GREEK COLUMNS
Volume 8, Issue 1
Winter 2010
PHC Dodge Ball Tournament raised
$1640 for John & Ian Scholarship Fund
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Greek Honor Societies
2
Homecoming Recap
4
Greek News
6
Athletics
14
Important Dates
15
Page 2
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Order of Omega Fall 2009 Class
Initiated on February 8
Over 20 community members attended the initiation of the fall 2009 class of Order of Omega,
at which Drexel University Police Officer Ed Spangler became an honorary member.
Pasqualina Tirro
Delta Zeta
This year the Order of Omega national
organization awarded over $800,000 in
scholarships to undergraduate members
across the country. Of those recognized
for their
academic and leadership
contributions to campus were two Drexel
members—Lina Tirro of Delta Zeta & Andrew Gould. Each received the Patrick W.
Halloran Award and an accompanying
scholarship.
Andrew Gould
Pi Kappa Alpha
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Achieving Academic Excellence
The following Greek students achieved a 4.0 GPA
during the fall 2009 term:
Rashad Ahmed, Pre-Junior, Sigma Beta Rho
Grace Bellato, Junior, Phi Sigma Sigma
Steven Bukowczyk, Senior, Pi Kappa Alpha
Andrew Ellenberg, Sophomore, Lambda Chi Alpha
Sarah Galante, Junior, Delta Zeta
Grace Gamble, Pre-Junior, Alpha Sigma Alpha
Emmanuel Georganas, Junior, Alpha Pi Lambda
Andrew Goodman, Freshman, Tau Kappa Epsilon
Erik Groch, Sophomore, Pi Kappa Phi
Tyler Hajzus, Senior, Pi Kappa Alpha
Ashley Hensley, Freshman, Delta Zeta
Brandon Hinman, Junior, Pi Kappa Alpha
Jared Hurwich, Sophomore, Alpha Epsilon Pi
Benjamin Jann, Sophomore, Lambda Chi Alpha
Bonnie Johnson, Senior, Delta Zeta
Pelin Kansu, Freshman, Delta Zeta
Karim Laib, Pre-Junior, Pi Kappa Alpha
Sarah Lindsay, Senior, Delta Zeta
Stacy Litz, Junior, Alpha Sigma Alpha
Eileen Moran, Pre-Junior, Alpha Sigma Alpha
Shane Newman, Junior, Theta Chi
Gerard Nocco, Freshman, Pi Kappa Alpha
Francis Palumbo, Sophomore, Tau Kappa Epsilon
Amanda Panicali, Pre-Junior, Phi Sigma Sigma
Jill Patel, Pre-Junior, Delta Zeta
Angela Petro, Senior, Alpha Sigma Alpha
Allison Pfender, Pre-Junior, Phi Sigma Sigma
Lucas Quagliata, Junior, Sigma Phi Epsilon
Andrea Roberts, Junior, Alpha Sigma Alpha
Timothy Schlindwein, Pre-Junior, Sigma Phi Epsilon
Priyanka Setty, Senior, Delta Zeta
Michael Spadola, Pre-Junior, Alpha Epsilon Pi
Alice Stevenson, Freshman, Delta Zeta
Jithu Thazhathel, Pre-Junior, Iota Nu Delta
Alexandra Wiest, Pre-Junior, Phi Mu
Ian Wilson, Sophomore, Pi Kappa Alpha
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GREEK COLUMNS
Homecoming 2010 was a hit
Above: Undergraduate
and alumni members of
Lambda Chi Alpha
fraternity turned out in
force for the Homecoming
basketball game. LXA
hosted a reception for
family and friends in the
Paul Peck Center after the
game.
Left: Drexel cheerleaders
and dance team perform at
half time of the men’s
basketball game. The
women took the court
Sunday to conclude the
weekend of celebration.
GREEK COLUMNS
Right: Senior Shams Naim of
Alpha Pi Lambda Fraternity was
crowned the 2010 Drexel Homecoming King
Below: Members of Sigma Phi
Epsilon join the DAC Pack to
cheer the Dragons on to a victory
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GREEK NEWS
Greek community mourns
Temple student's passing
By David Stephenson
The Triangle
A Temple student with close ties to the
Drexel community was killed in a car crash in
southern Va. Sophomore Kammini Ragoopath
was studying public relations at Temple University.
The crash, which happened during the
early hours of Feb. 27, occurred a little over a
month after Ragoopath had joined Delta Phi
Omega, a city-wide sorority with sisters at Temple, Drexel, and USP among other Philadelphia
area schools. The crash also injured seven other
students who were part of an Indian dance team
that was traveling to a dance competition in N.C.
Ragoopath was ejected from the vehicle
when it slammed into the right guardrail of I-85;
she was pronounced dead at the scene. Another
dancer, Fatima Pervaiz, was also thrown from
the van but was airlifted to a local hospital where
she was stabilized. Ragoopath and Pervaiz were
the only two students not wearing seat belts in
the vehicle.
