Back to School:

As summer comes to an end and the academic year begins, the brothers have all moved back to Athens and begun classes. Many of the Brothers traveled to Charlotte this past weekend to support the Dawgs against Clemson. Everyone knows the Dawgs travel, and Mu Chapter is no exception. The Junkyard Dawgs came out to play, and left the Queen City with a 10-3 victory over the Tigers. We look forward to hosting everyone before the UAB with our first tailgate of the year at the Chateau this Saturday.

While we were not able to have Jam For Cam in 2020 we hope to bounce back and make the event this year one to remember. This event has not only done strides for the community and melanoma cancer research but for our chapter as well. It helps many members recognize the importance of the brotherhood and has given us renewed energy in terms of philanthropy.  What started off as a battle of the bands has turned into a celebration of life of a great brother and friend to all of this chapter.  Cameron Fearon (Mu 2719) embodied every aspect of what it means to be a Sigma Nu and we are looking forward to celebrating his life on September 17th. Ethan Suda (Mu 2725) has done a great job organizing the event and we are excited to have 6 bands come from all over the country to perform at Southern Brewing Company. So far, we have raised over $50,000 for Melanoma research, Camp Carolina, and suicide prevention, but we are not done yet.  After missing last year’s event because of the global pandemic, the brothers of Sigma Nu are full steam ahead with preparation and fund raising for Jam for Cam 2021 to make this one the best one yet. We hope that with a successful year we will be able to continue to make this event bigger and better in the coming years. 

If you are interested in purchasing a ticker or simply donating you can go to the JamForCam website at https://www.jam4cam.com/ or visit the instagram page @jam4cam for updates and information. If you or someone you know is interested in purchasing a VIP ticket or table for the event or have any questions regarding the details of a VIP pass please email info@jam4cam.com 

A Word from our Recruitment Chairman:

Alumni and Parents,

We have finished up our 2021 Summer and Fall recruitment with a candidate class of 40. We are proud of this group of young men that we have brought together from all over the country; including, California, Texas, Florida, Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia, Louisiana, and Maryland. In a class of 42, 6 are legacies, with 4 being Mu chapter legacies. This class is very capable and well into developing as a great group of young men that will continue to make Mu Chapter great. 

Two key factors that brought success to this year’s recruitment process were the alumni and chapter involvement. We had many great alumni referrals that are now in the candidate class. Thank you to any alumni that reached out to help connect us with new students and great prospects. Also, this summer’s success would not have been possible without a chapter wide effort. It is great to see the care and effort shared among everyone to recruit a class that will hopefully be better than the one before them. We all seem to share the same idea that we want to leave this fraternity in better hands than we found it. 

Thank you again to everyone for the help with this year’s rush.

Go Dawgs, 

Leighton Clements

Mu 2779

New Executive Council Members:

On Sunday August 29th, Mu chapter held our first Executive Council elections of the 2021-2022 academic year. Ethan Leoni (Mu 2822) and Gray Sasser (Mu 2835) won the elections for House Manager and Philanthropy Chair, respectively. Leoni and Sasser are the first two EC members from the Fall 2020 candidate class, but more will be running for various positions over the next few months. We are confident in their ability to lead this chapter with pride, and are looking forward to seeing them put their ideas into action. Congratulations to Ethan and Gray, let’s get to work!

Robert Durham Medal of Excellence:

The Robert Durham Medal of Excellence is given annually to the graduating senior “who, through his vision and courage, consistently demonstrates a commitment to excellence, and whose actions on behalf of Sigma Nu Fraternity and the University of Georgia provide a worthy example for others to follow.” This award should not be recognized as the “best brother” award, but rather a recognition of the brother who has helped raise the bar within the Chapter and serves as an excellent example of what a brother of Mu Chapter of Sigma Nu should ideally represent. 

This year’s recipients of the Robert Durham Medal of Excellence are Bennett Porson (Mu 2731) and Cole Smith (Mu 2702). Bennett served various leadership roles in Mu Chapter, most notably acting as Commander from fall 2019 to fall 2020 during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, Cole served as the Mu Chapter recruitment chair during the summer following his sophomore year, and was elected Vice President of Recruitment for the Interfraternity Council during his junior year. When reflecting on the award, Cole said, “when I began getting involved in the fraternity and IFC, my one goal was to continue the legacy that the people before me created and to honor them to the best of my ability. Sigma Nu gave me lifelong friends, memories and connections. The ability to be recognized for giving back even the smallest amount is a tremendous honor for me.” Similarly, Bennett remarked, “I was absolutely honored to have received the Robert Durham Medal of Excellence, knowing that I had been able to give back to a fraternity that gave me so much.” Congratulations to both Bennett and Cole, and best of luck in the next chapter of their lives. 

Summer Internships:

Cole Coughlin (Mu 2739) a senior double majoring in Real Estate and Finance, interned for a company called Carter, where he was given the position as a multifamily development and acquisition analyst. His responsibilities included searching for land sites where garden style multifamily development would thrive. He searched throughout many big cities such as Nashville, Orlando, Atlanta, and Charlotte. After finding the sites, Cole and the company would see if they would be able to hold the correct number of units in that town, and if the deal turned out to be of value, then they would build. Congratulations to Cole on his success this summer, we look forward to watching him continue to work hard in your final year at UGA.

This summer, Emilio Ferrara (Mu 2815) worked in a research lab at the UGA Center for Molecular Medicine where he did work studying novel vaccine targets for Streptococcus pneumoniae. He started working in the lab in January and this summer he served as a CURO Research Assistant and he is still working there this fall in between classes. Congratulations to Emilio for locking down an internship at a time where many were limited or simply not offered. We are also proud to share that several other brothers held internships with companies like CitiBank, State Farm, Sterling Seacrest Pritchard, and Laffer Tengler Investments. 

Rafting:

Over the summer on Saturday, June 12th, the brothers of Sigma Nu as well as our largest group of rushees of the summer gathered at Big Dogs on the River for a well-planned rafting event. Everyone who participated was able to float down the river on a tube or kayak and enjoy a relaxing time on the Oconee River. The turnout was incredible, and the brothers enjoyed a fun experience coasting down and meeting potential new members. Many older brothers recall rafting as their favorite rush event, and Saturday proved that to be true for many of our recent accepts. Terry Stephens, owner and founder of Big Dogs, was an incredible host as he prepared us for loading and unloading into the river. He spent time keeping the area clean and ensuring everyone had a good quality tube and kayak. As we were going along, our conversations of summer, football, and memories from last year were shared with potential new members. It rained for a short period of time which made the event more fun, as everyone cooled off towards the end. Thanks to Mr. Stephens, we knew where to properly exit the river to cap off a great afternoon. This year’s rafting trip was a great success, and we cannot wait until we are back again next year!