This Fraternity is different...
Poling, former CEO of Ford Motor Company & IL Gamma Founder, dies at 86
The 1949 graduate was the former chairman and CEO of Ford Motor Company, and he also chaired Monmouth's board of trustees during his 18-year board stint.
In a statement, Bill Ford, executive chairman of Ford, said, “Red Poling was an extraordinary leader who had a profound impact on Ford Motor Company and everyone who worked with him. With a list of accomplishments that span 43 years, including leading the company through a remarkable turnaround during the 1980s and 1990s, Red was respected by all for his leadership, his passion for being the low-cost producer and his genuine affinity for people.â€
Poling's name will live on at Monmouth College thanks to the lead gift that he and his wife, Marian, made in 1992 to transform the former Carnegie Library into a central administrative building, Poling Hall. A decade later, the Polings pledged a $3 million gift to Monmouth College to enhance international studies. That gift led to the creation of the college's center for intercultural affairs and the hiring of a director of intercultural life. The Poling Room, which is the centerpiece of the department of political economy and commerce's classroom space in McMichael Academic Hall, is also named in his honor. Red and Marian, who survives, were married for 55 years.
Poling first attended Monmouth College during World War II as a cadet in the Navy's V-12 program. Upon his discharge, he returned to Monmouth and completed his undergraduate degree in economics and business administration. Entering graduate studies at Indiana University, the Detroit native obtained a summer internship with the steel division of Ford and later joined the company as a cost analyst in the steel mill.
He was elected a company vice president and president of Ford Europe in October 1975 and two years later was appointed chairman and CEO of Ford Europe. In 1979, Poling became executive vice president of the corporate staffs and a member of the board of directors, and the next year he was named executive vice president of North American Automotive Operations. In 1985, he became president and chief operating officer of Ford, and he was elected chairman and CEO of Ford in 1990.
In recognition of his outstanding leadership in the automotive industry, Poling was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in 1999. He was also one of the five charter inductees into Monmouth College's Hall of Achievement, the highest honor it bestows upon its graduates. Poling was also named Honorary Knight Commander of the Civil Division of Most Excellent Order of the British Empire by the British ambassador.
As a child, Poling said he spent a lot of time with his father, who was a mechanic. "We'd grind valves, change piston rings and clutches and do other jobs. It was serious work, but to me, it was interesting"
The first car he bought, the 1932 Ford Model A, remained his all-time favorite car, even though he helped develop many other Ford models.
Chapter News
IL Gamma
earns multiple
honors at
2012 CLA
MONMOUTH, Ill. — Monmouth College’s Illinois Gamma Chapter of Sigma Phi Epsilon brought home several honors from the national fraternity’s Carlson Leadership Academy (CLA) last month in suburban Chicago.
“We are very proud of the chapter’s accomplishments,” said Billy Bernard, assistant director of Greek life, leadership and involvement. “Sig Ep has consistently shown that they are strong leaders on campus and within the Greek community. They set high standards for themselves and hold each other accountable. It was a wonderful opportunity for the members who attended the conference to develop relationships with other Sig Ep chapters nationwide and to showcase their accomplishments at Monmouth College.”
The chapter was represented by 21 members and its faculty adviser, Tom Sargent, at the professional development conference, which aims to deliver high-caliber officer training. Emphasis is placed on utilizing each officer’s individual strengths to build a complete team. CLA also provides the opportunity to recognize and celebrate the achievements of Sigma Phi Epsilon’s chapters, volunteers and brothers.
Following are the honors achieved by MC’s Illinois Gamma Chapter:
• The Scholarship Cup, which is presented to chapters that have the highest male fraternity chapter-wide GPA on campus while exceeding the all-campus GPA.
• The Excelsior Award, which is presented to chapters for outstanding improvement in a core area of operation. Monmouth’s chapter was one of four recognized in the Midwest region, thanks to its successful Member Development Program.
• The J. Edward Zollinger Award, which is presented to one senior in each district who epitomizes the fraternity’s Balanced Man Ideal. Alex Holt, a senior from Evanston, received the honor in competition with applicants from the other 10 chapters in Illinois.
• In honor of Holt’s recognition, Cyrus Turner, a sophomore from Reynolds, was designated as a Zollinger Scholar. Turner will receive a scholarship from the Sigma Phi Epsilon Education Foundation in the amount of $500 for his junior year and $500 for his senior year.
