It's been quite a year at Kansas Delta.

Sigma Phi Epsilon continues grow and to be the largest chapter on campus, besting three other fraternities by 100% or more. Sig Eps finished in 1stplace in terms of Grade Point Average for both the Fall 2010 and Spring 2011, and nearly swept the Quality Chapter Awards given to the Greek community at the end of the school year. And recruitment continues to be a significant focus of the Undergraduate Chapter; the men have learned how to recruit WU dorm residents and when you combine that with a solid recruitment class this summer, we fully expect to be at capacity at the new Delta House on MacVicar (formerly KAO).

From an alumni perspective, we had another very successful Gregory K. Hawkins Memorial Softball Tournament and Alumni Weekend in April 2011. Over 100 alumni attended the Clay Shoot, Golf Tournament and/or Softball Tournament, and the Friday night social event continues to challenge the venue when we show up in force! This year, we raised over $7,000 for the Hawkins scholarship fund and we're examining the governing documents to find out how we can grant more scholarships to undergraduates. Thanks again for your continued support!

Local reporters are predicting that the Washburn Ichabod Football team will finish in 2nd place in the MIAA in 2011. If you haven't been to a WU football game in a while, I want to encourage you to get out and support your alma mater. With new 1st class facilities and a festive tailgating atmosphere before the games, football Saturdays are an exciting place to be and be seen! The undergraduates can usually be found tossing around the pigskin and grilling burgers and hot dogs north of the stadium, so feel free to bring a bag of chips and a package of hot dogs, your favorite beverage and help feed the students and join in the fun!

WU Football Schedule is available at www.wusports.com.

Homecoming is scheduled for October 29th this year. Stop by the Chapter House on MacVicar for coffee and doughnuts before the Annual Meeting of the Housing Corporation, the Homecoming Parade and a 1:00 pm football game against in-state rival Fort Hays State University. Efforts are underway for an evening reception to celebrate the Kansas Delta Chapter's 60th Anniversary that evening, so watch for details.

As I'm sure you're aware of a Capital Campaign was kicked off in the middle of 2010. We gained great momentum and has excellent support from alumni gathering quite a few pledges as we started the campaign amounting to nearly $100,000! We did have quite a few alumni who were wanting to donate to the purchase of the chapter house directly, but wanted to do so on a tax deductible basis. Since the Alumni Corporation that actually own the facility is a non-profit but not a 501c3, any donations directly to the purchase of the house could not be done on a tax deductible basis. Only donations to the Sigma Phi Epsilon Foundation could be deemed tax deductible. Those funds could only be used for scholarship purposes and not for the purchase of the house. Due to the high interest in having donations for housing being tax deductible the Alumni Board decided to take the Capital Campaign into a "quiet phase" while we hired outside counsel to pursue a private ruling on how much educational space the fraternity structure was actually comprised of. Any space deemed to be solely educational would entitle donations to that area to be done on a tax deductible basis. After much diligent work by this outside firm, we are now happy to say that this has been completed and now a portion of gifts to the Alumni Board directly will be deemed tax- deductible when used for these educational housing purposes. More details to come on an official announcement by the Fundraising Committee. Thank you for your support on making the Capital Campaign a success!!

Washburn University students have been selected as candidates for 2010 Homecoming king and queen. The Homecoming king and queen will be crowned on Oct. 23 at halftime of the football game vs. Northwest Missouri State University, Yager Stadium at Moore Bowl.

Matthew Peterson, Lansing, Kan., was nominated by Kappa Alpha Theta. Peterson is the president of Sigma Phi Epsilon and has also served as the vice president of programming, senior marshal, and public relations chairman. He has served on Interfraternity Council and Greek Council in numerous positions. Peterson volunteered for Race Against Breast Cancer, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, and as the Kansas Children’s Service League mediator. He is a Brunt and Mackey Scholarship winner and a Sigma Phi Epsilon Balanced Man Scholarship winner. Peterson is a senior majoring in history and plans to attend law school. His parents are Jon and Glenna Peterson