December 19 2014: NEWS: Delta Chi Photo Album 2014 [video] Tags: Delta Chi, RUSH
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October 28 2014: NEWS: Pitt Johnstown Homecoming 2014 [video] Tags: Acacia, Alpha Gamma Delta, Alpha Sigma Alpha, Delta Chi, Delta Sigma Chi, Kappa Delta Rho, Kapp Zeta, Phi Sigma Sigma, Sigma Tau Gamma
EDITORS NOTE: On April 10, 2017 the "Inaugural 'Trails Day" took place. It was a Campus Effort". Pitt-Johnstown hosted the first "Trails Day" at the campus natural area, and more than 15 faculty, staff, and students arrived early Sunday morning to clean and repair our trail system. ... UPJ seems to have forgotten this Greek Effort :-( Emily Colella, Contributing Writer October 1, 2014 Pitt-Johnstown is the largest of the five Pitt campuses with 655 acres. Only a fraction of that is developed, and the Pitt-Johnstown campus has many acres of wooded land. Trails wind through the woods on campus for students to enjoy, but it is unclear who is responsible for the trails upkeep. Student Government Association members are making an effort to take care of campus trails. With participation from outdoor club members, fraternity and sorority members, and residence assistants, associaton members are planning a Greek Life Trail Clean-up Day. Aside from keeping the trails clean, the event’s purpose is to help freshmen get to know the greeks and get started gaining community-service experience, according to association member Nick Digorgio. All students are being encouraged to participate. “ I believe Greek life has a tendency to retain a poor image on this campus,” sophomore Digiorgio said “In hopes of shining light on the important things they contribute, I hope incoming freshman will observe and appreciate their positive attitudes and hard work towards improving their home, Pitt-Johnstown,” he said. Digorgio is association parlimentarian and Campus Development Comittee chairman. Committee members are in charge of the cleanup day organization. The day is to take place at 1:00 p.m. on Oct 19. The cleaning should be finished at 5 p.m., when a dinner for participants is to take place at the gazebo near the Student Union. While student government members have been taking an active role in trail maintenance, other organizations members have been planning to take action. Also, the Environmental Sustainability Club keeps UPJ green in a variety of ways. “We are a club that focuses on bringing better recycling and greener initiatives to campus,” said Emma Gyurisin, club president. She confirmed that her club’s members are in the planning stages of a similar trail cleanup. READ MORE: Trail cleanups are getting organized
A 2014 Gallup study found "graduates who participated in fraternities or sororities are slightly more likely to thrive in all five critical elements of well-being — purpose, social, financial, physical and community — than are graduates who did not participate in fraternities or sororities." Results for the Gallup-Purdue Index are based on Web surveys conducted Feb. 4-March 7, 2014, with a random sample of 29,560 respondents with a bachelor's degree or higher, aged 18 and older, with Internet access, living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, and 5,137 fraternity and sorority members. The North-American Interfraternity Conference and National Panhellenic Conference partnered with Gallup for this first of its kind study.
Overall Well-Being Graduates who participated in fraternities or sororities are slightly more likely to be thriving in all five critical elements of well-being – purpose, social, financial, physical and community – than are graduates who did not participate in fraternities or sororities. Workplace Engagement National results show that 43% of college graduates who were members of a fraternity or sorority are engaged in the workplace, compared to 38% of college graduates were not members of a fraternity or sorority. Support The support that graduates recall receiving from their institution as students is also important well into their post-graduate careers. 16% of graduates who participated in fraternities or sororities and who say they had a professor who cared about them as a person, one who made them excited about learning, and had a mentor who encouraged them to pursue their dreams are emotionally attached, compared with 13% of graduates who did not participate in fraternities or sororities. Experiential Learning Similarly, graduates with fraternity or sorority affiliation and membership in college were more likely to have taken advantage of experiential learning opportunities while in college (11%) than graduates who were not members of fraternities or sororities (5%). Alumni Attachment Alumni who participated in fraternities or sororities exhibit higher emotional attachment to their school. 22% of those who were in sororities or fraternities are attached, compared with 17% who were not members of sororities or fraternities. RED MORE: Gallup Research
Alpha Gamma Delta chapter president Ashley Zastawniak said she enjoys every part of the competition.