• Two of the four individuals from the Midwest presented with the Distinguished Alumnus recognition were Illinois Gamma alumni. Sargent, a 1985 Monmouth graduate and an associate professor of educational studies at his alma mater, and Chicago attorney Brad Nahrstadt ’89, a member of MC’s board of trustees, received the recognition for their devoted service to the organization at the local, regional or national level.
• The chapter also received their Residential Learning Community bronze plaque that will be mounted outside its MC residence.
Breaking the Myth
The following story was featured in 2009 by Fraternityinfo.com and we think it makes sense!
College comes with a lot of stereotypes, a lot of facts, and a lot of myths. You already have people telling you what to expect, what you have to sign up for and at what level you have to graduate in order to find the right job, so you can marry the right person, have the right house, so you can raise the perfect kids, send them to the right school so they can get the right job, this is all noise and its tearing our society to pieces.
I implore you to break away from the mold. I beg you to identify your values. I beseech you to find other folks who share those values and in your journey through college and life you will never feel alone, and never feel like you are far from those things that matter most.
Over 86,000 men pledged a fraternity last year. They came to college maybe believing a lot of the hype about partying, skipping classes, and the ubiquitous alcohol consumption. What the majority of those men found was a chance to not only join a group of men with shared values, they found a group of scholars who place a premium on academics not for just the purposes of getting a job but for the growth of character. They found a group of men who share a bond that is grounded in the values of brotherhood and service.
These 86,000 men began a journey that, along with their college experience will take them much farther than four years of higher education. Their fraternity journey is one of lifelong duration. These 86,000 new members belong to one of the largest organizations on the planet; the fraternity movement.
The stories you hear and the reports you watch that depict the alcohol laced debauchery of "Greek life" are the results of men with shared values that have deviated from those of true fraternity. They place a premium not on scholarship, character development, or service, but rather on depravity and laziness. The values of fraternity are lost on those who do not find in those values a call to action and realization that the world expects so much more of the fraternity man.
I beseech you to break the mold, I beg you to part ways with the status quo, I implore you to expect more from your college experience.
FraternityInfo.com
Building Balanced ...
"Building Balanced Leaders for the World's Communities"
First implemented by Sigma Phi Epsilon in the Fall of 1992, the Balanced Man Program (BMP) is the Fraternity's award winning leadership development program. It is a self-paced, personal development experience. The Balanced Man Program's premise is based around 'universal respect for self and others,' living a balanced life, and the Balanced Man concept of sound mind, sound body, and sound spirit.
The Balanced Man Program fosters environments and builds brotherhood that is conducive of leadership and academics. Throughout the four-year, single-tiered, member development program, brotherhood is built and strengthened through four challenges that are based upon where the member is in his college career.
Through the program, members are exposed to leadership positions, experiential learning exercises, self-development clinics, mentoring, and other individual and chapter activities that foster balanced living and universal respect. In this program, all members have the same rights and privileges. This is a movement toward 'universal respect for self and others' and away from the two-tiered membership that is usually associated with pledging. The expectations for members are provided in a resource called The Quest, a workbook provided to SigEps that track their progress through the BMP.
Member expectations are based on their place and experience level in their academics, campus, and personal lives. New members' expectations are geared toward their introduction to SigEps, for example, participating in the chapter's campus orientation program and community service projects. These expectations evolve as the man develops, focusing on etiquette and appreciation for the arts and finally moving into career development for senior members. Senior members perform activities such as dress for success workshops, resume building sessions, business ettiquette, as well as ancient Greek philosophy discussions with ethics professors.
The cornerstone of the Balanced Man Program are:
Mentoring
Community Involvement
Experiential Learning
Brotherhood
These cornerstones are the foundation for becoming not only a Balanced Man but also a mature professional.
Alumni Registration!
Welcome back Alumni!
Staying in touch with brothers is now easier then ever...
We value ongoing communication . the best way is to sign in and tell us what you are doing, we want to strengthen contact between under-graduates, alumni to alumni, and mentoring / networking connections to expand and develop lasting ties with your SigEp brotherhood. Take a more actived interest in your fraternity! Your contributions of time, talent, and treasures in never more important than now!
Thank You Brothers,
Alumni Volunteer Corporation (AVC)
Sigma Phi Epsilon -Illinois Gamma Chapter, RLC