Sigma Chi at UF, Gamma Theta Chapter

The Sarasota Area Sigma Chi Alumni Chapter recently gathered in Venice, Florida for its monthly luncheon of brotherhood, fellowship, and service-focused discussion.

One of the highlights of the meeting was reviewing the successful fundraising effort that generated over $7,000 for Habitat for Humanity, supporting our upcoming Sigma Chi Habitat Build Day. This initiative will bring together undergraduate brothers from the University of South Florida and Florida Gulf Coast University with alumni volunteers to serve our community while building stronger connections across generations of Sigma Chi. It is a great opportunity for our undergraduate brothers to gain community service hours while experiencing firsthand the lifelong value of our fraternity.

Pictured here, Gamma Theta Brother David LaCamera shares the latest Gator 🐊 SIG Newsletter Update with former Gamma Theta Consul and Gator 🐊 SIG Brother Bob Klingbeil. Brother Jeff Boone also spoke about his excitement in supporting this initiative and reflected on the tremendous multiplier Sigma Chi has provided throughout his life through leadership, friendship, networking, and service.

The event concluded with a truly special moment as Significant Sig and Military Sig Founder Glenn Beree delivered a heartfelt reminder of the timeless principles embodied in the Sigma Chi Ritual. His words served as a powerful reflection on why our fraternity continues to positively impact generations of brothers.

As we celebrate our past, we are equally focused on our future through the Gamma Theta Campaign:

🏛️ Celebrating 100 Years — and Building 100 More

The Campaign for Gamma Theta is about much more than a new chapter house. It is about creating a permanent leadership ecosystem that will strengthen the undergraduate experience, preserve our rich history, deepen alumni engagement, and ensure Gamma Theta remains one of Sigma Chi’s premier chapters for generations to come.

Gamma Theta’s remarkable legacy includes:

• 31 Peterson Awards — Top 3 All-Time in Sigma Chi
• 36 Significant Sigs
• More than $100,000 raised annually through Derby Days supporting the Huntsman Cancer Institute
• Thousands of alumni leaders serving in business, medicine, law, education, military service, public service, and entrepreneurship

Learn more and stay connected:

📖 Gamma Theta Website: https://sigmachiuf.com

📰 Newsletter Update:https://sigmachiuf.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/SX-FL-S26-FINAL2.pdf

🏛️ About Gamma Theta: https://sigmachiuf.com/about/

⭐ Significant Sigs: https://sigmachiuf.com/about/significant-sigs/

📸 Composites Archive: https://sigmachiuf.com/photo-gallery/composites/

🎥 Alumni Room Vision Video:
https://youtu.be/8visj9vsUHY

🤝 Join the Gamma Theta LinkedIn Group:
https://www.linkedin.com/groups/14108353

(Over 700+ Brothers connected, including leaders across business, medicine, law, education, military service, and even the U.S. Space Force.)

The future of Gamma Theta is bright because of brothers who continue to invest their time, talents, and resources into the next generation.

In Hoc Signo Vinces!

Job Well Done 👍 Gator SIGS 🐊 IHSV!

REMEMBERING SIGMA CHI FOUNDER Franklin Howard Scobey, MIAMI (OHIO) 1858 ON HIS BIRTHDAY.

Founder Franklin Howard Scobey, MIAMI (OHIO) 1858, was born at Millville, Ohio, an old settlement a few miles northeast of Hamilton, on May 20, 1837. He was the son of Dr. William H. Scobey, long a prominent physician of the city of Hamilton.

Frank Scobey entered Miami University in the fall of 1853, at the age of sixteen. There, he soon became a member of the Kappa chapter of Delta Kappa Epsilon. Of the six founders of Sigma Chi who were members of Delta Kappa Epsilon at Miami University, he was the first to be enrolled as a member of that fraternity. It was very largely due to his influence that the additional five who later became founders of Sigma Chi joined Delta Kappa Epsilon at Miami. The five associates were in the Sophomore class— Bell, Caldwell, Cooper, Jordan, and Runkle. The records show that in the division which arose in Kappa chapter of Delta Kappa Epsilon, Runkle and Scobey were regarded as the leaders of the “rebellion” against the dictates of the older members of that Chapter. Franklin Scobey was also the person who brought William L. Lockwood, the remaining founder, into the group. Lockwood who did not enter Miami until after the original difficulties in Delta Kappa Epsilon which led to the establishment of Sigma Chi.

In his remaining three years at Miami, until his graduation with the class of 1858, Scobey was considered “The Spirit of Sigma Chi” for being friendly with everybody and not just a select group of people. After graduation he went on to law school and graduated again in 1861 with a law degree. He began the practice of law at Greensburg Indiana then later moved to Hamilton, the place of his birth.

