Tau Kappa Epsilon Fraternity News

You Are Coming to Conclave, Now What?

Thu, 30 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - You have made a worthwhile investment registering for the 55th Biennial Conclave in New Orleans. You will get to meet the 250,000th initiate Steve Forbes, network with more than a thousand Fraters, learn from some of the best and brightest in the TKE Nation, make a difference at one of the largest city park's in the country, and have a great time.

If you haven't registered it's not too late. You can do so online until Monday at 12 PM EST or on-site on Thursday, August 6 after 3PM.

To make your stay more convenient and enjoyable, please refer to the information below:

Suggested Attire

Thursday, August 6

Registration Begins - Casual
Regional Meetings - Casual
Life Loyal Teke Reception with Steve Forbes (By Invitation) - Coat and Tie
First Session of the Grand Chapter - Coat and Tie

Friday, August 7

Teke Institute/ Alumni Volunteer Academy - Casual
Lunch - Casual
Leadership Academy Reunion (Graduates and Donors by Invitation) - Casual
Kickoff - Casual
Parade and Off-Site Event - House of Blues - Casual

Saturday, August 8

Service Project - TKE T-Shirt & Shorts
Second Session of the Grand Chapter - Coat and Tie
TKE Educational Foundation Reception - Coat and Tie or Black Tie
Grand Inaugural Banquet - Coat and Tie or Black Tie

Name Badges/ Admittance to Events
Conclave Name Badges must be worn at all Conclave functions. In order to be admitted to any function, attendees must have a Conclave name badge.

Hotel Check-in/out Time
The hotel check in time is 3 PM and check out time is 12 PM. Your room charge and tax is already paid. Any additional charges, such as in-room movies, room service, etc., placed on the room bill must be paid at the check out time.

TKE Merchandise
Official TKE merchandise is available for purchase throughout Conclave. Now is the time to purchase the latest in TKE apparel and supplies for your chapter.

Teke Institute/ William V. Muse Alumni Volunteer Academy (AVA)

Thursday, August 6

Alumni Volunteer Academy (For Alumni and Graduating Seniors)
Opening Session - Alumni Development with John Deckard, Vice President of Fraternal Services

Friday, August 7

Teke Institute 1st Session Choices - For Collegiates

Understanding the Black Book - Greg Roskopf, Region 3 Director
Don't Panic - Ethan Stubbs, Asst. Dir. of Chapter Services/ Tom McAninch, Director of Communication
Big Boy Britches of Education, Dominate Your Campus and Community,I DARE YOU - Adam Ferris, Region 2 Director

Alumni Volunteer Academy (For Alumni and Graduating Seniors)
The Blueprint - Donnie Aldrich, Assistant Director of Chapter Services - Programs

Teke Institute 2nd Session Choices

Tapping into Additional Resources - Your Alumni - Todd Farmer, Region 1 Director
The Cold Hard Facts - Ethan Stubbs, Asst. Dir. of Chapter Services - Standards
Building Better Men, The Blueprint - Donnie Aldrich, Assistant Director of Chapter Services-Programs

Alumni Volunteer Academy (For Alumni and Graduating Seniors)
From Friend-raising to Fund-raising as a Foundation Ambassador - Brian Bates, The Laurus Group and Greg Woodman, Affinity Connection

Teke Institute and AVA General Session
Being the Best, The Ultimate Recruiting Tool - John Deckard, Vice President of Fraternal Services and Bryston Cutter (Rho-Upsilon, Franklin College)

Teke Institute Regional Recruitment Breakouts: Strategizing and Mobilizing

Alumni Volunteer Academy (For Alumni and Graduating Seniors)
Alumni Association Development - Louie Correa, CAE, Director of Alumni Relations and Panel of Alumni Association Presidents

If you have any further questions please refer to the FAQ part of the Conclave page (scroll down) or find us at the registration table at Conclave August 6. We look forward to seeing you there!

