This past weekend, the presidents of each Greek life chapter here at Stevens were required to attend a special event known as IMPACT. It’s a weekend-long event that focuses on training Greek leaders to be the best they can be for their chapter and for Greek life as a whole. The program also helps improve relationships between the Greek leaders at Stevens and focuses on effective communication between leaders.
This year’s event took place at Camp Vacamas in West Milford, NJ. Forty-one students were in attendance, which included two members of each chapter, the council president of the United Greek Council (UGC), Interfraternity Council (IFC), Stevens Panhellenic Council (SPC), and Cultural Greek Council (CGC).
The Greek representatives had the opportunity to get together and discuss issues regarding the Greek community. These representatives may not usually communicate with one another to talk about these issues, so this event is significant as it brings the fraternities and sororities together to address concerns. The program also emphasizes decision-making skills and community development in order to help improve Greek life organizations at Stevens.
Along with the representatives from each chapter, coordinators from the Stevens staff and Greek advisors from other universities also attended the event. These staff members set up different bonding activities for the Greek leaders to get to know one another and assigned group discussions and presentations. Together, the Greek representatives were able to participate in activities that fueled discussions and helped them brainstorm ideas on how to improve the Greek community overall.
The Stute contacted Amanda Depinho, the Assistant Coordinator of Greek Life Administration, to get more information. Depinho had a large role in organizing IMPACT. She was in charge of contacting the North-American Interfraternity Conference (NIC) to plan the weekend as well as the numerous volunteers that were needed to facilitate the event. She also helped plan the meals, living arrangements, and transportation for the Greek leaders.
When asked how she would define IMPACT, Depinho described it as an event that fosters improved relationships between fraternity and sorority leaders. She added, “the IMPACT curriculum emphasizes problem-solving, leadership development, values-based decision making, effective communication, and community development. It is expected that change will be the result of an IMPACT weekend; participants determine what that change is through their participation.”
In order to learn more about how IMPACT went for the Greek leaders, The Stute contacted Rachel Bailey, Theta Phi Alpha’s current president. This was Bailey’s first time at IMPACT, and she enjoyed the experience overall. “I think I got a lot out of the experience. I was never someone who saw themselves joining Greek life, let alone becoming president of a sorority, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. However, I was pleasantly surprised.”
This past weekend allowed Bailey to connect with representatives from other chapters that she may not have connected with if it weren’t for IMPACT. “I was able to meet leaders of other Greek organizations who I may not have otherwise got to know,” she said. “We collectively learned a lot and even got to roast marshmallows outside after a long day of working! Although it took me away from school during a weekend that maybe should have consisted of a lot of homework, I think I was able to get to know so many people and really got something productive out of the experience altogether. I am excited to work with the other Greek leaders moving forward as we work to implement what we learned into our respective chapters.”
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