Dear Fraternities and Sororities, 

This semester is moving quite fast, but do not let it pass you by.  Combine fun and productivity when participating in your events to get the most out of them.  Also concentrate on your academics as mid-terms are coming up.

Greek Spirit Night

     Greek Spirit Night is Wednesday, February 27, 2008 in the Clemente Center.  Come out and support Florida Tech's basketball teams while competing to earn money for your organization!  The women's game begins at 5:30 PM and the men's game will follow at 7:30 PM.  This event is for those who registered.  Go Panthers!

Greek Week

     Greek Week this year will take place from Friday, March 14, 2008 to Saturday, March 22, 2008.  Come out and participate in every event to give your organization the best chance at winning.  Also, let's show this campus how much they are missing out on with respect to the social aspect of fraternity and sorority life.  With this in mind, please be sure to have fun, and more importantly, be SAFE!

     Also, please check the Greek Week website soon for updates on the schedule and rules.

Campus Clean-up

     Come out and clean up your Florida Tech campus!  Earn campus service hours while making your college campus a nice place to travel about.  There has been a change to the date of Campus Clean-up.  The event will take place on Saturday March 29, 2008.  This is the same weekend as Relay for Life.

Relay for Life

     Relay for Life this year will take place on March 28, 2008 starting at 6:00 PM and will conclude mid-day on March 29, 2008.  Relay for Life is a national event held in multiple locations all year round.  It is part of the American Cancer Society with a purpose to raise money to help fight the battle against cancer and to give hope to those who are.  Please go to the FIT Relay for Life website to join a team, start a team, or join as an individual.  Donate some money to the ACS, and get out there and collect!

March of Dimes at FIT

     One of the most common, serious and costly problems facing Florida's families (and businesses) today is premature birth.  Yet, according to research, most of the public doesn't regard prematurity as a problem.  They think it "cures" itself as the baby grows!

     Chances are many of you reading this article know a family with a baby born prematurely.  Each year more than 508,000 babies (roughly the population of Brevard County!) are born in the United States before 37 weeks gestation - that's one baby in eight or 12.5 percent of all the babies born in America.  Here in Florida, 29,287 babies were born prematurely in 2004; 700 of those were born in Brevard County!  And the incidence continues to rise at the national, state and county levels.  Since 1981, the rate of premature birth has increased an alarming 31 percent.

     All mothers-to-be benefit from prenatal care, the earlier in the pregnancy the better.  Education during the college years is the best prevention method in preventing prematurity!  The goal of prenatal care is to monitor the progress of the pregnancy and to identify potential problems before they become serious for either mom or baby.  Research has shown that women who see a health care provider regularly during pregnancy have healthier babies, are less likely to deliver prematurely, and are less likely to have other serious problems related to pregnancy.

     Through our largest event, March for Babies, we are able to raise the funds to ensure that every baby is born healthy.  The March of Dimes has two March for Babies events here in Brevard County. In MELBOURNE on Saturday, April 19th beginning and ending right on the FIT Campus at the Gleason Auditorium and the NIGHT WALK ON THE BEACH Saturday, April 26th, 2008 Jetty Park,  Port Canaveral. For more information on how you can get in involved call 321-633-3047 or email asalazar@marchofdimes.com.

     The March of Dimes is the leading nonprofit organization for pregnancy and baby health. With chapters nationwide and its premier event, March for Babies, the March of Dimes works to improve the health of babies. For the latest resources and information, visit marchofdimes.com/florida or nacersano.org.

NATIONAL PANHELLENIC CONFERENCE MEMBERS CELEBRATE INTERNATIONAL BADGE DAY

     The 26 member organizations of the National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) will celebrate International Badge Day March 3, 2008. During the annual event, sorority women everywhere honor their Greek affiliations by wearing their badge or letters.

     Celebrating 104 years of excellence, partnership, and Panhellenic spirit, NPC looks forward to the future because of the continuing collaborative and dedicated efforts of its 26 groups. International Badge Day honors this spirit and celebrates the pledge of loyalty each member has taken.

NPC believes that membership in a fraternity or sorority is a social experience based on the fundamental right of free people to form voluntary associations. It is one of the many enrichments of college and alumnae life.

Helping women grow, give, lead and succeed, today's sororities enrich society in these ways:

* Sororities are a training ground for tomorrow's leaders

* Supplement academics with programs and activities that teach leadership and business skills.

* Sororities are committed to helping members achieve more.

* Sororities raise significant funds and awareness for a wide range of causes.

* Sororities are a key source of scholarships for women.

* Sororities are actively engaged in community service.

* Sororities are one of the largest leadership and life skills training forces for women, on university campuses.

* Sororities provide the foundation for a lifetime of friendship.

* NPC and its member groups reflect the full diversity of women from all walks of life.

The fact that NPC is a conference is significant to the NPC philosophy because the organization is not a congress. Other than the basic UNANIMOUS AGREEMENTS that all groups have voted to observe, NPC confines itself to recommendations and advice and acts as a court of final appeal in any College Panhellenic difficulty.

The National Panhellenic Conference provides support and guidance for its 26 member inter/national sororities/women's fraternities and serves as the national voice on contemporary issues of sorority life. Founded in 1902, NPC is one of the oldest and largest women's membership organizations representing more than 3.9 million women at 655 college/university campuses and 4,500 local alumnae chapters in the U.S. and Canada.

Each year, NPC-affiliated collegians and alumnae donate more than $5 million to worthy causes, provide $2.8 million in scholarships to women and volunteer 500,000 hours in their communities.

International Badge Day is co-sponsored by the National Panhellenic Conference and Herff Jones Inc. Greek Division. For more information, contact the NPC Office at (317) 872-3185 or visit the website at www.npcwomen.org.

Some Important Reminders!!!

     Please update your civic hours on the Civic Engagement website.  This is also important in order to increase your and your organization's chances to receive awards.

     Please submit any information for next month's newsletter as soon as possible.

     The next FSL Housing Committee meeting is on Thursday, March 13, 2008 at 6:30 PM.  The place is to be determined.  This is a very important meeting!

     The next Council of Presidents meeting will be Thursday, March 13, 2008 at 8PM in the FSL Conference Room.

     Thank you.

Fraternity & Sorority Life

E-Mail: fsl@fit.edu