Visioneering at the FSL Leadership Institute

While we were all relaxing during winter break and holding onto every last bit of vacation time, five of our dedicated executive board members returned to school a few days early to participate in the Leadership Institute program, hosted by the office of Fraternity and Sorority life (FSL), where our amazing advisor Pam Steele was serving as one of the facilitators.

The retreat connected the JMU greek officers to facilitators not only from JMU but from institutions such as Virginia Tech, University of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University, Clemson and University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Our five ladies and 60 greek leaders from other fraternities and sororities travelled to the Skelton 4-H Center in Wirtz, VA, located near Roanoke, to enjoy a weekend of sharing ideas, improving leadership skills, and discussing the pressing issues facing our community.

“It was a great opportunity to build relationships with greek leaders from all the different sororities and fraternities on campus,” said Psi Chapter Treasurer Courtney Sewell.

"The first day at the center, we participated in team building and bonding games. These games helped us to become more comfortable with our small groups so we would be able to hold more effective discussions later on” said Psi chapter Vice President Meghan Farrell.

Throughout the weekend, each person was put into smaller groups, called a "home group," where they participated in different activities, learned from each other, and brainstormed ways to better our community. One of the activities they did in their home groups was called "The Vision Project." For this activity, the groups had to come up with a proposal on how to better the JMU greek community; the winning prize was $500 for the group to put their proposal in place! Ideas ranged from JMU relations, a greek calendar and innovative approaches to academics.

"The winner of the Vision Project proposed to re-work Greek Week to make it more community service oriented, which is a great opportunity to give back to the Harrisonburg area" said Psi Chapter Sisterhood Development chair Elissa Edwards. 

They also participated in community collectives, which consisted of everyone in attendance, and listened to important lectures on how to become a better leader. The community collectives talked about emotionally intelligent leadership and focused on SMART goals, Consciousness of Self, Consciousness of Context and Consciousness of Others.

 "I learned that although there is still room for improvement, we are a very strong community with a lot of support and genuine concern for everybody who takes part in it" said Psi Chapter President Sarah Kauffman. 

Our executive members learned a lot at the retreat, and returned with great ideas to improve our chapter and community. The FSL Leadership Institute was definitely a rewarding experience for all in attendance. It is an annual program that continues to grow and makes better leaders each year. 

"This was a weekend to get to know your fellow leaders, foster unity, and create visions within the greek community at JMU," said Panhellenic VP of Membership Education Jenny Schmit, "it was the perfect combination of fun, networking and innovation."  

We are proud to be members of the JMU greek community and cannot wait to turn our visions of an even better and closer community a reality!