"We're now working out programs to
advocate seat belt use," said Khushbu Kheti,
president of the sorority chapter, which Ragoopath had just joined on Jan. 17, and a senior
studying psychology at Drexel. "She was always
around here; I mean, she probably visited
[University Crossings] like 3 times a week."
Kheti was speaking at a modest candlelight vigil held in the Quad on Thursday. The
viewing and funeral for Ragoopath were also
held earlier in the day. A small group of sorority
sisters and supporters huddled for warmth
around lit candles as they spoke amongst themselves about a girl the Inquirer called "the life of
the party."
"She was a dancer, definitely the life of
the party and she always knew how to live it up,"
Delta Phi Omega Vice President Nandini Ramananda, a psychology senior, reminisced. "I
always remembered her hugs; she would always
come into a room and hug everyone in the
room. We all got to see so much of her that it
seemed like she lived at Drexel, but we called her
our social butterfly since she seemed to know
everyone."
In a slideshow of pictures remembering
Ragoopath's life, many of her sorority sisters
kept coming back to her defining smile.
Unlike many other Greek Life groups,
Delta Phi Omega has a city-wide chapter that
brought girls from the various Philadelphia
schools together.
Ragoopath had just celebrated her 21st
birthday days before the crash.
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Greek News Brief
Delta Phi Epsilon’s annual
Deepher Dude pageant
raised $11,654 for the
Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
Panhellenic Hosts Girl
Scout Day at the DAC
Delta Epsilon Psi interest group
presented at the winter Greek
Relations Board as part of the FSL
recognition process. A recommendation regarding their recognition
will be made by the GRB at the
spring meeting held on April 14.
Alpha Pi Lambda celebrated their
75th anniversary on March 3.
Drexel Haiti Relief Efforts
As one of many events held on campus in
response to the earthquake in Haiti, Sigma
Beta Rho hosted a candlelight vigil on Jan. 20
in Korman Quad to honor the lives of those
lost during the tragedy. Members of the Delta
Epsilon Psi interest group collaborated with
the Interfraternity Council to collect funds to
send clean water to Haiti.
2009 Programming Statistics
Community Service: 22,209 hours
24 hr/member
Educational: 19,499 hours
21 hr/member
Social: 96,133 hours
105 hr/member
Philanthropy: $173, 998 total
$190 avg./member
Fundraising: $126,842 total
$139 avg./member
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GREEK COLUMNS
Drexel wins big at NGLA Awards
Carol Moniz
The Triangle
From Feb. 18 to 21, members of the Panhellenic, Interfraternity, and Multicultural Greek
Councils and Alpha Pi Lambda Fraternity attended the annual Northeast Greek Leadership
Association Conference in Hartford, Conn.
The conference serves as a way to educate,
encourage and bond Greek life from all over
the Northeast. NGLA focuses on six basic
values: accountability, challenge, inclusivity,
learning, service, and tradition.
At the conference, all three councils
from Drexel University won awards. The
Panhellenic Council won four awards for
Membership Recruitment, Academic Achievement, Philanthropy and Risk Management.
The Interfraternity Council won the Chapter
Management and Leadership Award. The
Multicultural Greek Council won their first
NGLA award for Membership Recruitment.
The Drexel councils won five of the seven
available awards.
"It was a great honor for us to be
acknowledged by other Greek communities as
the best in the region. It lets us know that we
are moving in the right direction and helps us
to continue to strive to improve," Richard
Fisher, junior BS/MS civil engineering major,
member of SAE, and president of the
Interfraternity Council, said.
Throughout the day, educational
sessions were held on a range of topics, which
aimed to improve chapters and Greek
communities as a whole. Nationally renowned
speakers presented and held breakout session
where students were able to ask questions
relating to their own campuses.
"The Northeast Greek Leadership
Association is also a great way to share ideas
that have worked at your school in regards to
Greek life. I personally learned a lot of great
ideas and concepts to share with my sisters and
the council," Khushbu Kheti, a senior
psychology major and president of DFW said.
"It was a fabulous experience meeting
Greeks from all over the Northeast. I hope to
use a lot of things I learned during the
conference," said Melissa Reilly, pre-junior
communications major, president of the
Panhellenic Council, and sister of DFE.
GREEK COLUMNS
Following the end of the fall term, Pi
Kappa Alpha members Andrew
Moriarity (above left) and Patrick Montgomery (above right) decided to bike
from Philadelphia to Boston to attend
the annual Winter Classic to cheer on the
Philadelphia Flyers. In addition to getting the pair to the game, the ride served
as a philanthropic fundraiser for the
Blessed Sarnelli Community in Philadelphia. They raised $4150 for the organization, which is a non-profit organization
that focuses on helping city residents
affected by poverty. The ride took five
days, covered 300 miles, and was full of
cold weather and snow!
For more information on the ride, visit
broadstreetbikers.webs.com.
