Service of BGSU fraternity and sorority students leads to award-filled academic year

Kyle Calvey, Jayden Donald and Danielle Cain are among Fraternity and Sorority Life students to win honors for public good

The community service, philanthropy and public good efforts of Fraternity and Sorority Life students at Bowling Green State University culminated with an award-filled academic year, reflecting the BGSU mission of being a public university for the public good.

More than a dozen Fraternity and Sorority Life students and their organizations received national, regional and University-wide honors for their work to make their communities a better place while also gaining beneficial pre-career experience in leadership roles. 

Kyle Calvey, a BGSU senior from Independence, Ohio, earned a nationwide award from the North American Interfraternity Conference (NIC). The NIC named Calvey as its Outstanding President of the Year for his efforts with the BGSU chapter of the NIC and Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity.

Calvey said he challenged fraternity brothers this school year to not only continue doing good in the Bowling Green community, but to show how a group of college students can benefit others when they work together. 

Philanthropic endeavors such as raising money for a nonprofit might not always be associated with fraternities, Calvey said, but is something that organizations can do effectively when they collaborate.

“When we’re at an event where we’re serving others or raising money for a cause, it’s rewarding knowing a group of men with similar values can come together to provide good,” Calvey said. “When you talk to the organization receiving the donation, their reaction is always awesome. A lot of times we hear, ‘I can’t believe a group of college kids are donating this amount of money to us.’ 

“I think it’s really cool that not only are we in college, but we’re in fraternities and we’re capable of doing this.”

Senior Jayden Donald, a BGSU senior from Lima who was named Brother of the Year by Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, said that Fraternity and Sorority Life organizations help provide an environment in which students can reach their full potential. 

By joining an organization of like-minded people focused on serving others, Donald said a student can thrive.

"Fraternity and Sorority Life is a supportive environment that helps students become the best versions of themselves and make public good for the communities in which they reside,” Donald said. “It's a family you can rely on to hold you accountable and make the most out of every day."

Impact on future careers

Associate Director of Student Engagement Stacey Allan said Fraternity and Sorority Life can be particularly beneficial as students explore their career options through roles with their fraternity or sorority.

“So much of fraternities and sororities is about the skills needed to get your first job and learning how you carry yourself in that first job,” Allan said. “We focus so much on leadership development and those soft skills — simple things like how you shake a hand — but also about how you speak about strengths while also talking about the opportunities you have. I think the different officer roles people hold really can help people land that first job.”

Exemplary sorority leadership

Danielle Cain, a junior from Detroit and a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, won a BGSU Women of Distinction Award, which honors exemplary leaders in the campus community who advocate for gender equity.

In addition to providing an avenue for public good, Cain said Alpha Kappa Alpha, which is a member of the National Pan-Hellenic Council, also has helped jump-start her life after college.

“One of the great things my organizations have given me is a networking pool,” Cain said. “When I graduate, my membership doesn’t stop and I can continue to network with other AKAs or other members of the ‘Divine Nine’ around the country. When people know you’re in one of those organizations, an automatic sense of leadership comes with that.”

Allan said the large number of BGSU students honored this year highlights the good works that are possible as a member of a Greek organization. 

“These students are really challenging normative assumptions of fraternities and sororities and calling people to the table to show them who they really are,” Allan said. “They excel in areas of philanthropy, academic success and leadership, and that’s really what these recipients are highlighting.”