SigEp to start mentorship program with West Philadelphia High School

SigEps at Pennsylvania are reaching out to a local high school to start a mentorship program.

The Daily Pennsylvanian :: SigEp to start mentorship program with West Philadelphia High School:

The fraternity hopes to establish a program of monthly mentorship events next year

By MELISSA LAWFORD · April 29, 2014

The brothers of Sigma Phi Epsilon have launched plans for a long-term mentorship program for students at West Philadelphia High School, in collaboration with the Netter Center for Community Partnerships.

Following their first event on April 18, the fraternity hopes to establish a program of monthly mentorship events next year, College junior and President Joseph Pasteris said.

For their first event, about 12 students from the school came to Penn to play basketball with SigEp brothers. After basketball, they went back to the chapter house for pizza and a question-and-answer session with a panel of brothers about the prospects of college.

One of the fraternity’s key goals this year was to expand their community service work, Pasteris said. The fraternity would like a permanent system of regular mentorship events to become SigEp tradition, he added.

SigEp had an “existing partnership” with the Netter Center, College junior and Philanthropy Chair Andrew Shannon said, as the fraternity’s chapter house is occupied by Netter Center interns over the summer.

In October, SigEp hosted a Haunted House event for children from the Henry C. Lea Elementary School. The event was “definitely a lot of fun,” Emerson fellow and 2013 College graduate Kristin Thomas said. “We were looking to have a deeper impact,” however, she said, explaining the importance of the discussions that accompanied the basketball event.

The program will “mesh [the] interests our house has with how we can help the community,” Shannon said. West Philadelphia High School students currently participate in a monthly, informal basketball program at Pottruck, and this program will build on the shared interests of SigEp brothers and the local students.

Which High School Students Are Most Likely to Graduate From College?

U.S. News & World Report reports on a new study which notes the college graduation rate in the U.S. is only 44% and shows that success indicators may not be the ones people usually expect.

The implication for fraternity and sorority programs is interesting. Perhaps we should be putting more of a focus on the graduation rate of Greek members compared to the general population. Letting parents know that their son or daughter is more likely to finish a degree if they join a fraternity or sorority will likely resonate more than examples of "brotherhood" or even campus leadership - (Ed. Note).

Parents: Stop fretting so much about which high school your youngsters attend or how they score on the SATs. If you want your student to make it to a bachelor's degree, it's far more important for him or her to earn at least B's in high school and reach for the best possible college. Oh, and saving a few thousand bucks by sending your kid to a community college could turn out to be an expensive mistake.

Some of the nation's best-respected educational researchers are likely to reconsider much conventional wisdom today with the release of surprising findings from an analysis of educational records of more than 200,000 freshmen who started at public four-year colleges in 1999.

In the new "Crossing the Finish Line," William Bowen, a former president of Princeton University, argues that so many undergrads are dropping out (44 percent) that the country is in danger of losing its competitive edge to other nations.

The findings about actions parents, teachers, and institutions should take are interesting and may spark controversy:

• High school grades are key
• But the nature of the high school doesn't make much difference
• Students shouldn't settle for less in a college
• Admissions tests don't predict graduation
• True achievement tests are useful indicators
• B minuses aren't good enough
• Today's community colleges are not the best solution
• Cash helps but is not a cure-all
• Some colleges are doing a much better job than others
• There is some hope

More about these points in the full article:
Which High School Students Are Most Likely to Graduate From College? - Yahoo! News

Hazing - not just for fratboys anymore

Didn't I see this movie at a drive-in when I was a lad? The only thing missing is Jason Vorhees in a hockey mask. (sorry - no video)

HOUSTON -- Seven Katy cheerleaders went to court on Wednesday to face hazing charges, KPRC Local 2 reported.

Members of the Morton Ranch High School varsity cheerleaders have been accused of restraining several junior varsity cheerleaders, blindfolding them, binding their hands with duct tape and pushing them into a swimming pool at a cheerleader's home on July 25.

They were charged with misdemeanor criminal hazing.

Seriously, this is rather disturbing. Where did high school girls get the feeling this kind of behavior is acceptable? News reports said this was the first case in Harris county (Houston) under the Texas anti-hazing law. The law has been on the books since 1995. That is another issue; if the law has been avaialble for 13 years why has it not been used before? Surely there have been other incidents. I don't think authorities did anyone a favor by not using the tools they have.

Cheerleaders Go To Court On Hazing Charges - Houston News Story - KPRC Houston