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Page 10
Greeks featured in Drexel music video
By Anupma Sahay
The Triangle
On Jan. 8, a group of students involved with
the 2010 Drexel Homecoming festivities staged a music video shoot, where they filmed students, Mario the
Dragon, cheerleaders, and dancers partying and dancing in the gymnasium's center court to accompany the
new Drexel track, "Blue and Gold."
Junior film and video majors Kyle Thrash and
Vince Tuths headed the music video project as director and assistant director, respectively, with junior
business administration major Ari Winkleman as executive producer and junior film video major Elyssa
Cusimano as editor. The video accompanied the song
"Blue and Gold," which junior music industry majors
Dave Pettit and Lenny Skolnik composed, wrote, and
produced.
Production of the song and music video began in November, with the core group of Winkleman,
Thrash, Tuths, Cusmano, Pettit, Skolnik and others
working with Drexel administration to create a song
that can be used at homecomings for years to come.
"Last year a whole group of students and administrators came together and said, 'We need to have
a homecoming,' and … incredibly the University
stood behind us- every corner of the University from
Greek life to the president's office got together and
produced a whole week of events," Winkleman said.
The music video itself follows a prospective
Drexel student on a campus tour through various
landmarks and locations. It features a number of fraternity and sorority members.
"We showed little things that everyone knows
happens but is kind of kept under the rocks. We tried
to do some of that and incorporate a bunch of different groups on campus," Thrash said.
"We just wanted to do something special on
campus," Tuths said about the entire project. "We
wanted to bring back the Drexel pride and spirit."
Anessa Howell, president of the MGC and
member of AKA provided vocals for the “Blue
& Gold” track and is featured in the video
The music video can be seen at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03hpkSwl15Q
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Page 11
Drexel Student Life Award nomination
deadline extended to April 9
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Page 12
ΣΦΕ goes bald for cancer research
On March 11, Sigma Phi Epsilon hosted its 4th annual St.
Baldrick’s philanthropy event. The event raised awareness of
and funds for research related to childhood cancer by having
participants shave their heads. This year’s event had a
carnival theme and featured bands, food, and prizes. Ultimately, 100 participants, including over 78 brothers of Sigma
Phi Epsilon committed to shave their heads for the cause.
The 2009 event raised $28,000; this year the chapter set a goal
of $30,000 and had raised more than $18,000 before the
March 11 event.
ΔΦΕ member competes on Wheel of Fortune
Carol Moniz
The Triangle
Lauren Jablonowski, a junior BS/MS
biomedical engineering student and member of
the Delta Phi Epsilon sorority, was a contestant
on the show "Wheel of Fortune" January 18.
She signed up to be a contestant on the show
about three years ago on their website. In May,
she was asked to audition for the show in New
York City.
"I really wasn't as nervous as I was
excited and in awe. I have been watching Wheel
of Fortune since I was a little kid, and always
dreamed of being on the show some day. The
thought of that dream actually coming true was
such an indescribable feeling," Jablonowski said.
"We all cheered for Lauren and wished
her best luck -we were very proud of her participation and believe that she did an excellent job
to represent our school and her peers. Our
faculty and I are blessed with outstanding
students and she is one of them: they are our joy
and pride," said Banu Onaral, director of the
School of Biomedical Engineering
"I would love the opportunity to go on
Wheel of Fortune. My roommate and I watch
the show all the time," junior international
business and legal studies major, Alexa Law,
said.
Jablonowski solved two puzzles, a tossup and a regular round. She finished the game
with a grand total of $2,550.
"Overall, it was an amazing, once-in-alifetime experience that I consider myself very
lucky to have had," she said.
While describing her experience,
Jablonowski explained that the wheel was very
heavy; the contestants were able to practice
spinning the wheel before the show began
filming. She also added that Pat Sajak and
Vanna White were very personable.
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Page 14
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Pi Kappa Alpha won men’s Greek intramural basketball
Delta Phi Epsilon won women’s Greek intramural basketball
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Page 15
University News
John Fry selected as Drexel’s 14th president
John Fry, current president of Franklin & Marshall
College, was unanimously voted the 14th president of
Drexel University by the Board of Trustees on March
10. Fry previously served as executive vice president and
chief operating officer at the University of Pennsylvania
and in numerous roles with higher education consulting
organizations. Fry will officially become president of
the University Aug. 1.
New Member Educator Seminar—April 6, 6:30pm
House Manager Training – Wednesday, April 7
Relay for Life—April 10-11
Spring Greek Relations Board Meeting—April 14, 6pm at TKE
Campus to Careers – April 15, 6pm at Paul Peck Center
Greek Week—April 26 to May 7
Blue & Gold Weekend—May 1-2
18th Annual Nick Pipino Run—May 1, 9am
Greek FIRE Submission Deadline—May 1
FSL Awards—May 12, 7pm
FSL Night at the Phillies—June 7, 7:05pm