Collegiate Chapter Pages

The Central Office would like to remind its faculty representatives about the broad range of information that can be found on the Collegiate Chapter pages on BetaNet. Hopefully you have bookmarked http://www.betagammasigma.org/collegiatechapters.htm in your favorites, because this page contains a great deal of information to help make your chapter the best it can be.

Forms, Registrations and Printed Materials

As most of you know, the Collegiate Chapter page is the place to find all the forms necessary for running the chapter. From the Student Leadership Forum registration form, to the Membership Order Form, to the Survey of Membership Acceptance – and much, much more – all this great information is found under “Forms, Registrations and Printed Materials.”

Collegiate Chapter Handbook

But have you ever looked through the Collegiate Chapter Handbook found on the left side of the Collegiate Chapter page? Almost everything you need to know about starting a chapter, increasing membership acceptance rates, participating in scholarship and other programs, the role of the various officers, and best practices can be found in the Handbook. As you prepare for the spring induction season, now would be a great time to spend a few minutes going through the Collegiate Chapter Handbook at http://www.betagammasigma.org/collegiatechapters.htm. And as always, if you have any questions or want more information about items there, please contact Donna Binek at dbinek@betagammasigma.org.

Chapter Honoree

Now is also a great time to think about honoring someone in your local community with Beta Gamma Sigma honorary membership. The Chapter Honoree program is a great opportunity to more firmly connect with an influential member of the business community. All the details of the program can be found by clicking on the “Chapter Honoree” link on the Collegiate Chapter page or by going directly to http://www.betagammasigma.org/chapterhonoree.htm.

Tapping Ceremonies

Have you considered holding a “tapping ceremony” to invite eligible students? Tapping is a method whereby BGS faculty members, often including the Dean, visit selected business classes and formally present invitations to membership during class. The faculty members may wear academic regalia for this ceremony.

While some campus cultures would not see the tapping ceremony as effective for them, this method has proven to be very effective on campuses where it is utilized. It assures high acceptance rates while educating business students about Beta Gamma Sigma, its purposes and role within the business program.

Beth Flynn, MBA Program Director at California State University, San Bernardino, wrote the BGS Central Office this summer and expressed her enthusiasm for the tapping ceremony:

“I just wanted to let BGS (Central Office) know that our student acceptance rate jumped from 38 percent to 71 percent in one year! Earlier this month we implemented the BGS Tapping Ceremony for the first time. I can’t believe how effective this method is for chapter recognition! We are so excited to be categorized as an Exemplary Chapter and qualify for a (BGS) matching scholarship for the first time in 10 years! Thank you so much for all your help!”

The details of this program can be found on the Collegiate Chapter page or by going directly to http://www.betagammasigma.org/tappingceremony.htm. Why not give it a try to see if it can do for your chapter what it did for the one at California State University, San Bernardino?

Update Chapter Officers and Contacts

This spring, please don’t forget to let the Central Office know of changes to any of your school’s chapter contacts. Whether it’s a dean change, a faculty advisor change, or a different administrative professional handling chapter business, please let us know.

The “Form for Listing of Collegiate Chapter Officers” can be found by going to the “Forms, Registrations and Printed Materials” section on the Collegiate Chapter page on BetaNet, or can be downloaded by going directly to http://www.betagammasigma.org/Forms/collchapoff.doc.