“The guys put so much time and effort into their acts for each category. “Each year I feel has gotten better and better, and I think that this has been our best year yet,” she said. She said they are unsure of how much money was raised this year, but each year their goal is to raise $2,000. All proceeds go to the Alpha Gamma Delta Foundation, which helps people with diabetes. The competition began with the formal wear section to introduce the 13 contestants, and then went on to sportswear. All the contestants had an interesting take on their favorite sport or outdoor activity. Senior Travis Schluep’s “deer hunting” skit got great laughter from the audience as he chased a “deer,” Phil Bachman, who was wearing antlers, around the Cambria Room. Zach Perpetua’s sportswear talent may have been the most impressive of the night. Perpetua, with the help of some of his Sigma Tau Gamma brothers, arranged a human bowling game. Amstrid Gomez, Features Editor
April 9, 2014 Filed under Features Members from the five campus fraternities and three campus sororities participated in games and group activities during Pitt-Johnstown’s Greek Week. Games started last Monday and continued until Sunday. Sigma Tau Gamma fraternity and Kappa Zeta sororities received first place in the overall competition, while Delta Chi and Alpha Gamma Delta got second place. The weeks’ games included billiards, bowling and pingpong, as well as darts, bocce ball and foosball also were played. There also were gym games such as basketball, volleyball and Kan Jam, which is an ultimate Frisbee game. This year’s theme was the “Hunger Games,” which was included in the window paintings outside of the Student Union and on some of the fraternities and sororities Greek Week t-shirts. Delta Chi member Tyler Kowalski said the purpose of Greek Week is to bring campus Greeks together. Kowalski and Alpha Gamma Delta member Hannah Kuntz said their favorite part of Greek Week are the outdoor games, such as horseshoes and cornhole. Kuntz said she won first place in the sorority cornhole competition. Kowalski said the Interfraternity Council and Panhelenic Society members kept track of winners throughout the week. “(Non-competing) organization’s serves as judges during the games, so it’s unbiased,” said Kowalski. - See more at: http://www.upj-advocate.com/features/2014/04/09/week-of-games-unites-campus-greeks/#sthash.SYAX2dbz.dpuf April 9 2014 NEWS: Week of games unites campus Greeks Tags: Alpha Gamma Delta, Delta Chi, Kappa Zeta, Sigma Tau Gamma. Sigma Tau Gamma & Kappa Zeta won First Place!
Entering the ceremony, there were luminaries with veteran and active military member names lit along the path to commemorate their service. Approximately 200 people attended the evening ceremony. Retired Marine 1st Lt. Richard O’Bryan gave a speech promoting patriotism and thanking the community’s heroes. O’Bryan paid tribute to those who have served in the military. O’Bryan began his speech with a quote from “The American Crisis” by Thomas Paine. “Freedom is our birth-right because of those who do the undoable,” O’Bryan said. He also said military men and women take an oath to be the watchdogs of our rights and freedoms. O’Bryan encouraged audience members to remember what we have gained because of our veterans. “It is only a tragedy if we let (veterans’) sacrifices be forgotten,” O’Bryan said. After O’Bryan’s speech, senior education major Stephen Torquato closed the ceremony with a prayer, thanking those who have served and asking that current soldiers are kept safe. After the ceremony, everyone was invited to the Cambria Room for refreshments. The group was led on the pathway of 550 luminaires by bagpiper William Gority of Altoona as he played “Honor our Heroes”. “By focusing efforts on raising funds for The Wounded Warrior Project, we as a campus were able to unite for a worthy cause,” Macugoski said. “Hopefully, this effort will ignite an annual tradition of campus unity and fundraising efforts aimed at supporting our military.” - See more at: http://www.upj-advocate.com/features/2013/12/02/heroes-honored-for-their-sacrifices/#sthash.KKMAF5bs.dpuf December 2 2013: NEWS: Heroes honored for their sacrifices Tags: Delta Chi
However, it is comforting for them to know there are other students who can relate to and learn from their unforgettable stories.
