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Friday, March 29
The Indiana Daily Student

Communication and culture fraternity to establish local chapter

In addition to a wide variety of courses and a flexible curriculum, the communication and culture department will give birth to the Kappa Alpha chapter of the Lambda Pi Eta Honor Society. \nThe national society already has more than 250 active chapters worldwide. Senior Sam McCormick, founder and brigadier general of the new chapter, is eager to bring the honors fraternity to campus and get many interested students involved.\n"One goal of the group is to unify everyone within the major itself," McCormick said. "It will hopefully bridge the gap between all the different departments and levels of study. It will also be used as a supplement to class. The fraternity is like the extra step."\nThe group was originally a small, intimate reading group implemented by a few enthusiastic students in the communication and culture department, McCormick said. The hourly meetings were led by assistant professor Robert Terrill and became what he called the "roots" for today's honor society. The group, which read and discussed scholarly articles, was a way for students and professors to interact and engage in mentally stimulating conversations. \nTerrill said he plans on maintaining the reading group, which will be open to all students of any major on campus, as a sector of the fraternity. The fraternity will have many different levels and subdivisions to comply with the diversity of the students and professors involved, Terrill said. Natalie Fixmer, a senior and the public relations specialist, said the fraternity will have many parts to it. \n"The group is somewhat like an 'umbrella fraternity,'" Fixmer said. "Underneath the LPE name it will have on one hand a reading group, which will be open for anyone in any major of study. On the other hand, there is the national fraternity, which requires different student credentials."\nTo become a member of LPE, a student needs a minimum of 60 hours of college credit, the completion of 12 semester hours in the department of communication and culture, a cumulative grade point average of a 3.0 or higher and at least a 3.25 GPA in all communication and culture classes.\nAlthough there are academic standards required for the fraternity, there are many "nonacademic" ways to get involved. Junior Nathan Cross, chief overseer of professional services for the group, said he plans on focusing on the these aspects of the society.\n"I am working closely with the career center," Cross said. "With their help, we plan on holding resume writing workshops and career fairs, which will benefit all members, nonmembers and even nonmajors."\nAll noncommunication and culture majors are encouraged to attend the meetings, Cross said. It is an exceptional way to interact with professors and students in an informal setting. He said it is also a great way for undergraduate students to build their resume, possibly present their own papers at a scholarly conference and gear up for graduate school. \nTerrill, who will be advising the group, wants to bring new experiences into the lives of undergraduate students.\n"It is a great way to bring the graduate experience to undergraduates," Terrill said. "Students can create a link to their peers and professors during fireside chats and readings and it is a way to make a large department have more of a family atmosphere"

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