2024 Winter Conclave A Great Success

Over MLK weekend, over one-hundred-fifteen Brothers gathered for the 2024 Winter Conclave in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The purpose of the Winter Conclave is to educate the new Chapter or Colony presidents, vice presidents, treasurers, and risk management officers on their duties and responsibilities. The theme of this year’s Winter Conclave was “Communication and Accountability”, as the general and specific sessions covered the topics of mental health, communicating with Graduate Brothers and Chapters, conflict resolution, recruitment, and effectively organizing committees.

During the Conclave, Brothers were highly encouraged to donate canned goods and non-perishables for the local South Central Community Action Programs (SCCAP) Food Pantry. At the conclusion of the event, Leadership Consultant Matthew Dapiran delivered the one-hundred-twenty-five pounds of gathered goods and donated them to the Food Pantry. The Pantry Coordinator Lisa said, “Thank you to Alpha Chi Rho for recognizing and supporting our mission to end food insecurity in Adams County and we hope that the Fraternity at Gettysburg College will continue to support our mission!”

On Saturday, January 13, the educational sessions began with opening words from National president Joshua Brodsky (Mu Chi Phi, 1993), Educational Foundation president Michael Giardinelli (Lambda Chi Phi, 2007), and Leadership Consultant Matthew Dapiran. Joshua discussed the importance of accountability of undergraduate leaders as Brothers may not understand that their actions do have ripple effects for the greater Chapter and community. Michael gave a refresher on how Chapters / Colonies and individuals can benefit from the Educational Foundation. Matthew then addressed the crowd on the National staff’s responsibilities and the Fraternity’s expansion policy and timeline.

The Winter Conclave had four specific tracks for Chapter officers. The officers split up to attend different sessions that covered mental health, communication with Graduate Brothers, financial management, a training session on the National financial platform GreekBill, recruitment and event management skills, conflict resolution, how to avoid burnout, and health and safety standards.  Some feedback from Chapter officers included, “The organizational skills for committees [session was] very effective because it portrayed a lot about what was needed to successfully delegate work and create sustainable committees.” Another said, “The session on recruitment [was very effective] due to the fact that it made me realize every Chapter goes through similar struggles and how to solve them.” The Conclave concluded with an action plan session with each Chapter and singing Amici.

Many of our Brothers enjoyed the curriculum and networking opportunities of the Winter Conclave and are ready to hit the ground running this semester. The National staff, Council, and Educational Foundation Board of Trustees are very thankful to all who attended and their aptitude for learning best practices to take back to their Chapters.