Franklin H. Scobey has the distinction among the soldier founders of having served both in the infantry and in the cavalry. In April of 1861, when the Third Grand Chapter was assembling, at Wheeling, and four other Sigma Chi founders had enlisted in the Union Army Scobey volunteered with Company F of the Third Ohio Volunteer Infantry. These first Ohio enlistments were made under President Lincoln’s original call for 75,000 troops and were for the term of three months. In August infantry was ordered home and Scobey was mustered out. The re-enlistment of Brother Scobey quickly followed. This time, it was in the Fifth Ohio Cavalry. Scobey’s enrolment was on September 8, 1861, at Hamilton. In November, the troop was moved to Camp Dennison in Ohio. Near the end of February 1862. His unit moved into Kentucky and the South. In August 1862 due to his poor eyesight and worsening hearing he was transferred to the office of the provost general at Dayton, Ohio, where he continued until after the close of the war.

The service of Franklin H. Scobey for his country was thus without opportunity to win distinction at the front, but it was less a service, both true and faithful.

After the war Scobey returned to Hamilton and followed his ambitions for a career in journalism. In 1867 he purchased an interest in the Hamilton Telegraph. Scobey continued in the editorial management of the Telegraph until March 1880. At that time, he moved to Kansas and became a cattleman until 1882. Never physically robust and afflicted with poor eyesight and hearing loss Scobey then moved back to Ohio where he took up farming until his death.

Of the founders of Sigma Chi, neither Scobey nor Caldwell married
Scobey entered the Chapter Eternal on July 22, 1888, and is buried in a Cemetery near Hamilton.

Of the seven founders, Franklin H. Scobey grave is the nearest birthplace of Sigma Chi at Miami University. His grave is just a few miles away In West Chester cemetery. Also, just eastward in the country from Hamilton, lies Samuel Clark, the first member of the old Miami chapter to die, and upon whose tombstone is beautifully carved the White Cross.

In his own words
To the members of Alpha Chapter, 1855

“We shall form a fraternity on the principal that the adequacy of
the fraternity lies in the opportunity for the building of a well-rounded and symmetrical development of individual character. There must be in a fraternity, the expression and bond of friendship; at the same time, each must be free in the pursuit of his chosen ideals."

[To Gamma Chapter, December 11, 1856

“Nothing so much tends to promote friendship, as the free mutual
interchanging of our thoughts, hopes, and fears with one in whom we can
confide."

Welcome Home, Keegan! 💙💛The Brothers of the Gamma Theta Chapter of Sigma Chi at the University of Florida are proud to celebrate and officially welcome our most recently elected Sweetheart — Keegan Dunnam!

Enjoy the YouTube serenade from The Letterman Keegan! https://youtu.be/sVhcjghMCgY?si=OvbhJ0UyR1cg-S9o

The Sweetheart of Sigma Chi is more than a title — it is a tradition rooted in honor, character, loyalty, and grace. Since 1926, when “The Sweetheart of Sigma Chi” became the fraternity’s official song, chapters across the country have selected a woman who represents the very best of friendship, support, and spirit. At Gamma Theta, that tradition runs deep — and Keegan now joins a remarkable lineage of Sweethearts who have left their mark on campus and beyond.

Among that distinguished group is none other than Academy Award–winning actress Faye Dunaway — a reminder that the Sweethearts of Sigma Chi shine brightly wherever life takes them.

And Keegan shines brilliantly.

A dynamic leader and proud Gator, Keegan embodies the ideals the Sweetheart tradition was built upon. As a junior studying Advertising with a minor in Professional Selling, she combines strategic thinking with authentic connection. As Chapter President of Tri Delta, a leader within Florida Blue Key, and Associate General Chair of Campus Events for Homecoming & Gator Growl, she has already demonstrated the poise, work ethic, and heart that define true leadership.

Whether coordinating major campus events with thousands of attendees, building relationships with sponsors and university partners, or serving her community with energy and grace, Keegan leads with confidence — and always with a smile.

With her resume, her dedication, and her beauty, she will certainly be in the running for Sigma Chi International Sweetheart — continuing a legacy featured here: https://sigmachi.org/history/our-history/women-of-sigma-chi/

Keegan represents not only beauty and brilliance, but dedication, loyalty, and the ability to bring people together — the very essence of what it means to be a Sweetheart of Sigma Chi.

Keegan, we are honored to have you represent Gamma Theta. You stand proudly in a tradition of excellence — and we cannot wait to see the impact you will continue to make on our chapter, our campus, and beyond.

Welcome to the Sweetheart legacy. Once a Sweetheart, always family. 💙✨ IHSV!

Brothers: 🔗 Stay Connected- Send in your composites as they are needed to recognize the “Gator🐊SIG Sweethearts” in our new Alumni Room. Lets not leave any Sweetheart behind in this recognition!