TKE Announces 250,000th Initiate to be Steve Forbes

Tue, 28 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - Tau Kappa Epsilon International Fraternity is proud to announce the 250,000th initiate of the organization will be Steve Forbes, the President and Chief Executive Officer of Forbes Media, LLC and Editor-in-Chief of Forbes Magazine. Forbes will be formally welcomed into the bond at the opening ceremony Thursday, August 6, of TKE's biennial Conclave celebration.

"We're very pleased to have Steve Forbes become a Teke," said Frater Kevin Mayeux, CAE, Chief Executive Officer of TKE. "Tau Kappa Epsilon has been the home to many of America's best and brightest - from Ronald Reagan to Mike Huckabee to Bob Barr, from Conrad Hilton to Charles Walgreen, Jr. to Howard Schultz. Steve Forbes continues this tradition as a respected leader in finance and politics, always acting in a way that is smart, measured, and honorable. We're pleased to have him join our Fraternity, helping TKE achieve its goal of building better men for a better world."

Prior to Forbes' initiation, he will be the special guest at the Life Loyal Teke reception being held in the Riverview Room at 5:30 PM on Thursday, August 6th. If you would like to sign up to be an LLT to attend this special event, click here. If you already are an LLT, please RSVP to attend this event.

This very exciting announcement comes at the heels of surpassing attendance numbers of 2005 and 2007 Conclaves. If you have still not signed up, there is still time to do so. Click here to sign up today.

The son of wealthy publisher Malcolm Forbes, Steve Forbes graduated from Princeton in 1970 and joined the family business, eventually becoming president and editor-in-chief of Forbes Magazine. In 1996, Forbes entered the GOP presidential primaries, with his family business giving him instant political credibility. He lost the nomination to Bob Dole. In 2000 he ran again, and was beaten for the nomination by eventual president George W. Bush.

Mr. Forbes is also Chairman of the company's American Heritage division, publisher of American Heritage magazine and two quarterlies, American Legacy and American Heritage of Invention & Technology.

The company's flagship publication, Forbes, is the nation's leading business magazine, with a circulation of more than 900,000. Forbes and Forbes Global together reach a worldwide audience of nearly five million readers.

Mr. Forbes writes editorials for each issue of Forbes under the heading of "Fact and Comment." A widely respected economic prognosticator, he is the only writer to have won the highly prestigious Crystal Owl Award four times. The prize was formerly given by U.S. Steel Corporation to the financial journalist whose economic forecasts for the coming year proved most accurate.

In 1985, President Reagan (Iota, Eureka College)named Mr. Forbes Chairman of the bi-partisan Board for International Broadcasting (BIB). In this position, he oversaw the operation of Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty. Broadcasting behind the Iron Curtain, Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty were praised by Poland's Lech Walesa as being critical to the struggle against communism. Mr. Forbes was reappointed to his post by President George H. W. Bush and served until 1993.

Steve Forbes was born on July 18, 1947, in Morristown, New Jersey. He graduated cum laude in 1966 from Brooks School in North Andover, Massachusetts. He received a B.A. in history from Princeton in 1970. At Princeton, he was the founding editor of Business Today, which became the country's largest magazine published by students for students, with a circulation of 200,000. The magazine continues to be published today by Princeton undergraduates.

Mr. Forbes serves on the boards of The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation, the Heritage Foundation and The Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. He is on the Board of Overseers of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and on the Board of Visitors for the School of Public Policy of Pepperdine University. He served on the Board of Trustees of Princeton University for ten years.

The Lost and Found Frater Email Returns

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind - Staying connected isn't as easy as it used to be. That's why we are re-introducing the Six Degree's of TKE. You've heard of the Six Degree's theory - that anyone can be connected to any other person, through no more than five (5) people. Well, we're testing this again in our own Six Degree's of TKE.

