For students who are trying hard to make their organizations the best they can be, it may be good to have a little guidance. Student Engagement officials have initiated a new set of training standards for Greek Life members this semester.

This initiative takes the form of roundtable discussions, and individuals who hold certain Chair positions within their Greek Life chapters will receive useful training, said Julie Fletcher, assistant director of Student Engagement for Greek Affairs.

“The need (for roundtable meetings) came about after Greek retreat when we could only focus on the (higher positions within a Greek organization) that went,” Fletcher said. “They got some attention, which was great for them, but there’s a lot of other positions in the chapters. Providing (a training) opportunity for the students not in those positions seemed like the logical next step.”

Each area of need will be addressed in a roundtable discussion once per semester. The first meeting will be held on Wednesday, Feb. 19. The first session will be for public relations chairperson within the Greek community, including the Chairs of each Greek counsel, Fletcher said.

“The reason for that is to be a Greek community,” Fletcher said. “If we do everything separately, then they are not learning from each other. By having all 17 PR chairs, they are able to learn from each other and are able to sit down and plan.”

During the meeting the Chairs will have an opportunity to get know students who hold the same position in other chapters and councils, Fletcher said.

“One reason we are trying to have this roundtable is to brainstorm ideas with all the councils,” said Deondrick Orr, who will be acting as the public relations Chair of the National Pan-Hellenic Council. “Every council has their way of promoting events, but sometimes that’s not the most effective way. By having this roundtable, we hope to share ideas and promotional tips.”

In order to strengthen their public relations strategies, the National Panhellenic Council has recently created a public relations Chair for the entire council, Fletcher said. Sarah Keeter, who hopes the first roundtable will help her streamline a new communications process, fills this chair.

“I think with this roundtable initiative we are going to be able to build a communication bridge between the chapter PR chairs and myself and Julie (Fletcher),” Keeter said. “We’ll be able to get the word out on what each chapter is doing and what (NPC) is doing. We want people to see more than face value of what the chapters are really (about).”

Keeter hopes the roundtable will establish a system that will allow her coordinate more effective public relations for the events of each chapter of NPC in the future. The meeting also gives her the opportunity to network with all of the public relations chairs within Greek Life, she said.

“I think that chapters are used to running their own events — (NPC members) knew about it, but there wasn’t a whole lot of word about (the events),” Keeter said. “I want to be able to spread the word out to the university and the Shoals community.”

Sophomore Andy Page, a non-Greek student, hopes the training will equip members of those organizations to better reach out across campus.

“Promoting an organization should always be held where people go,” Page said. “I’m a dorm person and I don’t see a whole lot (about Greek events), or maybe I just don’t pay attention. Many people live in the dorms, so that being said, it would be great to reach out to the residence halls.”

Jordan Brock, public relations chair of the Inter-Fraternity Council at UNA, thinks students could benefit from this initiative.

“I feel that non-Greek students could potentially benefit from this initiative, in that once everyone puts this training into place there will be a greater knowledge of the positive things the Greek community has going on,” Brock said. “This will also allow non-Greeks to get involved and help out with some of the great philanthropy’s many of our chapters put on.”

Editor’s note: Editor-in-Chief Corinne Beckinger, a member of Greek Life, did not contribute to this report.