Paul Burda, a senior majoring in Technology Education with a minor in Graphic Design, is a man with a plan. He is an outgoing and responsible student who has many responsibilities within his fraternity, Delta Sigma Phi, and the InterFraternity Council. This is only a small fraction of what he does! Read our exclusive interview with Burda.
HC: What is your involvement on campus?
Burda: I am a proud member of the Delta Sigma Phi Fraternity, Epsilon Omega Chapter, and also the President of the InterFraternity Council.
HC: What is your role within the Delta Sigma Phi fraternity and what does it entail?
Burda: I initiated into my fraternity in the Fall of 2008 and ever since then I instantly started getting involved in any position that I could get a hold of. I was Recruitment Chairman for my own chapter, got the chance last summer to go to Delta Sigs National Convention in Orlando Florida, am currently our Chapter’s House Historian, but probably most importantly is that I started as an IFC delegate four days after I initiated and have been there ever since.
HC: We were informed that the Delta Sigma Phi house unfortunately burned down last year. How did you become a part of the construction team and what was the process like?
Burda: I became a part of the construction team because my current roommate this year is an alumni of our house and was already part of the crew. So he asked if I would be interested in working on the house as well and I jumped at the opportunity. To be a part of something that big is something I couldn’t pass up. The process was just what one would think, first having to remove everything imaginable from the house, including the roof, and then basically starting from square one. One of my most fun weeks of work was running around on the roof rebuilding it.
HC: What is your role within the Interfraternity council?
Burda: Last year, 2011, I was elected into the VP of Recruitment on IFC and helped all our chapter’s recruitment chairmen in initiating over 250 new members into our Greek community. When that term was over I decided to help the Council further by running, and later winning, the title of IFC President where I now see to the day-to-day workings of our Fraternity life at Illinois State and oversee the rest of our Council.
HC: What are your future plans for the council?
Burda: As for future plans for the Council, I hope to leave it in a better state then when I first started on it. I have seen our Greek system be at its best back in 2008 and hit a rougher patch more recently. But throughout this year already we have seen two new colonies spring up on our campus as well as help some lingering Chapters stay on their feet. With any luck we may see even more new Chapters to come and the strength of our community to become even more so than it was a few years ago.
We applaud Paul for his efforts thus far and wish him nothing but success in his future!!