An e-mail from the TKE Educational Foundation has gone out to every Teke's e-mail address on file, allowing you to invite your "lost" fraters to reconnect to the vast Tau Kappa Epsilon Network. Can't see the email, view it here on your iPhone.

You'll be able to use this powerful online tool to find friends from your time on campus. Search by first and last name, and years of attendance. Then, once you've narrowed down your list, click on their name to forward them an email inviting them to reconnect.

In other words, when you come across a "lost" name on the list, and you have their email address, just send on the invitation.

When you participate, you not only help strengthen the Teke Network, but there's something in it for you too. If you forward to five or more "lost" Fraters today, we will enter your name in a drawing for a $250 Visa Gift Card. Click here to enter the drawing now.

With nearly 250,000 members in TKE and roughly 180,000 of those living alumni or active members, the database underwent a massive update. More than 5,000 Fraters utilized the program to reconnect lost members with the Fraternity. The program, launched in September through electronic communication, found more than 3,500 lost members.

Will you invite five or more fraters to reconnect today? By doing so, you ensure the future of the Fraternity, your chapter, and the heart of TKE.

For further information, please contact Rob Taflinger.

The Teke Nation Joins Twitter Revolution

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - Some have noticed a new member to the technologically savvy world of Twitter - TKE_Fraternity has begun Tweeting. Without much commotion or outward advertising, approximately ninety Fraters found the official voice of the organization. But how many more will start following TKE_Fraternity on Twitter?

A few members of the Offices of the Grand Chapter staff were sure the numbers would surpass the century mark faster than they have, but many still believe this is the calm before the storm. Most everyone has heard of Twitter by now. That doesn't necessarily mean everyone is Tweeting and actually using its micro-blogging service - but one can't deny the words, "Tweet, Twitter, and Follow," are all over the media these days. Whether it be something completely ridiculous, like Ashton Kutcher's race to one million followers, to real-time up to the minute citizen journalism - Twitter is everywhere.

In a report published Monday, July 20, by, news-monitoring service, VMS, Twitter has received 2.73 billion impressions (screenshots) in the past 30 days. Fifty-seven percent of these came from television, while the rest came from newspapers and magazines. What this means, is that all these mentions of Twitter throughout the media add up to $48 million in free advertising for the company.

Do you want to Tweet with Teke?

The appeal of Twitter, after you grasp the notion of what it is and what it can do, all boils down to ease. When it comes to a user-friendly interface, it rarely comes as easy as Twitter.

The first few steps are a breeze, but it is in the details where people tend to trip up. No need to worry about those details because when you get the lay of the land, the Twitterverse becomes an easy one to master. So, fire up your browser of choice and let's begin this adventure into self-expression with 140-characters or less.

First, let's register.

Go to Twitter on your Internet browser.
Just underneath the boldface phrase "What are you doing?" is a button reading "Get Started-Join!" Single-click that button.
In the field marked full name, type in your full name or your business' name, or both. Honesty is the best policy when building your profile, so don't be shy or elusive here. A real name or a company name here can better help you in establishing an identity on Twitter.
Set up a User Name for yourself, no longer than 15 characters (Twitter's built-in limit). This can be a nickname, clever moniker, or wordplay you create, or simply you or your organization's name or acronym.
Create your password. Along with letting you know if a full name is "too big" or a username is available, Twitter also tells you if a password is strong (meaning it will be difficult to crack) or weak (meaning "Yeah, I can hack that...."). Strong passwords usually have uppercase letters in the middle of them and a number instead of a letter in some instances. When you come up with a password, make it something easy to remember but not easy for others to figure out.
If you want to be notified of new followers and when people send you direct messages, check the box for email updates.
In the final field, type the verification code provided by Twitter. If you cannot read the code, you can refresh the verification by single-clicking on the Get Two New Words option or hear an audio version of the verification code by single-clicking on the Listen to the Words link, both located to the right of the field.
Single-click Create My Account to finish registration.
Following the creation of your Twitter account, Twitter offers you the option to check for Twitter-registered friends on a variety of email services. If you choose any of these services, have your user details for your mail accounts ready to enter. You will be asked for them. If you do not want to check for friends, single-click on Skip This Step at the bottom of the interface.
Twitter then selects at random a variety of Twitter users for you to start following. This can include celebrities, organizations, frequent Twitters, or Twitter accounts often referenced or retweeted by others. If you decide to follow any of these Twitter accounts, click on the check boxes located to the left of their accounts, and then single-click on Finish at the bottom of the interface. If you do not want to follow any of these randomly selected accounts, single-click on Skip This Step under the Finish button.

