1-10 april arpeggio

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KK

ENGAGE. COLLABORATE. INSPIR

THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATIONOFTHE NORTH CENTRAL DISTRI

APRIL 2012 VOLUME 1 ISSUE 10

The ArpeggioThe ArpeggioThe ArpeggioIt seems just yesterdaythat Joe Norton, ChrisGrapis, Kyle von Neu-mann, and myself werestanding humbly at the front of

a vast ballroom in Merrillville,Indiana, taking our oath of of-

fice. We promised to serve to

the best of our abilities, and

members of the district echoed

back their support for our posi-

tions. We had just learned two

days prior of the resignation of

a former North Central District

governor, and I, for one, could

not help but notice Governor

Rod Whitemans an-

ticipatory gaze upon

the council-elect as

we officially began our

terms.

It seems just yesterday

that we hosted Summer FUNc-

tion, met at Purdue to discuss

the future of our positions and

the NCD, discussed a theme for

the year, published a new pub-lication for the district, trekked

to Colorado Springs for Nation-

al Convention, planned and ex-

ecuted Leadership Conference,

got our first look at the Fort

Wayne Convention Center, and

hosted Membership Education

Retreat. We successfully devel-

oped three block meetings with

different guest speakers for

each region of the district, sent

a representation to visit the

Midwest District at their con-

vention in Missouri, and began

to read the last chapter of our

stories. The term is coming to

a close, and it is impossible to

believe that this is truly our

ality.

This convention prom

es to be one of the best yet

Joe has done nothing b

spearhead the councils worka diligent effort to see to th

Fort Wayne is sure to hold t

tools necessary to Make t

Connection with brothers a

sisters from across the countr

And thus we prepare

bid you all farewell. We ha

become Unified through M

sic in Dearborn. We tr

Crossed the Boundary

Merrillville. And this year

prepare to Make the Conn

tion with one another in n

ways in Fort Wayne. On beh

of the North Central Distr

Council, I bid you all a heartf

farewell. Strive for the highe

brothers, forever and always.

AE

Jason A Mla

NCD VPP 11-


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Throughout my life, I keep saying to myself, I

have the COOLEST job in the world! First, through

my campers at Interlochen, then as Vice President of

Delta Upsilon, then my students in band, and now

through my amazing brothers in the North Central

District, my responsibilities have been so invigorating.

Through working in the aforementioned positions, and

with the aforementioned people, I have learned so

much from engaging great people, collaborating with

them on projects, and being inspired by their

fascinating stories, that I felt actuated to share what I

have gleaned in The Arpeggio. My thoughts in this firstvolume originate from my favorite program that our

district has: the illustrious One on Ones. At block

meetings, chapters are given an opportunity to speak

to the NCD council and governors to receive

personalized attention about their chapter. My

findings are organized starting with the broad level of

ideals, gradually become more focused on the

individual, finishing with a personal approach.

The first lesson that I learned was the lesson in

which I found myself most convicted. Organizations

are recognized by what they are doing, not what they

are saying or what they say they believe in. Chapters

wisely take valuable time to establish their identity

and their goals. However, these goals are only worth

anything if severe action is taken to implement them.

Chapters can achieve many of their goals and fix many

of their problems by putting a focused effort into

instilling these things into their recruitment and MEP.

It takes time, but it works.

Your chapter vision is made up of the collective

vision of each constituent. Any important

conversations or decisions that a chapter makes should

be discussed with the chapter and fortified by a unitedfront of dedicated brothers. Rod Whiteman took

valuable time to analyze carefully how the important

aspects of trust and relationships have a significant

impact on everybody. The simplest, yet most

important example of a diminution of trust and

effectiveness comes from a mismatch of expectations

and reality. Contradicting information and mixed

messages can prove fatal to a chapters operation. Just

as the MEP should reveal an accurate portrayal of

fraternity expectations, chapter projects, events, and

activities should paint a picture of the ideals for which

Kappa Kappa

Psi stands.

We spent a significant amount of

conversation on apathy. I learned that you co

motivate the middle third by making those memb

feel like their contribution is worthwhile. From

discussions, it seems that the best way to engage th

brothers are to discuss goals in a manner that they w

be interested enough to retain the informat

presented. How do we do this? Using S.M.A.R.T. go

(Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, a

Timely) as an incredible guideline for selling ideaspeople has proven worthy of our considerat

Celebrate the people who showed up! Sell the sexy

not grant the guilt. Be excited about what

gleaned, and people will follow you; do not forget t

being a brother is fun!

Communication is the foundation of trust. O

personal level, responsibility displacement a

becoming stagnant will leave giant holes in your cha

link armor of brotherhood. Responsibi

displacement seems to be the greatest pitfall

communication. The idea of, I was not part of caus

the problem, and therefore my guilt is absolve

creates more problems. Be a part of the solution! T

most frequent complaint from most chapters was t

a 90% of the work in a chapter is executed by 10%

the membership. A brother does not need a title

participate in the development of an idea, nor does

or she even need to be on a committee relevant to t

idea. Both on a chapter level and on a personal leve

you take the time to administer a time audit

exactly how much time you spend doing each daily t

(both in chapter operations AND in your personal li

you can clearly see if the ratios match your prioritand goals. If you are active status, you are expected

be taking an active responsibility.

