All Chapters and Affiliates are asked to provide an update on their activities during the annual Alpha Delta Phi Society Convention. Bowdoin Chapter Delegate Zoe Reifsnyder, BDN ’12, presented a report on behalf of our chapter at the Society’s 10th Convention and Leadership Training Conference hosted by the Middletown Chapter in March 2010. You can read it, following the jump:
Despite the loss of our undergraduate status in 2000, the Bowdoin Chapter has been continuing to thrive as best as possible. Ours is the only fraternity on the Bowdoin campus who continues to meet in our own house. The college has been cooperating with us in this, allowing us to meet at the old chapter house for a special ADPhi reunion separate from the school’s Reunion, as well as a New Year’s gathering.
In 2008, the college had asked us to change our reunion time from their Reunion weekend to a different weekend separate from the Reunion festivities, and it was worried that this alternate weekend would not take off. It was a wonderful change, however, dramatically reducing the cost of convening and ensuring the house had our undivided attention. About a hundred ADs—of various chapters, even—came to the Bowdoin chapter house for a very enjoyable time. At this first ‘09 reunion in August, we initiated two pledges, one of whom being the first undergraduate member since the loss of status. (Editor’s Note: To clarify, the undergraduate initiated is a double-legacy who is an undergraduate at another college, and not a Bowdoin undergraduate student. As you may know, Bowdoin undergraduates are prohibited from joining organizations like ours.)
Unfortunately weather made the 2009-2010 New Year’s gathering impossible. We are planning to hold our next reunion in the first weekend of August this year as well (August 5th – 8th).
We continue to have a part in the literary education at the college. Our literary fund donated to keep a Maine based online poetry competition and performance archive alive. It was used to bring in a guest writer as well — Mark Strand. It also goes towards the FDR Cup, awarded to a Bowdoin underclassman, for making the Bowdoin community a better place, which will be awarded for the 69th year later this Spring.
Legacy (and double-legacy!) children are a growing population, who all get along well when we meet. I’m sure our future will be promising. We’re doing our best with what we have and doing admirably.