If you skipped all the opportunities to add other Twitters, no one is following you. Your window is looking like an artist's canvas fresh from the supply store and mounted on an easel. And what is with that avatar of the O's and the underscore? This is merely the first step. Everyone starts here. But you are fortunate, you are part of the Teke Nation and already have one Twitter to add TKE_Fraternity . From there you can add any of the thousands of Tekes out there tweeting as you read this.

So, you are all set up and ready to build that network? Well, not quite. Although it is tempting (as many new Twitter users find) to start building up your network, connecting with others that share the same passions that you do, and embracing this hot new social networking initiative, let's stop a moment and consider that. Social networking. It's all about the first impression, and when making contacts and building a network-even the virtual ones-it is imperative to put your best foot forward. Watch the tutorial on Twitter's home page and learn more about the functionality. After that you should be good to go. Enjoy Tweeting and being a part of the Teke Nation.

If you would like to see your chapter or alumni news here, contact Director of Communication Tom McAninch.

Frater Fights to Save Daughter's Life

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

NEW YORK - Frater Vincent Gaynor (Theta-Sigma, St. John's Univ.) and his wife Catherine tried unsuccessfully for years to have a child, but finally on February 27th of 2009, all their prayers and dreams had come true. His wife gave birth to the light of their lives, their precious angel Sophia.

She was a perfect baby. She had all her fingers and toes and she was just beautiful. At about two weeks they started to notice something was wrong. Sophia wasn't moving as much as they thought she should, but it was dismissed by the pediatrician. By the time five weeks came around the doctor suggested they have her tested for a neurological disease called Spinal Muscular Atrophy. After a grueling two weeks of waiting, the results came back that their daughter tested positive.

There are no words to describe the feeling of helplessness they felt. "The child that we had waited our whole life for would be taken from us in six months and she could last 2 years if we are extremely lucky, they told us," Frater Vincent said. SMA is a degenerative disease that affects 1 in 6000 babies. There is no cure for SMA and there are no proven treatments to help slow the progression of the disease.

Slowly his daughter's body will begin to fail her. Her body does not produce a particular protein which enables her body to produce muscles. Whatever muscles she has were produced while in the womb and will start to break down. Sophia has a deletion of the survival motor neuron 1 (smn1) gene. Eventually, within the first 6 months she will lose her ability to swallow and she will also lose her ability to breathe on her own. His beautiful baby girl will never be able to lift her head, sit up, roll over, crawl, or walk like any other normal child. The devastation his family has faced cannot possibly be put into words. In April, they drove from New York to Wisconsin to see the leading SMA Pulmonologist in the country. The drive took 16 hrs each way but they did not have the option of taking a two hour flight because the atmospheric pressures could collapse the baby's fragile lungs and she could die in flight. The financial burden has been tremendous on the family. His wife can no longer work because someone has to be around Sophia at all times in case she runs into problems breathing or choking on her own saliva.

There is hope in an upcoming clinical trial in California where they are planning to inject motor neurons into the spines of these children to replace the neurons that are dying off.

They need help in funding to get this trial going now.

"This is my daughter's only chance. Please help me to believe tomorrow is a better day. Please help me save my daughter," said Frater Vincent.

You can help by making a donation in Sophia's honor.