Alumni Advisory Board Mentoring and Advising

It is recommended that, at least, the following collegiate chapter officers have a member of the Alumni Advisory Board serve as a mentor or advisor.

• Commander
• Lt. Commander
• Treasurer
• Recorder
• Marshal
• LEAD Chairman

The Alumni Advisory Board and the chapter should work together to identify other chapter officers who would benefit from having a mentor or advisor.

Suggestions for Individual Officers

Commander

The Alumni Advisory Board member working with the Commander should help him set a calendar for the year and discuss the Commander’s goals and plans for the year.  Encourage the Commander to be active on the campus as a representative of Sigma Nu.  Help him identify what the chapter needs from a leader and how he can meet those needs.  Also, frequently discuss with the Commander what he wants and needs from the advisory board as well as what the board wants and needs from the chapter.

Lt. Commander

The Lt. Commander’s mentor should help identify the characteristics needed for various committee chairmen and what their responsibilities will entail.  The Lt. Commander should run the executive committee meetings and needs to be comfortable in that role.  This officer position is often overlooked and underutilized by chapters.  The Lt. Commander needs to work with the Commander and manage many of the chapter operations.  This will allow the Commander the opportunity to represent Sigma Nu on the campus.  The Lt. Commander may need assistance motivating officers to do their job, resolve conflict between officers and/or committee chairmen, encouragement to utilize committees, and reassurance that his job is crucial to the chapter’s success.  As the mentor, you should encourage the Lt. Commander to be an active leader in the chapter, help him learn to manage various committees, and discuss with him what he wants and needs from you, as well as what the alumni board, alumni chapter, and others want and need from the chapter.

Treasurer

The Treasurer will likely need assistance in establishing and sticking to a chapter budget.  He must understand basic financial and accounting skills and monitor the chapter’s income and expenses closely.  The Treasurer has considerable authority over chapter members who have fallen behind in their payments to the chapter.  This should be carefully balanced with being a brother.  The board member’s focus should be to help the Treasurer keep the chapter’s finances in order and to develop sound financial practices for the Treasurer and the chapter as a whole.

Recorder

The Recorder is responsible for ensuring that all forms, fees, and paperwork are submitted to the General Fraternity’s offices each semester by the deadline.  This paperwork ensures that the Fraternity has accurate records and contact information for the chapter and is crucial to effective communication between the chapter and the General Fraternity.

Marshal

The Marshal’s focus is on educating and training the Fraternity’s candidates.  The primary tool to accomplish this task is Phase I of the LEAD Program.  The Marshal should work with the chapter’s LEAD Chairman to identify guest speakers, plan the LEAD calendar, facilitate LEAD sessions, and ensure that the candidate education program is preparing the candidates to be good members, not just good candidates.

LEAD Chairman

The LEAD Chairman manages the LEAD Program and how it is operated within a chapter.  The LEAD advisor should help plan the schedule for the various LEAD phases, promote LEAD to the chapter members, encourage alumni to participate by facilitating various LEAD sessions, and helping the LEAD Chairman identify additional guest speakers.

The Advisory Board can also designate members to support the efforts of other collegiate officers as needed.  The board should not dictate to the collegiate chapter how to function or operate the chapter.  Instead, they should assist the individual officers as they lead the chapter.  They should also be the primary communication link between the collegiate chapter and the alumni.

Additional Advisory Board positions and Job Duties

Executive Advisor

Meets with the officers of the chapter, advises the executive committee, periodically attends the executive committee meetings, and helps administer new programs and policies.  Supervises day-to-day advising of the chapter officers and members, assists with the facilitation of officer transitions and chapter retreats, and assists with the development and maintenance of leadership education for the chapter.

Recruitment Advisor

Assists with the facilitation of recruitment workshops for chapter members throughout the colony process and at the beginning of each semester, meets with the recruitment chair, knows and understands the IFC recruitment dates and rules, and assists with the education and implementation of a 365-day-a-year recruitment philosophy and the Values Based Recruitment Program.

New Member Education Advisor

Ensures productive and positive new member educational programming through Phase I of the LEAD Program, meets with the Marshal and LEAD Chairman, and helps facilitate brotherhood building activities and other leadership programming.

Risk Management Advisor

Reviews and advises the chapter’s risk reduction policy each semester, meets with the chapter’s risk reduction chairman, reviews all social events for risk concerns and encourages non-alcoholic programming.

Academic Advisor

Meets with the scholarship chairman and LEAD Chairman, works with University officials to seek counseling for members, helps develop and implement scholarship programming, assists with the development and maintenance of scholarship requirements for chapter members, and reviews and monitors the GPA’s of chapter members.

Financial Advisor

Assists the chapter treasurer with budget planning and completing reports and assists the chapter treasurer and/or the alumni advisory board with financial standards.

Alumni Relations Advisor

Assists the chapter’s alumni chair with the alumni newsletter, helps the chapter to keep track of alumni interests, alumni addresses, and any other programs relating to alumni involvement, and assists the alumni chair with any alumni event.

Alumni Mentor Advisor

Meets with the LEAD Chairman.  Assists the chapter members in finding a personal mentor who will support with life skills, such as resume writing, interviewing skills, etiquette and manners, graduate school applications, financial planning, insurance matters, community involvement beyond graduation, and fraternity involvement as an alumnus.