Brothers from two Indiana chapters, Iota Eta at Indiana University Indianapolis and Iota Psi at Indiana University, arrived at eXplore Brown County’s Valley Branch Retreat in Nashville, Indiana on October 24. Most were first-year members, and none had attended a chapter retreat before. By the time they left on Sunday, they had a shared definition of leadership, a common framework for practicing it, and new friendships with brothers from a chapter an hour down the road.

It was the first regional retreat of the year, and the third chapter retreat this fall, following Iota Kappa at the University of Utah in September and Theta Eta at Texas State in October.

Delta Sigma Phi’s Membership Experience Chapter Retreats bring the learning of our flagship programs directly to chapters. Inspired by our flagship program Leadership Institute (LI), the retreat on leadership teaches members the 5 Practices of Exemplary Leadership and gives them space to apply each practice to real challenges in their chapter and their lives. The retreats are a growing part of our Pursue Education pillar, and the Delta Sigma Phi Foundation funds the program so members attend at no cost. Andrew Thomas, Indiana University Indianapolis ‘14, director of membership experience, facilitated the retreat along with J Ochoa

Members spent Saturday afternoon looking at leadership through a growth-mindset lens, building a shared definition of leadership, and teaching the 5 Practices to each other in mixed groups. Iota Eta and Iota Psi brothers worked side by side, trading stories about what Delta Sigma Phi looks like on each of their campuses.

That evening, the work turned personal. Each brother identified a leadership challenge from his own chapter, academic, or personal life and brought it to the Hot Seat. His peers could not offer advice. They could only ask coaching questions drawn from the 5 Practices, which pushed him to find his own answer. The Hot Seat and the 5 Practices teach-back were the two highest-rated sessions of the weekend.

Before the night ended around the firepit, every member wrote down one commitment to act on in the next two weeks. Most chose to raise their game in the classroom, from studying harder to asking brothers for help in their courses. Others committed to planning events with their new member class and taking more initiative in their chapter. On Sunday morning, the group took the field for paintball, where communication and trust moved from the meeting room to the course.

For two chapters with young memberships, the weekend did something a single-chapter retreat cannot. Brothers who will lead Iota Eta and Iota Psi in the years ahead now share a common language for leadership and a set of friends across chapter lines. Participants overwhelmingly said they would recommend the retreat and attend another.

Chapters interested in hosting a Membership Experience Chapter Retreat should fill out a retreat request form. These retreats continue to strengthen the Pursue Education pillar and bring Delta Sigma Phi’s leadership education to more chapters across the country.

Check out the photos from the weekend here.