California Sector 2 Hosts First Interested Gentlemen Conference

In 2013 California Sector 2 went from 11 entities to 6 entities with the formation of California Sector 4 and Idaho Sector 1, after which, the Executive Board committed itself to reuniting and reestablishing a sense of brotherhood amongst its bodies. With their terms coming to an end, the executive board’s mission to build towards a stronger future is ever more important as it is an opportunity to establish a culture of brotherhood for the new California Sector 2 and what better way to build towards that future than investing in our prospective members

On December 6, 2014, 42 prospective members from established and unestablished campuses within the Central Valley, Bay Area, and Northern California regions congregated at the University of California, Berkeley for the 1st Interested Gentlemen Conference. Sector Vice President, Michael Parra, and National Director of Community Affairs, Netzahaucoyotl Romero, provided prospective members with useful skills through a series of professional development workshops including Professional Etiquette & Interview Management Skills. These presentations, based off the INROADS: Candidate Manual¸ would prove to be valuable information useful for Interested Gentlemen seeking employment or internship opportunities.

In addition to professional development, interests had the opportunity to learn more about Lambda and the brotherhood experience through an official informational facilitated by Sector Induction Officer, Marlon Galdamez, and a panel of brothers consisting of:

·       Wilmer Castro | Omicron Chapter, Rowan University

·       Efrain Segundo | Beta Zeta Chapter, San Jose State University

·       Manuel Gutierrez | Beta Omicron Chapter, California State University, Fresno

·       Devan McFadden | Beta Chi Chapter, University of California, Berkeley

·       Marlon Galdamez | Gamma Omicron Chapter, California State University, East Bay

Interested Gentlemen were to apply their professional skills and their Lambda knowledge in a networking activity with undergraduate and alumni brothers. During this activity, Interested Gentlemen had 90 seconds to answer the question “why do you want to join Lambda,” while Lambda brothers had 90 seconds to answer “why did you pledge for Lambda.” Through this activity, Interested Gentlemen and brothers tested the “12x12x12” theory of professional etiquette that states that a first impression is made when you’re 12 feet away, when you’re 12 inches away, and within the first 12 words you say.

The California Sector 2 Executive Board would like to thank the presenters, the panelists, the brothers, and entities for collaborating on such a successful conference. Most importantly, thank you to the 42 Interested Gentlemen, all of whom sacrificed their Saturday to learn and gain a professional perspective of Lambda Theta Phi Latin Fraternity, Inc.