Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity believes that leadership isn’t positional — it can come from anywhere in the organization. In that spirit, three younger members of the Beta Omicron chapter at Northwestern State University are now prepared to utilize that potential to lead on campus. Noah Baudoin, Joseph Magnan, and Dedrick Lewis are among the 100 of Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity’s nearly 12,000 undergraduate members selected for Pi Kapp College for Emerging Leaders, an intensive, six-day leadership development experience that empowers participants to create the ideal chapter.

Three sessions were held June 5-10, June 12-17, and July 10-15 at the University of South Carolina. The program is designed to challenge and inspire participants to become better leaders and better men.

Student participants were assigned to small groups consisting of 10 Pi Kappa Phi members from around the country, led by two faculty. The facilitation team, made up of friends of the Fraternity and alumni, provided a wealth of knowledge to attendees, including decades of higher education and leadership development experience to challenge and support the men. Beta Omicron chapter alumni Wes Breeden, a regional vice president with AMBA, and Lane Luckie, a news anchor for an ABC television affiliate, served on the faculty this summer.

The week included small group discussion, large group education sessions, a challenge course, unique subordinate rituals, and an insider look at Pi Kappa Phi’s history on the nearby College of Charleston campus. The Fraternity was founded there in 1904, making the physical setting an important element of the program. Participants also spent time with clients of the ARC of South Carolina, experiencing how their values connect to the Ability Experience, the fraternity’s philanthropy, which serves people with disabilities.

As the week progressed, men were challenged daily to learn and reflect on their own morals and strengths as well as the core values of the fraternity.

For Baudoin, a week of inner-reflection and team-building helped better identify his greatest skills and opportunities as a leader. The sophomore from Shreveport, Louisiana was elected chapter vice president in May, leading Beta Omicron’s recruitment efforts. As a committed student leader in high school, he continued that involvement in his first year at NSU, joining the Student Activities Board, the NSU Rowing team, and KNWD Radio.

For Baudoin, pictured center, a week of inner-reflection and team-building helped better identify his greatest skills and opportunities as a leader.

“This week was phenomenal. Bonding with other fraternity brothers and diving deep into what our values truly mean to me was a meaningful experience. I can now bring this back to NSU and implement change in an effective way. I have truly begun to learn what lifelong brotherhood feels like!”

Magnan, a sophomore from Burleson, Texas, has also had a taste of leadership since arriving at NSU, joining the Spirit of Northwestern Marching Band and serving on the NSU Interfraternity Council Executive Board. He was elected treasurer of the Beta Omicron Chapter in May. “Pi Kapp College, by far, is one of the best experiences I have ever been apart of and so happy I was able to attend.”

Lewis, a sophomore from Gonzales, Louisiana, is already recognized as an emerging leader on campus, joining the Spirit of Northwestern Marching Band, IFC, SAB, IFC, NSU Crew, and the lacrosse team. “I can honestly say I am a different person from the first day of Pi Kapp College for Emerging Leaders to today. This experience is incomparable to any other fraternal experience. Pi Kappa Phi was founded on the basis of leadership, chivalry, and honesty. And it’s my duty as a loyal brother of Pi Kappa Phi to uphold those standards and to encourage not only brothers, but my peers and community as well.”

Attending Pi Kapp College for Emerging Leaders is an honor in itself. Students are selected through a rigorous application process, involving interviews and essays. Graduates leave with an increased commitment to acting consistently with their core personal values and values of Pi Kappa Phi, enhanced abilities to develop and enrich relationships as well as a strengthened commitment to respecting the dignity of all people, and embraced belief in aspiring toward the “ideal chapter”, and developing the capability to move a plan into action.

Pi Kapp College for Emerging Leaders has proven to be one of the fraternity’s most impactful ― and most enduring ― leadership experiences. Since its redesign in 2010, nearly three-quarters of all Pi Kapp College graduates have gone on to hold leadership positions in their chapters or campus communities.

The three NSU students were able to attend the program, in part, due to the generosity of the Beta Omicron Alumni Chapter, which sponsored the airfare for each of the participants.