob Garrelts Colton Gayer Thomas Geiger Marshall Glock Henry Gonzalez Nolan Harrington Lincoln, NE Waterloo, NE Columbus, NE Rising City, NE Lexington, NE Omaha, NE James Kramer Carson King Julian Laursen Brody McKnight Alex Miller Riley Ostdiek Jaden Palu Chase Parker Jonah Peterson Jason Poe Riley Pulver Brian Rolls Logan Teten Drew Thompson Eric Toben Bennington, NE Sidney, NE Ashland, NE Lawrence, NE Kenesaw, NE Sidney, NE Syracuse, NE Aurora, NE Doniphan, NE Jachob Wiedeburg Sidney, NE Jacob Zimbelman North Platte, NE

5 5 My Loper Life: SigEp Brother Luke Grossnicklaus Reprinted with permission from UNK Communications When I was four years old I was diagnosed with a rare skin disease in my right leg. On June 8 th, 2009 I had my right leg amputated in Minneapolis at Shriners Hospital for Children. I came to UNK knowing that the University and its students would be very accepting of my disability. I also joined a fraternity so I could have a brotherhood that was always there for me when I needed them. I came to UNK to play golf and that is something I never would have dreamed of when I was first diagnosed. UNK has allowed me to go beyond my limitations with my disability to the point where I don t think of myself as having one. Luke Grossnicklaus Sophomore // Business Education Alumni, We Want to Hear From You! The Alumni & Volunteer Corporation cares deeply about its brethren and would like to share your life s achievements and milestones. If you ve received a notable professional award, job promotion, or had a marriage or birth in the family, please send the good news via to nebraskagamma1965@gmail.com. We also encourage sending photos. Sigma Phi Epsilon is a Lifetime Responsibility of Brotherhood Connect with the Chapter Follow our Current Members and Reach Out With Your Support UNK Sigma Phi unksigep