📸 Upload composites & class photos: Composites here start with Academy Award Winning Actress and Sigma Chi Gamma Theta Sweetheart Faye Dunaway:-)
https://sigmachiuf.com/photo-gallery/composites/

👉 Update your information:
https://sigmachiuf.com/alumni/update-your-information/

🏛️ Learn more about Gamma Theta:

https://sigmachiuf.com/about/?fbclid=IwVERFWASGtxNleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEeWrvPlzTNS8HWhVk7S25iIWN560F_9EM0_iCiaBvihKemsj1L-VRRHYcLPBY_aem_yvhPTPGu4-y4p7ijG-8haQ

🏛️ Support New House Campaign:https://sigmachiuf.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/SX-FL-S26-FINAL2.pdf

The future of Gamma Theta is being built now. Let’s honor our past, support our present, and lead boldly into the next generation. 💙 IHSV!

All Honor to Their Names. 🇺🇸

Brothers, as we celebrate Memorial Day Weekend, it is also a time to reflect upon and honor those Sigma Chi Brothers who have served our country with courage, sacrifice, and distinction.

As we continue building the future of Gamma Theta, we are also preserving and celebrating its remarkable past. Once completed, our new Gamma Theta Alumni Room (check out our new website at sigmachiuf.com) will serve as a living museum dedicated to honoring the 100-year history of Gator 🐊 Sigs who have added luster to the White Cross of Sigma Chi.

Among those brothers is Brother Colin Johnson, who devoted his life to serving five Presidents of the United States through his distinguished career in the United States Secret Service.

Learn more about Colin’s extraordinary story through these tributes from Dan Bongino and Presidential Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders:

Dan Bongino Tribute:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=PPCwdtHkmnc

Sarah Huckabee Sanders Tribute:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/video/politics/sanders-remembers-deceased-secret-service-agent-colin-johnson/2018/09/10/0a907d42-b52e-11e8-ae4f-2c1439c96d79_video.html

As we expand the Gamma Theta page to reconnect and engage brothers across multiple generations, we need your help identifying and honoring Gamma Theta Military Sigs.

If you know a brother who served, please encourage him to complete the Sigma Chi Military Service Recognition Form so he can be permanently recognized in the new Gamma Theta Sigma Chi Alumni Room and receive his Sigma Chi Military Service Pin.

To the 28 Gator 🐊 Sig Brothers already recognized in the National Sigma Chi database — thank you for your service and sacrifice. In Hoc.

Please return nomination forms to:

Sigma Chi HQ – Military Pin
1714 Hinman Ave
Evanston, IL 60201
Fax: 847.869.4906
(Subject Header: Military Pin)
[email protected]

IHSV!
Go Gators 🐊

— Jim Springer
Co-Chairman, Campaign for Gamma Theta
“Celebrating 💯 Years — Building 💯 More”

New House Campaign Contributor List, Class Competition (based on initiation year), and EASY-TO-USE Online Giving Link:
https://ufsigmachi.causevox.com





ConnectWithGator🐊SIGS LinkedIn Group:
https://lnkd.in/e32hUJY2

Congratulations to our graduating Gator SIGS 🐊

Today, you join the long line of Gamma Theta alumni who have helped shape one of the most successful and respected chapters in Sigma Chi history.

While graduation marks the end of your undergraduate experience, it also marks the beginning of something even bigger — a lifelong connection to the Brotherhood of Sigma Chi and the incredible network of Gamma Theta alumni around the world.

As you begin your careers, graduate programs, businesses, and next adventures, remember:

“Pledgeship Never Ends :-)”

You are now part of a Brotherhood that spans generations and includes leaders across business, law, medicine, finance, real estate, entrepreneurship, public service, and beyond.

🏛️ Gamma Theta continues to lead:
• 🥇 #1 GPA among UF fraternities (3.7 overall)
• 🏆 Multiple Peterson Awards
• 💰 $100K+ raised for Huntsman Cancer Institute
• 🐎 A Brotherhood helping lead Sigma Chi’s “Generation to End Cancer”

We encourage you to stay connected and involved as alumni:

👉 Update your info & get involved:
• 🔗 https://sigmachiuf.com/alumni/update-your-information/
• 📸 https://sigmachiuf.com/photo-gallery/composites/
• 🏛️ Letter from Consul:
https://sigmachiuf.com/about/chapter/

🐊 Help Build Our History

We are creating a visual interactive history celebrating 100 years of Gamma Theta — preserving the stories, composites, memorabilia, and legacy of the Brothers who built this chapter.

🎞️ Bringing History to Life — The Alumni Room

The Alumni Room will become a living archive of Gamma Theta through curated memorabilia, composites, personal stories, and digital preservation technology that allows future generations to experience our history in an immersive way.

