What is your chapter's Academic Plan?

[Kevin]

I'm always collecting data and looking for better ways to do things. Recently we finally made it to be the best GPA on our campus, but at 2.84 there's still lots of room for improvment!

Does anyone have any academic plans that have been very effective for them? If so, please elaborate as much as possible!!!

Thanks!

LHT,
Kevin

[Betarulz!]

For us, it begins with rush. One of the criteria that the Rush Chairs looked at this past summer when they were looking for my pledge class was GPA and High ACT scores. That's one way to get it started. If youre the tops on your campus then use that to draw those types of guys in. (A quick tip: Don't pick guys who all they did was study in HS, you probably want those that were really involved in HS so that you know they are used to having to manage their time as they will have to in college...in the interest of not excluding other aspects of Greek Life - we all know that we don't want to be known as the house that just studies all the time).

After that...Our pledge program requires 12 hours per week of documented study hours. We had study hours from 6-9 on tuesday and wednesday nights as a pledge class in the library supervised by our scholarship chairman. Another three were supposed to be with our pledge fathers, and the final three were individual (this was decided by my pledge class not the active chapter).

The final piece is incentive to do well. For the first semester a pledge is in the house (pledge semester) if they get a 4.0 GPA they recieve $500 cash and a 14k Gold Beta ring.
For each active member that gets a 4.0 they recieve $50, and further the scholarship chairman creates groups of three or four members (we call them Triads) and if everyone in the Triad makes grades above a 3.33 then each person gets $100 (you could make it 3.0 or whatever you want members to strive for but we always want to be above a 3.33 as a house so that's our cut off). The triad program is good b/c it not only puts a goal out there for each individual to meet, it puts a little brotherly pressure for everyone to do well because everyone wants the cash at the end of the semester.

Obviously, a lot of money could be, and here at our chapter is, given out. I suggest that, if you don't have the money present in the chapter to talk to Alumni. Also you don't have to implement all aspects right away.

Oh, by the way my houses' GPA was a 3.403 last semester, which won grades on our campus.