Collegiate Times

?Leaders leading leaders? was the slogan of Phi Sigma Pi?s leadership conference. The Greek-sponsored event hoped to reach all university and community organizations to facilitate an exchange of ideas.

?The success of the conference will lie in the student leaders that attend and the receptiveness to new ideas,? said Rob Montgomery, conference coordinator and fifth-year industrial systems engineering major.

Phi Sigma Pi advertised the event to all registered student organizations and invited student leaders to the Leadership Connection last Saturday. The event started early in the morning and included three workshop sessions, lunch and a keynote speaker. Forty students pre-registered for the event via Phi Sigma Pi?s website and another nine students registered that morning.

Each session hoped to address common issues that all organizations encounter. There were six scheduled topics: fundraising, membership recruitment, risk management, philanthropy, diversity and UUSA procedures.
?Fundraising and membership are the big topics at the convention and every person that registered hoped to attend those sessions,? Montgomery said.

Each session was led by an accomplished professional and Montgomery said all speakers were contacts of Phi Sigma Pi?s brothers. Alex White, an instructor in the agriculture and applied economics department, led the fundraising session throughout the day and stimulated discussion amongst the attending participants.

?The most important part of fundraising is the ?Why.? Organizations need to get a clear picture of what they want to do, then put numbers to it with a budget. That will give them a goal to pursue. Above all there is no one answer,? White said.

The Leadership convention also welcomed James R. Lang as the keynote speaker. Lang is the director of the business leadership center and spoke to the convention about challenging traditions and putting ideas into action.
?It was early on a Saturday morning and Dr. Lang really inspired the group. He came into the presentation pumped up,? Montgomery said.

The scheduled events also included a community showcase for outside groups.

?It gave organizations in need of volunteer assistance an opportunity to network with new philanthropy outlets,? Montgomery said.

At the end of the day Phi Sigma Pi and those who attended considered it a success.

?As a new group on campus we needed everything and hoped that this convention would give us new ideas to build our group around. We looked forward to seeing how other groups worked and wanted to attend all the sessions. It was really well organized by Phi Sigma Pi,? said Cindy Cominsky of the management society.

?We hope it will become an annual event and for a first year I feel it is successful,? Montgomery said.

?I expected more Greek participation, but was pleased to see the different groups that showed up,? White said.
Multiple rooms in Squires Student Center and the Graduate Life Center were used for the occasion, and it was funded by the Student Government Association as well as Phi Sigma Pi alumni. Phi Sigma Pi is a co-ed national honor fraternity focusing on scholarship, leadership and fellowship.