Membership Growth!

School must be back in session! My inbox this morning is full of emails from students recently started or now starting new chapters and ALL are looking for advice. It is so exciting to know that the value of membership in Delta Epsilon Chi is a known fact and that new students each year work hard to bring that value to other students on their campuses. Working with all of our members… helping each individual to be successful… this is what I LOVE about my job!

So – a few quick pieces of advice for membership growth/development and most importantly, Starting a New Chapter:

1. Take it day-by-day, person-by-person.
It can be overwhelming if you look at the big picture for starting a chapter. But rest assured that you can handle it one step at a time. On our website there is a numbered checklist for starting your new chapter.
The BEST advice I can give is to find the select few friends and supporters who can be on your leadership team to get your chapter rolling. When I was a new student at the University of Utah I contacted some of the DECA alumni who would also be freshmen on campus that year. From that group of 5 we started and grew the chapter to 25 in just the first year! And today, ahem... a few years later, we are still good friends. Find your support system and share the responsibility.

2. Use your Marketing 101 skills well!
Whether it’s chalk messages in the quad, PSA’s on the campus radio station, or press releases to the campus paper… get the word out that Delta Epsilon Chi is for everybody. Plan a couple of introductory meetings and get people there. Plan a few events (community service, networking, etc.) that will get people hooked into your growing chapter community. And then get out and market your existence like crazy!

3. Start Planning for the BIG events early.
The Collegiate Leadership Academy (Nov. 6-8) is a great opportunity for you to hook your new members into participating. But honestly, it costs a buck or two! So plan early, start raising funds; build your business partnerships that could help support the cost of sending a few people to New York. The experience is well worth it… but it takes some organization to get everyone there.

The International Career Development Conference (April 22-25) is the culminating event of our membership year and an experience you don’t want to miss! And again, it costs a buck or two to ship everyone out to California. Just like the CLA – plan early, raise funds, get your faculty and administrators to support you and the learning that will take place – and get everyone to Anaheim!

* Big note on fundraising – if people have to put even a few of their own hard earned dollars into going to a conference, they’ll take the experience more seriously and get more from it. Even if you can get full funding for everyone (and that is hard to do anyway) I would recommend you still ask for at least $50 from everyone and then reimburse those who come back having participated in the whole conference experience.

4. What do we do now?
So you’ve turned in your membership in our online system. You’ve raised funds to attend the conferences. Now what? The REAL value of membership in Delta Epsilon Chi comes from what you do in your chapter. For ideas of how to engage in leadership and career learning in your local chapter check out our:

Passport Program
Month of C.A.R.E.
Competitive Events Program

All three programs should give you ideas about what can be done in your local chapter that will create membership value, and they will prepare you to earn awards and compete successfully on the international level at our International Career Development Conference.

The greatest accomplishments are the one’s you have to work for.

Starting a chapter, growing a chapter – these aren’t the easiest things in the world to do. But if you work hard, stick to it, and plan your action and act on your plan – I guarantee it will be one of the greatest accomplishments ever.

Good luck! And as always – if I can help… Email me!

Take Care,
Kyle
Assistant Director, Delta Epsilon Chi