The State of the Brotherhood Dealing with Suspension - Theta Xi

Alpha bet
Newsletter of the Alpha Chapter of Theta Xi
Volume CXXXIII Spring 1999
The State of the
Brotherhood
by Jason Trommer, α1434 & Nick Constantine, α1451
This year was filled with many interesting events
here at Alpha Chapter. Foremost, we have managed to initiate
14 new Brothers into the Bonds this year who are already
making contributions to the House. Two of whom have just
been elected to E-Board positions. We also had a great rush
thanks to the tireless efforts of our Rush chairmen Peter
Abren, A1459 and Jay Lane, A1473. Of these 14 new
Brothers 11 have just been initiated this semester. We’ve also
just had our semester meeting with the Alumni Association,
and in conjunction with them and National, we have
refinanced our mortgage out to 15 years at a lower interest
rate. We used this money to pay off our National loan and
consolidate our debt repayments into one lower payment. The
new E-Board is in the process of getting cost estimates on
some much needed repairs and renovations to the House, and
we are bringing these estimates to our next meeting with the
Alumni Association in order to develop a plan of action. Our
Regional Director, Pete Handrinos, also paid us a visit this
semester. He came to check how our Chapter is doing and to
speak to the Brotherhood about Risk Management. The
Chapter has also conducted its officer elections and
installations, after two consecutive semesters as President
Jason Trommer is handing over the reins to Nick Constantine,
A1451. Peter Abren, A1459, will be helping Nick directly as
the new chapter Vice-President. Nick has over 2 years of
previous E-Board experience along with our new Treasurer,
Pete Anderson, A1477, who has one semester already under
his belt. They will be balanced out by Peter Abren, A1459, Eli
Smaga, A1466, Claude Blanchette, A1484, Matt Goss,
A1482, and Mark Rothfuss A1461 who are all serving on the
E-Board for the first time. •
Dealing with Suspension
by Nick Constantine, α1451
As of January 15, 1999 at 12:45pm the Alpha
Chapter of Theta Xi was officially put on disciplinary
suspension. The charges arose from an incident which
occurred on November 7, 1998 at a social event that the house
was sponsoring. Sworn statements were taken from the
individual by the school.
Due to the nature of the allegations and that alcohol
was involved, the school pushed for a one semester
suspension for Theta Xi, followed by a minimum of one
semester of probation. This is the minimum punishment that
any organization can face if it is being convicted of an
alcohol-related incident. Reinstatement will occur for an
organization once the terms of the suspension have been met
in full. A suspension of any organization at Rensselaer will
result in the loss of recognition by the institution for the
duration of the suspension. At no time while on suspension
can the organization act as if it is an organization. No signs or
other external displays of the organization name are permitted.
It can not sponsor any activities in the name of the
organization, this means even community service events. It
can not recruit any new members while it is on suspension.
Furthermore any violation of this can result in permanent loss
of recognition by the institution. What this will mean for a

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fraternity is no formal rush events, no parties or social events,
no inter-fraternity sponsored sports.
What the school also explained was that with the
punishment of a one semester suspension, Theta Xi would not
be able to contest the case based on the severity of the
discipline. An appeal would only be considered if Theta Xi
felt that the violation was not valid. The administration also
indicated that if an appeal was filed against the allegations, the
institution would see this as an indication of Theta Xi not
taking full responsibility for their actions, and would increase
the discipline imposed. “Historically”, as it was explained to
us, “appeal boards will only strengthen the punishment upon
appealing.” The school was also stating that for them to
uphold their case against Theta Xi, they would only need
“preponderance of evidence.” They would only need to show
that this “incident could have occurred within reason under
given conditions.”
It was also discussed how at this point in time the
witness will remain anonymous. The only time that the
person will have to come forward and reveal their identity
would be if Theta Xi contested the incident as never
happening and filed a letter of appeal against the punishment
handed down by the institution. However there were
members within the house who know exactly who this
individual was, whether by appearance or by name as well.
