Undergraduate Brown Table Series

Greetings brothers of the Eastern Region,

As you may know, when this new administration was formed, we placed a few items on our priority list as a high-priority tasks. One of those tasks was the engagement and revitalization of our undergrads and their chapters. To accomplish this task, we developed a plan that would actively get our undergrads involved and their voices heard. This plan has several phases to its process.

Phase one was the Undergrad survey or questionnaire developed by one of our undergrads so that we can get a pulse on what the feelings are within the undergrad ranks. Now that we have received several of those surveys, we are moving into phase two of this process.

Phase two will be a series of Table Talks set up on zoom calls that would allow the undergrads to speak freely so that we can collectively assist them in regaining their campus back. These Brown Table Talks will also serve as mentoring sessions where we will have different professionals to help assist our undergrads in the areas in which they need them. Some areas will be but are not limited to:

• Intake

• Running a Successful Chapter

• Hazing, Mental Health

• Career Services

• and many others

We are excited about entering this next phase in the process and ask that all leaders actively encourage and support our undergrads in this process. By working together, we can change the culture within the Eastern Region and further Strengthen the Lines of Brotherhood.

Fall Leadership Summit Recap - North Carolina

For many years, North Carolina has been at the forefront of what makes the Eastern Region a success. The number of active chapters, to the level of involvement from Brothers in NC in both the Undergraduate and Alumni levels, have significantly increased under the leadership of past State Director, Bro. Eston Wells. The transition of leadership to now Brother Christopher Cross has catapulted North Carolina to be a good contender to lead the Region in multiple categories in the upcoming 2022 Regional Conference. The spark of newly appointed State Director, Bro. Cross has ignited a rush in North Carolina and we are seeing it in the number of new member Interests, reactivation activities, alumni involvement, and an increase in social presence across the state.

The 2021 Leadership summit was no different. It was the first in-person state summit since 2019 and it exceeded the attendee expectations. The number of brothers in attendance surpassed the goal going into the day, especially considering the pandemic. Amongst the many things that happened during the summit, one of the highlights of the day was the Brother John Bledsoe scholarship presentation. Bro. Bledsoe was a member of the Alpha Omicron Omega chapter at the time of his passing.

In addition to the highlight of the scholarship presentation, the entire state was able to come together, get a statewide alignment of finance, and agree on how to strategically set chapters with low active members on a path for success.   

Fall Leadership Summit Recap - Virginia

The Virginia State Summit was a very successful well put together working session between various leaders in the state. The presence of a pandemic introduced many challenges in the state and with the notion of starting afresh across all the chapters in VA, Brother Demonte Taylor, the current State Director has managed to maintain the pulse of every chapter in Virginia, while implementing a strategic plan to expand into new areas but more importantly, focus on reactivating existing inactive chapters.

Understanding that the morale across the brotherhood has gone down due to low intake, lack of engagement, and that drive to see Virginia be the leader in the Region, the transparency shared by the brothers in the meeting was vital into taking the next steps forward.

Now that they have a path for forward progress, brothers are beginning to volunteer for key positions that will increase communication, and ignite a fire for Virginia Iotas. Brothers left the meeting with a stance of “Perception is reality, the service, and image we provide become the brand”.

Fall Leadership Summit Recap - Delaware, Maryland, Washington DC

The DE/MD/DC fall summit held at Bowie State University was an amazing time. Awesome time and opportunity for Brothers of all ages, and different works of life came together to handle the business of their areas. The feedback so far simply speaks volumes on how charged up Iota Brothers are to continue expanding the effect of Iota in their local communities. It also showed that many of those brothers in attendance agreed that the summit objectives were met.

Brothers attended in person, as well as, virtually as the newly appointed State Director, Brother Rodrick Johnson wanted to provide the opportunity for anyone in the area to be able to take part in the success of MD/DC/DE Iotas. The physical location was Bowie State University (Mu Chapter), and the strategic reason for choosing to host it at Mu Chapter ties to the legacy of the campus being the oldest HBCU in Maryland, and the current goal of reactivating Mu Chapter.

The Fall Leadership Summit marks the 1st hosted summit by Bro. Rodrick Johnson as State Director. It sets in motion his vision and seems to be a catalyst for change. Since the summit, the Iota plot has been redone, and Iota has been officially invited to Bowie State University Homecoming.

Among the many things to be done in DE/MD/DC areas, below are some of the highlighted goals for the areas under the leadership of Bro. Rodrick Johnson:

• 100% active status for every chapter in the MD/DC/DE (65% currently are active)

• Increase membership by 30% (~144 financial members currently)

• Establish a leadership and mentorship pipeline for leadership in different areas of the Fraternity.

To set the area(s) for success, many of the brothers with an Iota first mentality signed up for several committees, state leadership, reactivation teams, and adopted the mantra “ALL IN”.