Sigma Tau Gamma -- Beta Lambda Chapter

Sigma Tau Gamma Policy Statement on Hazing and Pre-initiation Activities

Sigma Tau Gamma Fraternity, inc. ®
Enacted November 20, 1988

Board of Directors Resolution

WHEREAS, in Sigma Tau Gamma, true fraternalism is nurtured in an atmosphere of social and moral responsibility, respect for duly constituted authority, and loyalty to the Principles of the Fraternity; and

WHEREAS, the unauthorized introduction of pre-initiation activities and hazing is destructive to true fraternalism; therefore be it

RESOLVED, that Sigma Tau Gamma Fraternity reaffirms its commitment to the ideals upon which it was founded and its opposition to destructive behavior; and further

RESOLVED, that each chapter of
Sigma Tau Gamma Fraternity be admonished to initiate new members with strict adherence to the Ceremony of Initiation as prescribed in the Ritual Manual of the Fraternity, and further

RESOLVED, that no chapter shall conduct any pre-initiation activities or modify the prescribed ritual of the Fraternity in any manner, and further

RESOLVED, that no chapter or member of the Fraternity, whether a college member or alumnus, shall engage in the practice of hazing, as defined by the Code of Conduct of Sigma Tau Gamma Fraternity, and further

RESOLVED, that violation of this policy will be cause for the expulsion of guilty individuals from the Fraternity or the suspension of the charter and closing of guilty chapter or both, and further

RESOLVED, that this resolution be distributed to all chapter presidents and chapter advisors, and that these officers of the Fraternity be charged with communicating the contents of this resolution with the members of their respective chapters.

Enacted by Resolution of the Board of Directors, assembled in regular session on November 20, 1988.

This risk management policy courtesy of www.sigmataugamma.org

The forerunner of the Beta Lambda chapter of Sigma Tau Gamma, was the local fraternity Omicron Delta. It was organized in the fall of 1955 at the Elliot House which was located between Lankenau and Alumni Hall. There were 13 men in the group that were granted a charter as a national fraternity by the State of Indiana on November 14th, 1955. Paul Miller, a member of the Geography department, was the first advisor of the house. The motto of the house was “with God and knowledge, we shall succeed”. The colors were black and white. The house at 705 Freeman Street was first leased on January 30th, 1956 and was purchased in August of 1959.

On February 28th, 1960, Omicron Delta became the Beta Lambda chapter of Sigma Tau Gamma Fraternity. We moved to 361 Garfield in the fall of 1962, which burned down on June 6, 1978 due to faulty wiring. The current house at 801 Union Street was dedicated by the brotherhood on October 7, 1979.

Sigma Tau Gamma Creed

by Edward H. McCune, Founder and Past President
"I believe that the true spirit of Fraternalism is a personal devotion to one's ideals. It has its roots in definite, tangible things. It springs out of a love of God and worth of one's fellowman. It grows into qualities of mind and soul. It is not the attitude toward a few selected ends, but rather the abiding spirit in which all things are done, all difficulties met, all successes received, all obstacles overcome.
"I believe that the true spirit of Fraternalism is a breath that breathes itself into the life and being of those who live it, becoming an unconscious part of them, ruling and molding their thoughts and acts. We may call it the right attitude towards life, towards the world, towards right and wrong, towards the beautiful and the good, towards duty and faith in God.
"I believe that the true spirit of Fraternalism is a thing that grows. It is first associated almost exclusively with a narrow circle of fellow students, but it broadens with a widening understanding until it takes in all the important relationships of life. It enters the domain of private life as thoroughly as in public life. It teaches the fulfillment of obligations to school, state, and church.
"I believe that Sigma Tau Gamma endeavors to bind men together in a fraternal brotherhood based upon these eternal and immutable truths, which are set forth in the Principles and in the Code of Conduct of our Fraternity.
"In this belief, I will endeavor to make my college and my own chapter of Sigma Tau Gamma more honored and respected by all men, and will endeavor to conduct myself so that I will ever bring credit and honor to our Fraternity."