As a result the school stated that if this person was contacted
in any way in regards to the case that Theta Xi faced, further
judicial action for the organization as well as the member
involved would most definitely occur. These members could
be looking at “dealing with expulsion.”
At the point before the suspension charges, the Alpha
Chapter of Theta Xi was currently on disciplinary probation.
This was taken into account when the final decision on
punishment was determined. The school explained that we
would receive a one semester suspension, which would be
followed by one semester and a month of probation. The
extended probation, more than one semester following the
suspension would be as a result of the current status of the
house. It was also explained, that if a one semester
suspension was accepted that the house would come off of the
suspension and reinstated following the final day of the Spring
1999 semester. The house would be able to recruit and would
have its name in all of the campus wide fraternity listings that
are distributed. Of course this would only occur if the
punishment handed down was accepted promptly, which it
was.
As it stands right now the Alpha Chapter of Theta Xi
is now on disciplinary suspension until May 14, 1999 where at
which point we will be reinstated and placed on disciplinary
probation until January 30, 2000. For the duration of both the
suspension and the probation we are not permitted to have any
“alcohol at any house event” or function. Throughout the
suspension we are not permitted to act or function as an
organization as stated above. We can not recruit or partake in
any Rush related events until after the final day of the
suspension.
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The Brotherhood will use this setback as a means to
propel us forward. The loss of Rush will hurt, but not nearly
as bad as the loss of a Fall Rush. Currently we are the fifth
biggest house on campus, with a Brotherhood of 50. Losing a
Rush would hurt a lot more if our numbers were already low.
We will take this time to reflect on our flaws and enhance our
strengths. With all said and done, we will come back next
Fall and continue to select members who we feel will live and
breath Theta Xi. •
6294 Formal
Celebration
by Rob Strack, α1452, Social Chairman
This year’s 6294 Founder’s Day Formal will be here
before you know it, only this time it has to be conducted in a
different manner. Due to our recent suspension, we can’t have
any organized house events, especially here at the chapter
house. This will mean that the Alpha Chapter of Theta Xi will
not be able to sponsor an annual 6294 Founder’s Day
celebration. The house will neither be able to host this event,
nor pay for it in any way. To get the Alumni support for this
decision, we are asking that all alumni contact me, Rob
Strack, at stracr@rpi.edu in order to clarify any questions or
concerns. I urge any alumni that are planning on coming to
keep with their plans. But realize that the house can not
sponsor this event. Please feel free to e-mail me or call at
(518) 272-0187.
As far as parties go, Jay Lane did a great job as the
former social chairman last semester with our usual Greeks
and Girls party early in the semester followed by Cider Party
in November. Other than the things have been kind of quiet
with several smaller Banzai-sized gatherings. This semester,
of course, will be even more low key in order to make sure we
don’t risk any violations of our suspension. •

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Over the All-Men’s
Average Again
by Mark Rothfuss, α1461, Scholarship Chairman
For the second consecutive semester the Alpha
Chapter of Theta Xi has exceeded the All-Men’s Average.
We are currently are ranked 10 th on campus with a GPA of
2.92. The highest of which was a 3.2. With a Brotherhood
over 50 active members this has been a tough achievement to
reach. Last semester we finished with a ranking of 6 th overall.
For the past few semesters the Scholarship Chairman’s
position has evolved to motivate brothers in a more productive
way, and the results are showing. We are seeing a dramatic
change in the scholastic attitude of our members. As a result
of this achievement we can expect a reduction in insurance
fees and further outstanding semesters will reward greater
benefits. •
Eleven Initiated into ΘΞ
Early this semester, eleven, fine, young men were initiated
into the Bonds of Theta Xi to bring our active Brotherhood up
to 50.
