Chaplain
This officer resource page curates the many General Fraternity resources pertinent to your position to provide an overview of available tools. It is recommended you take time to review the resources below to familiarize yourself with relevant expectations, guides, and resources.
Manual
Office of Chaplain Manual
The Chaplain's Manual has been written as a user guide for the position. Officers are encouraged to review the introduction for an explanation of the manual and how it is organized. Officers should then conduct the included self-assessment of competencies for the position; and then spend time reviewing the areas they're not familiar with, have questions about, or are looking for best practices.
Law and Risk Reduction
The Law of Sigma Nu Fraternity, Inc.
The Law is the Fraternity's constitution. It sets membership requirements, standards of conduct, and the framework for the operation of all entities of the Fraternity, including collegiate chapters. The Law also includes the Trial Code - a set of due process rules and procedures for disciplining initiated members.
Risk Reduction Policy
Along with The Law of Sigma Nu Fraternity, Inc., the Risk Reduction Policy provides our constituents with specific policies on areas such as the education of initiates and candidates, activities of the chapter, premises of the chapter, and hazing.
Risk Reduction Resources
These resources focus on assisting the chapter as a whole through education and accountability. Take a moment to look through these resources and consider how they could positively impact your chapter.
Anti-Discrimination Policy of Sigma Nu Fraternity
As adopted by the 67th Grand Chapter (2016, San Diego, California)
No member of Sigma Nu Fraternity shall discriminate, with respect to fraternal decisions, on the basis of race, religion, creed, sexual orientation, disability, age, and/or national origin.
Brother Development
Sample Brotherhood Calendar
This sample brotherhood calendar provides a model for the level of detail and activity that could be included in a chapter’s personal calendar. Chapters are free to build their own calendar based on class scheduling, events, and college/university expectations.
Building a Successful Chapter Retreat
This resource walks you through the dos and don'ts for planning an impactful chapter retreat experience.
Team Building Guide
Sigma Nu's Team Building Guide contains nearly 70 activities for chapters to use at retreats, meetings, LEAD sessions, and brotherhood events. The guide includes facilitation tips, suggested audiences and events to use team building with, and discussion questions to translate experiences into improvements in the chapter. The team building activities shared here are only a small sampling of what Sigma Nu chapters, colonies, members, and alumni can use to create experiential learning opportunities. The guide provides tips on facilitating activities; selecting activities for specific audiences and events; addressing key themes like communication, trust, and problem-solving; easy-to-follow instructions; and discussion guides to process teambuilding experiences.
Ritual
National Ritual Celebration Week Participation Guide
This resource helps to guide your chapter through participation in the annual National Ritual Celebration Week. NRCW takes place in the first week of March.
Secret Thoughts of a Ritual
A well-known essay to serve as a tool to assist in more critical thought and deep discussion regarding The Ritual.
Funeral Ritual
The Funeral Ritual is a public ceremony to be used in the sorrowful occasion that a Brother has entered Chapter Eternal. Learn more about preparing and using the ceremony.
Mental Health
College presents many opportunities and challenges. An important component of a person’s development is learning how to navigate different stresses and challenges that are going to arise throughout their life. In the unique context of a chapter environment, members can play a helpful role in supporting each other in successfully dealing with these challenges.
The Fraternity has partnered with the Human Power Project to offer Behind Happy Faces – Collegiate Member Program and Advisor Resource Series to provide important education to members, chapter officers, and volunteers on the critical concepts of mental health.
The Collegiate Member Program is a series of five (5) 15 to 25-minute in-person workshops designed for all collegiate members. The program has been included as Module D of All-Chapter LEAD. One lesson should be facilitated each academic term as part of the chapter’s All-Chapter LEAD implementation, which is recommended to be one All-Chapter LEAD session facilitated for the chapter each month of the academic year.
If needing to facilitate a lesson virtually, review the Behind Happy Faces Virtual Facilitation Tips.
Consider using the Behind Happy Faces Weekly Check-In Prompts to facilitate a short conversation checking in on the mental wellbeing of members supplementing the Collegiate Member Program curriculum.
The Advisor Resource Series is comprised of five (5) 5-10 minute online lessons designed for collegiate officers and alumni volunteers. Participants are welcome to complete all five sessions in one sitting or spread it out over as many sessions as they would like. While not required, participants are advised to complete the sessions in sequential order.
Pursuit of Excellence
Pursuit of Excellence Evaluation Guidelines
As Chaplain, your role is most pertinent to the Brotherhood Development subcategory within the Pursuit of Excellence Program. This is a list of criteria for each operational area measured by the program.
Brother Development Action Plan
This resource facilitates strategic planning within the operational subcategory of Brother Development (as defined by the Pursuit of Excellence Program). This action plan instructs the LEAD Chairman, Chaplain, and their respective committees on how to establish expectations, tasks, goals, and strategies relevant to the creation of the chapter's member development program.
Officer Transitions
Officer Transition Resources
Compilation of resources to assist collegiate chapters with elections and officer transitions.
Officer Transition Checklist
Outgoing officers should use this checklist so they know what to prepare and provide for their successors.
Officer Binder Checklist
This checklist will guide new or outgoing officers on the preparation of the Officer Binder/Notebook, an important resource for the officer transition process.
New Officer Goal Setting
This resource should help new officers hit the ground running and aid them in establishing their goals and acquiring the necessary resources to be successful during their term.
The Art of Delegating
Introductory strategies for sharing the workload, empowering others, and getting things done.
Best Practices Library
Best Practices Library
This library includes activities, programs, processes, and practices that result in or lead to excellent performance. Practices were collected from Sigma Nu chapters across North America of every size, institutional type, and region of the country. The best ideas and practices that could and should be replicated by other chapters are found here.
The library allows users to sort through ideas, examples, and templates. Best practices are sorted by area of operations (as defined by the Pursuit of Excellence Program) and subcategorized by type (e.g., accountability ideas, events, finances).