Ugh. It's snowing in Michigan. That's where I am. And some of you are in climates much more harrowing than mine -- the flooded northwest, for example, or Reno. I don't know about you, but the dull winter days can really bring me down.

When the weather's making you feel sluggish, it's easy to let that feeling carry over into school work, social and Greek life. Winter never seems to carry the excitement and the oomph that the fall semester had. Fall was always the greatest time on my campus. New students, new friends, the biggest rushes, the best parties, Halloween bashes, chilly hayrides and warm bonfires. Everything is new. Fall is the official start of the scholastic new year. It holds so much promise and excitement.

Then you get to winter semester and you are burned out, bummed out and ready for a vacation. The biggest thing to look forward to is spring break and that's a good month and a half away from the start of classes. And depending on where you go to school, you might be freezing in the frigid temps. Cold weather makes it hard to get out of bed in the morning and stay motivated all day.

So how do you push that fall excitement through to the winter semester? With a few tips, your chapter will be well on its way to a hopping winter term!

First, have a goal setting session at the beginning of the semester. Tape up large sheets of paper on the walls of your meeting room. Each sheet of paper will have an office written on it such as "Social," "Scholarship," "Chaplain," etc. It may be easier for the executive board to have one sheet as a group. Ask each member to walk around the room and write down their ideas for that chair. Encourage them to be creative and draw pictures, expressing what they would like that office to accomplish during the winter term. Members might draw pictures of party-goers at a Mexican fiesta on the Social sheet, or perhaps a picture of a clothing drive on the Philanthropy sheet.

At the end of this brainstorming session, the appropriate chairholder will take down his/her sheet. Decide as a group which ideas the officers will pursue this semester. Think of of doing new and fun activities that your group has never done before, or hasn't done in years. We often get caught up in that staus quo and the idea that there are certain activities we must do every winter and that there can't be room for anything else. Doing the same thing over and over again throws the group in a rut and leads to boredom and lack of motivation.

Think of new philanthropy ideas. If you're in a snowy climate, go sledding or have an ice skating mixer. Play mud football. Throw a winter "Snowball" dance. Invite your alumni to a luncheon. Plan a retreat or a few bonding nights. Put new twists on old ideas!

Your goal shouldn't be to outdo the fall term, but to keep the excitement and spirit of the autumn flourishing through the winter months. With a little creative thinking, you can do just that.

Good luck!

Fran Vincent
Editor