α1487 Chris Baldauf
α1488 John Viggiano
α1489 Pat Kiendzior
α1490 Steve Stierer
α1491 Scott Rider
α1492 Jamie Smith
α1493 Tim Wilson
α1494 Goose Garcia
α1495 Jack Tung
α1496 Ray Mendanilla
α1497 Matt Falco
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Finances Extremely
Good
by Bill Sipperly, α1468, Chapter Treasurer (Fall 98)
First I would like to say that house finances are going
well. Although there have been quite a few changes this
semester regarding the house treasury, they are all beneficial
to the house. Among these changes are the Rensselaer
Fraternity Management Association (RFMA), national loan,
Troy Savings Bank mortgage and room and board fees. The
house has decided to terminate the RFMA services, an annual
cost of about $5,000, because of its lack of utility. As
treasurer I assumed the extra work which is quite minimal. It
seems the RFMA has outgrown its usefulness. More
importantly however, the Theta Xi mortgage with the Troy
Savings Bank has been refinanced. This was done with the
help of the alumni association, particularly Roland Cavalier,
α1060. Essentially what has happened is the Theta Xi
national loan has been paid by the Troy Savings Bank. The
principal due from this loan was then incorporated into the
remainder of the mortgage and the mortgage was extended.
This was done because of a lower interest rate offered by the
Troy Savings Bank with respect to the national loan.
Therefore it was in Theta Xi’s best interest to have this done.
Lastly the room and board fees have increased from $4,500
last semester to $4,900. This increase was instituted after
analyzing house expenses and revenues. One was found to be
larger than the other. With these changes, Theta Xi’s
liabilities and equity have dropped while revenues have gone
up. In short the house’s finances are in good standing and
look stable for the future. Due to the fact that this will be my
last semester at RPI Pete Anderson α1477 has just taken over
as the Chapter Treasurer for the next year. This transition will
allow for a smooth transition between officers. •
This Old House
by Rob “Ed” Strack, α1451, House Manager (Fall 98)
Over the course of the past semester and last summer,
several significant and much need improvements we made.
During the summer we finally had a new electrical service
installed, though the house still needs to finish the job by
replacing the old and extremely unsafe wiring from the
basement to the individual rooms. During work week, our big
project was a new sidewalk. With the help of a rented
jackhammer, we dug up the old sidewalk which was falling
apart and replaced it with gray brick. Thanks to a few brothers
who had experience with putting in this kind of sidewalk, we
now have a new look outside for which we have received

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several compliments. This semester I’ve also become good
friends with the plumber who has been here quite a few times
to help with the house’s failing plumbing system. Everything
from a camera being flushed down the toilet to flooding of the
bathrooms to leaking heating pipes seems to have happened
this semester, and it seems as though just when I thought I had
seen it all, something new and incredible goes wrong.
Without a doubt, the house’s physical state is on a downward
spiral. While things can often be temporarily remedied with
quick fix-its, these don’t last for long. It’s only a matter of
time before something major happens, and as of right now we
are only delaying the inevitable. Obviously the only way to
avoid any of this is through some large-scale(and expensive)
projects. Needless to say, we can’t do any of it with out your
financial help. Any donations you can make will be greatly
appreciated and they will certainly be put to good use so our
current and future brothers will have a house to enjoy. •
Claude Blachette α1484, uses a precision instrument to expedite the new
walkway construction project.
Rush
With the school suspension that is on us
for the Spring semester, Rush will need to
be handled in a very delicate manner.
According to the school’s policy, when an
organization is on suspension they, in
essence, lose all of their rights and
privileges as an organization. These rights
and privileges include recruitment, or more specifically to
fraternities, Rush. As a result, we will not be able to formally
Rush this semester or sponsor any Rush events that could be
construed as promoting recruitment. What we can and will be
doing to compensate is to pull together and focus our efforts
towards a fantastic Fall Rush. We will continue to meet other
prospective associate members, but will fully explain the
present situation and highly encourage them to join us in the
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Fall semester. We will, by no means, compromise the ideals
we strive for in our members. With an eager force of Theta Xi
Brothers, I am sure that we will have a very successful Rush
in the Fall of 1999. •
Job Takers
Here’s where the graduating Brothers are headed:
α1437, Dave Gottler, General Electric Power Systems
Schenectady, N.Y.
