Brothers and Friends,

I want to begin by thanking so many of you who made our recent academic year a success. As I reflect on the year, I take stock of how much we actually accomplished together and how proud I am of both individual members and our chapters across the country. If you’ll indulge me, I’d like to share a few examples of Delta Sigma Phi at its finest: 

  • More than 1,000 undergraduate members earned their bachelor’s degree.
  • Our National Day of Service is now in its third year, with more than 2,000 members and guests from sixty chapters participating in organized projects in April.
  • Alumni, campus partners, and staff collaborated to start or restart a number of new chapters, launching the Delta Sig experience for what will become hundreds of undergraduate members at Hilgard (Cal-Berkeley), Beta Beta (Missouri), Delta Beta (Oklahoma), Epsilon Rho (Cal Poly – SLO), and, for the first time in our history, at West Virginia University.
  • Our health and safety educational programs, branded under the name “Courage and Culture”, have brought a suite of in-person training to thousands of undergraduate members on the topics of alcohol and other drugs, hazing prevention, and mental health/suicide prevention. Click here to see an impact report that summarizes initial program results.
  • We hosted our first full digital Cycyota Volunteer Institute with very positive reviews from more than 60 volunteers in attendance.
  • The Delta Sigma Phi Foundation set a fundraising record during our 2023 Founders’ Day Challenge, raising more than $500,000 to support both national and local chapter programs.
  • The Delta Sigma Phi Housing Corporation completed its second year of operations, supporting ## alumni corporation boards and chapters with their housing searches, renovation consultations, and property management.
  • We began efforts in digitizing our history so you, as alumni can have access to our national and chapter-level history all at your fingers.

These are but a few examples of Delta Sigma Phi’s continued investment in our mission that we saw throughout the past academic year.

At the local level, our members continue to make a powerful difference within their campuses and communities.  From serving as Student Body Presidents, IFC Presidents, and in countless leadership positions within other student organizations to giving back philanthropically, Delta Sigma Phi men are stepping up. Brothers like Ben Kawaja, Miami ’22, and Duane White, Michigan ’22, who were recently awarded Chapter President of the Year on their campus. Or brothers like Erik Braun, Iowa State ‘ 21, and Jacob Byers, Missouri S&T ‘ 21, who were awarded the Order of Omega.

It’s not just the individuals who are standing up; we applaud our collective chapters like Michigan State, Missouri S&T, and Indiana State who were selected as Pyramid of Excellence winners for their remarkable leadership and dedication to their academics, philanthropic hours, professional development, recruitment and more. It is clear that Delta Sigma Phi is leading the way.

This past year, I have heard remarkable stories of alumni coming together to celebrate the lifelong bonds of brotherhood that Delta Sigma Phi has created. Stories like Brothers Ken Merwin, Millikin ’53, and Buddy Mueller, Millikin ’51. If you didn’t get a chance to hear about this on social media, it’s one that will impact your heart immensely. Or chapter brothers like Epsilon Rho at Cal Poly SLO who continue to get together every Friday night via Zoom and host annual get-togethers on campus where just recently they had over 125 brothers attend. I personally had the chance to go attend the 40th Anniversary of our Zeta Pi Chapter at the University of Louisiana Monroe where nearly 300 brothers, friends, and guests came together to celebrate!

All these stories of impact and success are all coming off the heels of one of our largest Conventions in our history that occurred last summer in Austin. At this Convention, our National President Tom Archer announced a 12-month listening tour as we prepare to close Vision 2025 and prepare for our next strategic plan.

During the last 10 months, we have been able to interact with hundreds of alumni through in-person events and thousands of undergraduate students through survey collection, data, and stakeholder feedback to continue to think about how Delta Sigma Phi can build into the future. The Boards of our Fraternity, have been meeting regularly throughout this year to review, assess, and prepare our next strategy that will help guide Delta Sigma Phi into the next Era.

In this upcoming year, you will hear more about some of these initial findings, particularly as we prepare to celebrate our 125 years, we will be announcing our next strategy at our 125-year Convention in Denver next summer, July 24-26, 2025. Save the date now as this will be a Convention you won’t want to miss!

To close, this is a remarkable time to be a Delta Sig. More than ever, I am convinced of how needed lifelong friendship and brotherhood is. In a world that seems to have never-ending complexities and changes, I remain steadfast and impassioned about what Fraternity offers. As you can see in the past academic year, it continues to bring leadership and friendship that is literally changing the lives of so many.

YITBOS,

Phil Rodriguez, Illinois State ’03
Executive Director