Parents

Dear parents of members and potential new members of Sigma Phi Epsilon,

We are very excited that your son has joined or is considering joining our fraternity and we'd like to give you a little more information about our chapter.

Sigma Phi Epsilon, or SigEp, is one of the largest national fraternities in the country, and our Dartmouth chapter was founded in 1909. While the Dartmouth Interfraternity Council passed a resolution this term to end pledging and associated hazing practices, our chapter piloted The Balanced Man Program 24 years ago, focused on continual, holistic member development that promotes balanced living and combats destructive behavior. SigEp emphasizes the “Lifetime Responsibility of Brotherhood,” and undergraduate and alumni brothers widely consider their fraternity experience as pivotal in their Dartmouth education with friendships that endure far beyond graduation.

Our brotherhood of nearly 100 members includes performers from dance and a cappella groups, athletes from multiple varsity and club sports, leaders and participants for many different volunteer organizations, and above all, dedicated students. SigEp has distinguished itself as the winner of the O’Connor Prize, awarded by the Greek Leadership Council and the Dartmouth’s Greek Life Office to the best Greek organization for the past four years. Our brothers are involved in a wide array of academic pursuits, from engineering and economics, to theater and foreign languages.

In order to provide unique and beneficial programming and services to your son, dues are paid every term. Programming and house dues (roughly $250) are paid each term that your son is on campus. This money goes to cover the house’s upkeep, food that the house purchases, and chapter programming events. Twice a year in summer and winter, $200 in dues for the SigEp national organization and general administrative expenses are collected. In addition to these dues the national fraternity has a one-time Lifetime Membership fee (currently $300). These funds go towards leadership conventions and other SigEp national resources that your son will have full access to. All of these dues, except for the new member fee which is paid online through SigEp’s website, are automatically billed through the college billing system unless your son tells us otherwise. Any other potential dues/charges won’t be college billed but will be communicated to your son at the beginning of each term.

To ensure our chapter is inclusive for those with limited financial resource, our chapter does offer some limited financial aid. Please urge your son to speak with us if you believe this could pertain to him.

We’re excited to call your son “brother,” and we hope to meet you when you next visit him in Hanover. If you have any questions or would like to learn more about our fraternity, please check out our website at DartmouthSigEp.com or feel free to contact us.

Sincerely,

Joseph Clyne ’16, Chapter President, Joseph.F.Clyne.Jr.16@dartmouth.edu 
David Berg ’16, VP of Member Development, David.J.Berg.16@dartmouth.edu 
Herb Philpott ’85, Alumni Board President, herb@philpott.org