α 1446, Dennis Lincoln , United States Air Force
α1449, Kevin Delaney, United States Marine Corps.
α1451, Nick Constantine, United States Army
α1452, Rob “Ed” Strack, United States Army
α1460, Jesse Madsen, United States Navy
α1468, Bill Sipperly, United States Navy
Job Seekers
Is there an opening in your company? As of press time, the
following seniors had not finalized their post-graduation
plans. Please call or e-mail them with any possible
opportunities. Thanks!
α1417, Al Chin, B.S. Biomedical Engineering – M.B.A.,
phone: (518) 272-6703, e-mail: china2@rpi.edu
α1434, Jason Trommer, B.S. M.E. Industrial Management
Engineering.
α1445, Mike LaRose, B.S. Chemical Engineering, phone:
(518) 272-0918, e-mail: larosm@rpi.edu
Address change? Please inform ΘΞ & RPI at:
Theta Xi National Headquarters Rensselaer Alumni Assoc.
9974 Old Olive Street Road 1301 Peoples Ave.
St. Louis, MO 63141-9870 Troy, NY 12180
1-(800)-783-6294 (518)-276-5105
Changing Times
by Mike Rivera, α1261

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Brothers, these are interesting times that we live in.
Between globalization, impeachment, AIDS, and war in the
Middle East to name a few, I am not sure if I am coming or
going. One thing that is certainly consistent through all of this
change is the Bond of Brotherhood at Theta Xi.
I am proud to say that I have been a brother at Alpha
Chapter since 1984. The support of the brothers at Alpha
have taken me through a bachelors degree and a soon to be
completed master degree. I have come in contact with many
classes of excellent brothers since then, many of which have
become close friends and I am certain I will keep in touch
with for the rest of my life.
There are some particular topics that are of
significant relevance to Alpha and all Theta Xi brothers -
membership numbers and alcohol within fraternities. The old
adage "times are a changin'" is an understatement. I recall my
freshmen year when for me it was like the 60s - free love and
booze. Those times are long gone and for good reason.
Parents, faculty, the administration, law enforcement agencies,
and American society in general have become very cognizant
of alcohol abuse and the impact it has with respect to
underage drinking.
Let's face it, it would be hypocritical to say that
alcohol is not a part of the college experience, I am not
denying that. However, social awareness and responsible
adult behavior demands that we take responsibility from our
actions. Our chapter as well as many others has come under
increasing scrutiny about our parties, social events, public
gatherings etc., this is not going to just go away. I am pleased
to say that at Alpha we are doing our best to understand how
our behavior must change. We are learning more about what
it is we must do to ensure that we remain a strong chapter and
most importantly a national organization that is not swept
away like other fraternities because they chose alcohol over
Brotherhood.
We are currently under pressure from Rensselaer as a
result of some silly behavior but we are on the right track.
Nick Constantine and Pete Abren are leading the house and I
am confident we are in good hands.
I decided to write about alcohol because I feel it is
the single most critical thing that can make or break our
house. It is times like this that we all have to come together,
remember the oath we took, and remind ourselves why we
joined Theta Xi. I for one joined the house because of the
people, diversity, fun, and most importantly the loyalty the
brothers had to me as an associate and that we share today as
brothers.
If you haven't been in touch with the house in some
time we welcome all brothers to come by, write, or call to see
how things are going. Remember that we are all brothers for
life and the chapter belongs to all of us, not just the actives.
My sincerest regards to all the Alphas and other brothers of
Theta Xi. I hope this note finds you and your loved ones
happy and healthy.