Pitt-Johnstown junior and Johnstown native Kala Ceryak said her four year experience with the U.S. Air Force Reserves was fulfilling, and that the rewards made the risks she took worthwhile. Ceryak said she chose the Air Force for her military path because she was seeking to focus more on logistics. She later gained a senior airman rank in Air Transportation and Logistics. Although she signed up to join the reserves, Ceryak spent three of her four years in the Armed Forces overseas: in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Afghanistan. “When I wasn’t deployed, I just did my training on the weekends or was spending time training for (another) deployment,” she said. Ceryak started her Pitt-Johnstown education Summer 2010, returned in the spring of 2011 and again in the fall of 2012. “I’m very passionate about what I did,” she said. “Your entire comprehension of the world is transformed; you are trained to think and view things differently.” Going back and forth between military and college life was difficult at times, Ceryak said. “You come back to a place you have known your entire life, but all of a sudden it seems foreign,” she said. “It’s hard, only because I have so much free time. I’m used to 12-hour days with no breaks.” Ceryak said it was especially hard when she returned from her Iraq mission with only a three-week gap remaining before her Afghanistan mission. “It’s like you’re on a vacation (when you are) home,” she said. “Once you’re used to all the comforts (of home), you’re thrust back into the chaos. But it makes you appreciate home.” Ceryak said other campus veterans may be hesitant to identify themselves because they feel that no one will understand what they endured. However, she said that it is important for campus veterans to relate to one another and share experiences with community members. “We (veterans) don’t want to be distinguished as different from others,” she said. “We just did what we did; we don’t want the attention. But, at the same time, if students are seeking information about (military life), someone should be able to give it to them.” Ceryak said more veterans stepping forward and being proud of the courage they have shown could benefit the university in general. “I’d like to encourage people with military experience to embrace and share it with the people who want to know about it or be a part of it,” she said. “I think it would help UPJ to be a better, more accepting school for veterans and people in general to come to.” Ceryak said she thinks it could be a good idea to have a Meet the Vets Day on campus. That way, willing campus veterans could share their experiences and advice with students interested in the military. Although Ceryak knows war can be recognized for negative experiences, life after deployment depends on the veteran’s attitude, she said. “A lot of what happens to you when you come home depends on your outlook and willingness to make adjustments to better your situation.” One of the reasons she returned to UPJ for her degree was because of Mountain Cat Veterans Program Coordinator Paul Newman, Ceryak said. “His passion to expand (the program) for current and future (veteran) students is something I could help with and be a part of,” she said. “That attracted me back to UPJ.” Pitt-Johnstown Academic Affairs Assistant Vice President Paul Newman said there are perks to being a military veteran on campus. Students who served in the U.S. Armed Forces are able to receive free campus parking, priority registration and tickets to Pasquerilla Performing Arts Center events. Newman said although there are 50 or 60 veteran students in the program each semester, he knows that there are more military students on campus. “A lot of vets on campus don’t want to be recognized,” he said. “They see and experience things that we can’t relate to, and part of them wants to forget.” Newman said the adjustments between military and college schedules can sometimes be challenging for students. “In combat, they are used to everyday rules and a clear mission,” he said. “Coming back to school, everyday contains multiple tasks.” Newman said his family history of combat veterans is part of the reason why he feels dedicated to helping them receive more benefits and support from the university and the community. “(Veterans) understand one another and need to have time together and have a common space,” he said. “These people undergo extreme sacrifice on my behalf, and they deserve to be treated exceptionally well when they come home.” Many Pitt-Johnstown students and professors mourned the 2012 loss of Marine Corps veteran and former Delta Chi brother Brian Gindlesperger. He was considered a Mountain Cat Veterans Program leader and role model. Newman said he became even more devoted to the program after the loss of Gindlesperger because it is imperative that veterans have a solid support system. “I think about him every day,” Newman said. “Every time I walk past the Delta Chi fraternity house, I think of him.” Pitt-Johnstown sophomore, Delta Chi brother and former Marine Christopher Regula said other campus veterans may find it comforting to join an organization where they are able to form a brotherhood bond with members. Regula attended UPJ for three semesters before he joined the Marines, where he was deployed to Afghanistan in 2010 and 2012 on combat tours. When he decided to join a campus fraternity, Regula was seeking a union of friends similar to one he had in the military. Since many brothers are prior military members as well, the adjustment back into the college lifestyle has been somewhat easier, he said. “The brotherhood formed in these organizations can help make the transition less stressful,” he said. “Having guys you can go to for advice or help with (your) problems creates the same nostalgic atmosphere you miss when you leave a unit.” Regula said, although it is hard to adjust to a college agenda after military life, his time enlisted taught him to be more prompt with everything he does. “You learn not to put off a task,” he said. “The military teaches you not to procrastinate in your work and to always be on time.” Regula said he received a lot of support and guidance from Newman as he was getting settled again on campus. “I believe that UPJ has a good support network (for veterans), but it is up to the individual to take advantage of it,” Regula said. “Faculty support is there, but, as far as students are concerned, participation is lacking.” His experience in the Marines also gave him four years to decide what education path he would pursue when he returned to UPJ, Regula said. “Being in the military has altered my views on what is really important in my life,” he said. “But there is so much to gain; whether it is for the sense of patriotic duty, the adrenaline of combat, the experience in something different, to pay for college or build a strong resume, the military is the way to go.” - See more at: http://www.upj-advocate.com/features/2013/10/11/veterans-mission-now-in-classrooms/#sthash.T2Zq6hRL.dpuf |
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