Sigma Alpha Mu may become the first new fraternity to be recognized by the college in over 10 years. Better known as Sammys, the fraternity has received pre-recognition from the Inter-Greek Council.
Sammys was founded in 1909 at the College of the City of New York. The local chapter, Epsilon Epsilon, was formed in 2001.
Since their inception, Sammys has been a rogue organization, unable to gain official recognition because of restrictive policies compiled by the Greek Task Force in 1997. Those policies include a rule that only 10 fraternities and 10 sororities may exist at any time. If an existing Greek organization dissolves, seven years must pass before it is replaced.
Since the last dissolution occurred seven years ago with the disbandment of the fraternity Sigma Epsilon, Sammys is finally eligible for review as a recognized organization. Once they pass a review from the college, they will be able to advertise on campus, receive a Geneseo e-mail account and operate as an official college organization.
Sammys emphasizes the ideals of brotherhood, scholarship and philanthropy. It has regular outings, dinners and a structured support system for brothers. "It's great to have a group of guys to fall back on," said sophomore Bob Viglietta, IGC representative for Sammys.
Last fall, the grade point average of Sammys brothers was the highest of any other recognized fraternity at 3.23. Almost half of the chapter's members are on the Dean's List, and they have received a combined total of over $10,000 in scholarships. All brothers have a GPA requirement, and the consequence for not maintaining it is mandatory library hours.
Members are required to do 20 hours of community service each semester, and last fall they volunteered for a total of 3,000 hours. Specific activities Sammys is involved with include H.O.R.S.E. Rescue, Geneseo First Response, Relay for Life, Alzheimer's Memory Walk and Catholic Charities.
Although Sammys has been unable to recruit on campus, they have held recruitment events and spread awareness through word-of-mouth. They will be accepting new members next semester.
New members are required to do a community service project, a philanthropy project and a candid education project, which constitutes making an improvement to the house. Sammys activities focus on promoting trust and a sense of brotherhood for members.
More information about Sigma Alpha Mu can be found at its Web site, geneseosam.com. Students interested in recruitment should contact Mike Brandi at mab1@geneseo.edu.