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Recent Alumni News
Bob Campbell, A1331
News In Brief:
I’m working at the National Center for Atmospheric Research
in Boulder, CO, as a Unix System Administrator, primarily
Solaris, but I'm getting into Linux as well. I’ve been seeing a
personal trainer since Sept. and have since lost 30 lbs.
Anyone who can make it out to CO has a place to crash.
Kimon Roufas, A1413
Concerning myself; I am now working at Xerox PARC in
Palo Alto, California and am half way through my second
Stanford MS, this one in EE (the first was in ME). Life is
pretty good, doing a lot of competitive cycling.
Charles L. Bauer, A826
After 37 years of active service as professor in the Department
of Materials Science & Engineering, Carnegie Mellon
University, Charles L. Bauer (Alpha 826) officially retired on
July 1, 1998. Currently, he is dividing time and energy
between homes in Leesburg and Clearwater, Florida, Steinau,
Germany, and St.-Cyr-sur-mer, France, as well as rental
properties in Colorado. He and his wife, Janet, would be
delighted to entertain friends, former classmates, and/or
brothers whenever and wherever opportunity arises.
Peter Kebbekus , A1266
As far as news, my wife Annette and I have found two
academic positions at the University of Minnesota, Duluth.
She is in the Biochem. department, and I am in Chemistry. But
more important than finding gainful employment, we had our
first child last month. Joseph Peter Kebbekus was born on
Dec. 7. Needless to say, 1998 was quite a year...
Scott Carmichael, A1368
As far as what I am doing, I just moved to CA (around
Thanksgiving) with my girlfriend (Marilyn Afonso). I am
working for NTSI, New Technology Solutions, Inc. I left
Digital Equipment Corp in Nov. of 1997. BTW, if you know
any MechE's that want to work with Pro/E or PTC products,
my company is hiring. I moved to CA to help develop a new
office for NTSI. •
Alumni E-Mail Network
by Christian Blanc, α1404, (blanc@colorkinetics.com)
A826 Charles L. Bauer
A877 Hank Tarbox
A884 Pat Sullivan
A899 John C. Shulz
A962 Robert M. Campbell
A1023 Richard M. Kelton

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A1047 William Knoth
A1104 John "Chuck" Coffey
A1187 Kurt Doehla
A1203 Jim Lichtenberg
A1233 Philip Gyr
A1261 Mike Rivera
A1264 Ken Bradley
A1265 Mike Anderson
A1266 Peter Kebbekus
A1268 John Chapdelaine
A1270 Ralph Buoniconti
A1275 Dave Fowkes
A1280 Jeff Anderlik
A1283 Sean Hulsebosch
A1285 Jeff Lamoree
A1293 Jeff Thompson
A1295 Paul Vescio
A1308
A1322 Ron Fraser
A1324 Matt Glaccum
A1327 Renzo DeMeo
A1328 Frank Sylvester
A1329 Alejandro Ross
A1331 Bob Campbell
A1334 Paul Canino
A1336 Josh Cooper
A1338 Derek Liou
A1340 Jeff Young
A1344 Newton Cheung
A1347 T.J. Pilon
A1350 Matt Flaherty
A1351 Brian Trapp
A1353
A1355 Seth Johnson
A1356 Christopher Riismandel
A1357 Pat Marshall
A1358 John Reinhardt
A1359 Mike Petronino
A1360
A1363 Brendan Bagley NEW! 12/29/98
A1364 Dave Goldschmidt
A1365 Eric Purdy
A1366 James Soisson
A1367 Phil Palmroth NEW! 12/21/98
A1368 Scott Carmichael
A1370 Charlie Light
A1373 Snoopy Uhrig
A1377 Ben Couture
A1379 Mike Skalski
A1384 Hayri Tarhan
A1385 Nat Dolar
A1386 Johloyd Strong
A1387 Phil Agcaoili
A1388
A1389 Neil Tremblay
A1390 Sean McKay
A1391 Mickey Mossaidis
A1392 Adam Berman
A1393 Fred Hilkowitz
A1394 Jeff Gratz
A1396 Mark Allen
A1397 Jeff Beers
A1399 Dave McGill
A1402 Victor Dacruz
A1404 Chris Blanc
A1405 Kenyon Thayer
A1406 Mark Martel
A1407 Jason Romano
A1408 A.J. Fiory
A1409 Won Choe
A1410 Jeff Tracy NEW! 12/29/98
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A1411 Andrew Frazier
A1413 Kimon Roufas
A1415 Nino Bonura
A1417 Al Chin
A1420
A1423 Mark Hoosier
A1426 Franco Pacific
A1427 Ben Rosenthal
A1431 Damon Fisher
A1432Justin Zipperly
A1433 Jonathan Wilson NEW! 1/20/99
A1434 Jason Trommer
A1435 Pete LaRochelle
A1436 Lee Morrisseau
A1437 Dave Gottler
A1438 Pat O'Brien
A1441
A1442
A1443 Paul Zahner
A1454 John Cardarople
A1458
The above picture as well as the one on the following page was taken
from an old Rensselaer Polytechnic Transit.