Brothers, if you take nothing else from t

article please take this with you. Trust is

foundation of everything, compliments of Kyle

Neumann and The Art of Possibility by Benjam

Zander. Chapters (and individual people) are

radically unique, interesting, and complicated, t

you cannot possibly accurately predict them, assu

things of them, or categorize them. All you need

love, love. Love is all you need. - The Beatles

Lessons from the NCD

One-On-Ones Chris GrapisDelta Upsilon2011-2012

NCD VPM


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As the school year

begins to wind down, I find

myself, as well as ourchapter, battling our old foe

burnout. After two entire

semesters serving the bands,

we are tired and worn out. Are we really

expected to strive for the highest to the very

end? I mean really convention is coming up

and there have been block meetings. Is all of

that not enough? Have we not done enough for

our beloved bands? The answer is no.

Simply put, our motto is, Strive for the

Highest, not strive for up there somewhere.

To be completely honest, this is one of the best

times of the school year for chapter

development. If you think about it, you have

had the entire year to watch your chapter in

action and see what it does well, but more

importantly, what is not done as well. Now is

the time for us to be proactive in bettering our

chapters. Take some pre-convention time and

evaluate what your chapter does well and what

you need help with so that when we areassembled with our brothers (and sisters) at

convention you can utilize all the resources

that we have at our disposal. Take your

problems to the other chapters! In

many cases, I have found that other

chapters are having or have had

the same issues in the past. Take

the convention time to help

yourself and others, because in

many cases the time betweensessions can be just as helpful

as the presentations

themselves. Furthermore, if

we are all aware of the

strengths and weaknesses

found throughout the district,

we can contribute to electing

district officers who will strive to

address the issues that we need

addressed.

Then, when convent

is all said and done do n

return to your home chaptempty handed. Rath

return with the fountain

knowledge bestowed upon

and share it with your chapter. UTILIZE

because convention does not mark the end

the Kappa Kappa Psi calendar, but rather t

beginning; it is a time to begin making chan

so when next school year starts our service

the bands can be just as effective as it w

when we ended.

So do not let our old nemesis burno

catch up with you or any of your brothers

we watch the year conclude. Take t

opportunity to be reflective and proactive

the future! You might just be surprised w

you can accomplish during a time when ma

chapters become stagnant.

Battling BurnoutAndrew CressBeta Kappa


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This publication created, edited, and formatted by the North Central District Vice President for Programs. Many

thanks go out to brothers Robby Allen, Andrew Cress, and Chris Grapis for their contributions! AEA, Jason

As brothers of Kappa

Kappa Psi, we are called to be

outstanding band members; to go

above and beyond the

responsibilities of the average

band member. But as a lot of us

either have or will come to realize, being a leader

is not always fun or easy. Its frustrating and

exhausting, time consuming and challenging.

Many leaders get little recognition and their work

and ideas go unappreciated. However, these arenot reasons to give up. Being a part of Kappa

Kappa Psi and our respective band programs

gives us the opportunity to not only further

develop our leadership skills but also put these

skills into use. It also gives us a tremendous

support system for when we feel overwhelmed or

frustrated.

With all that being said, what does it mean

to be a leader within the band and Kappa Kappa

Psi? Is it being a section leader? Is it being an

exec member? Do you have to talk the most in

meetings or count the loudest and know your

music the best? Everyone will have a slightly

different list of qualities that a leader should

possess and display. For me, the most important

type of leadership is leading by example. The

most essential people in any organization,

business or group are the ones who work behind

the scenes. They dont talk the loudest or the

most, and they dont necessarily have the best

ideas but they are the ones tha

make sure things actually get

done. Its not possible for

everyone hold a position, (unle

you have a really small chapte

then I guess thats a whole othe

issue all together) however every brother should

have the opportunity to be a leader within the

chapter.

Everyone is going to have different

strengths. It is important to capitalize on thesestrengths not only to give everyone the

opportunity to shine but also to strengthen the

chapter. Some brothers will be more talented

musicians, some will be great at organizing and

putting on social events, and others talents lie

building the brotherhood. While for the most pa

these are things that typically line up with the

responsibilities of officers, great ideas can come

from any and every brother. Older members ha

more experience and know the organization bet

but sometimes a fresh perspective is needed.

The phrase too many cooks spoil the sou

is often used when describing leadership and

hierarchies. However, the brotherhood aspect o

Kappa Kappa Psi should always come before th

business side. You should always encourage you

brothers and give them an equal chance to

succeed. There may be too many cooks in the

kitchen but there can never be too many leader

in the brotherhood.

Leadership in the

Brotherhood

Robby AllenUpsilon

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