Source: http://www.colorkinetics.com/~blanc/zoo.htm
Our Own Place On the
Web
by Michael LaRose, α1445 Alumni Chair

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With the recent increase in e-mail contact between
alumni and the house there have been many inquiries into the
status of the old website. The house’s homepage has had its
share of ups and downs in the past few semesters. The fact of
the matter is the house has never owned a server. In the past,
a couple of generous brothers have let us use their own PC as
a server for the houses homepage. So as situations change
the homepage is moved from one server to the next. As a
result, the address for the web site has been completely
changed. The homepage can now be found on Nick
Constantine’s RPI account
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http://www.rpi.edu/~constn/thetaxi/
However, this approach will also be inconsistent as
brothers graduate and loose their accounts. Therefore the
brotherhood is looking into purchasing its own server which
will be owned by the house as a whole. Several brothers are
already looking into possibilities and the new server may be
up and running by the end of the semester, with a personal
web address of its own (hopefully http://www.alphathetaxi.org
or http://www.6294.org). Other tentative cyberprojects
included creating an updateable database of alumni
names and contact information, an up to date alumni
homepage, and showcase for items such as house portraits,
party shirts, rush shirts, and any other item the active brothers
have the opportunity to purchase that might interest alumni.
Hopefully with this increase in cyber alumni relations we’ll be
able to hear from a lot more of you. Keep in mind, however,
that nothing is better than a personal visit.
The above picture as well as the one on the previous page was taken
from an old Rensselaer Polytechnic Transit.

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Alphabet
Newsletter of the Alpha Chapter of Theta Xi
Volume CXXXIII Spring 1999
Alphabet
Put Theta Xi on Your Wall
Editors:
Mike LaRose, α1445
Nick Constantine, α1451
Contributors:
Christian Blanc, α1404
Jason Trommer, α1434
Mark Rothfuss, α1461
Rob Strack, α1452
Bill Sipperly, α1468
Alpha Chapter of Theta Xi
1490 Sage Avenue
Troy, NY 12180
(518) 271-8558
http://www.rpi.edu/~constn/thetaxi
House Portraits are still available!!
Limited edition Alpha Chapter prints available for your donation of $100 or more!
(Money goes to the building fund.)
Hang a portrait of 1490 Sage Avenue in your home or office.
(Measures approx. 19" x 21")
Print Number Suggested Donation
3-10 $1000 or more
11-50 $500 - $999.99
51-250 $100 - $499.99
Remember, the prints are limited. So, act soon-- and please be generous. Prints are
available anytime through the Chapter Treasurer or the Alumni Chairman.
Thank you in advance from all the Brothers of the Alpha Chapter of Theta Xi.
Alpha Chapter of Theta Xi
1490 Sage Avenue
Troy, NY 12180