Take a moment to see what’s possible:
👉 https://youtu.be/8visj9vsUHY

This is where your story lives on — in full color, voice, and impact.

🔨 Help Build Our Future

We are in the midst of a transformational effort:

“Celebrating 100 Years — and Building 100 More.”

The new Gamma Theta house will serve as a launchpad for leadership, scholarship, brotherhood, and lifelong alumni engagement at a Top 5 University.

Our chapter’s legacy already includes:
• 31 Peterson Awards (Top 3 all-time in Sigma Chi)
• 36 Significant Sigs
• National leadership across countless professions
• A Brotherhood committed to excellence

But we need every generation involved.

Less than 13% of Brothers have pledged to the campaign so far — let’s change that.

🐊 Help Build the Future:
🔗 https://ufsigmachi.causevox.com

📖 Explore the Vision
• Gamma Theta Website:
https://sigmachiuf.com
• Newsletter Update:
https://www.epageflip.net/i/1539723-fall-2025-newsletter/0
• About Gamma Theta:
https://sigmachiuf.com/about/
• Significant Sigs:
https://sigmachiuf.com/about/significant-sigs/
• Composites:
https://sigmachiuf.com/photo-gallery/composites/

(If yours is missing, please send it — we want every Brother represented.)

🌎 Sigma Chi Beyond Graduation

Check out Forbes:
“From Beers to Careers”
https://www.forbes.com/sites/brandonbusteed/2021/01/16/from-beers-to-careers-the-new-value-proposition-of-fraternity/?sh=266398c91431

Learn about Sigma Chi Career Advantage & Leadership Institute:
🎥 Watch Here:
https://youtu.be/02nbunHXxvc?si=UhsLTu0u6pQxgBvn

Congratulations again, Brothers.

As we approach 100 Years of Gamma Theta, let’s continue building a legacy worthy of the next 100.

In Hoc,

Jimmy Springer
Co-Chairman – Campaign for Gamma Theta
“Celebrating 100 Years, Building 100 More”

🐊 Go Gators!

Today we honor Founder Thomas Cowan Bell, MIAMI (OHIO) 1857, born May 14, 1832, in Bellbrook, Ohio.

At just 23 years old, Bell helped found Sigma Chi at Miami University alongside a remarkable group of young men who would build one of the world’s greatest fraternities. Known as the “elder statesman” among the Founders, Bell embodied the ideals of Friendship, Justice, and Learning throughout his entire life.

His rooming house in Oxford, Ohio — where he lived with his aunt, Mrs. Lizzie Davis — became informally known as “the first chapter house of Sigma Chi.” Brothers gathered there not only for meals and fellowship, but to build the foundation of a lifelong brotherhood that would ultimately impact hundreds of thousands of men.

Founder Benjamin Piatt Runkle described Bell as a man “with an expression on his face that made one instinctively reach for his hand.” He was known for his generosity, enthusiasm, leadership, and ability to unite people through friendship and learning.

Following graduation in 1857, Bell entered the field of education, but when the Civil War began, he answered the call to serve the Union. Entering as a private in the 74th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Bell quickly rose through the ranks due to his courage and leadership.

At the Battle of Stones River (Murfreesboro), one of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War, Bell led the famed bayonet charge of the 74th Ohio with the command:

“Forward! 74th!”

The charge helped turn the tide of battle and played a decisive role in the Union victory. Bell received high commendation for his gallantry and leadership under fire, ultimately rising to lieutenant colonel — though he preferred the humble title of “Major Bell.”

Despite declining health caused by his military service, Bell returned to a lifetime devoted to education, leadership, and Sigma Chi. He served as superintendent, principal, college president, editor, and mentor throughout the Midwest and West.

Even into old age, he remained deeply committed to Sigma Chi and believed strongly in the power of fraternity to reunite and strengthen the nation after the Civil War. In 1905, at Sigma Chi’s 50th Anniversary celebration in Oxford, Bell reunited with the surviving Founders for the first and last time since their undergraduate days.

On February 2, 1919, Bell attended an initiation at Alpha Beta Chapter at the University of California–Berkeley. The following morning, after a lifetime of service to his country, education, and Sigma Chi, he peacefully entered the Chapter Eternal.

Today, Founder Bell’s legacy lives on not only through Sigma Chi’s values, but through the Sigma Chi Foundation’s Bell Chapter Challenge — helping chapters fund leadership development, scholarships, and values-based programming for future generations.

🏛️ LET’S MAKE GAMMA THETA A “BELL 🛎️ CHAPTER.”

As Gamma Theta continues its mission of:

“Celebrating 100 Years — and Building 100 More,”

let us remember that transformational facilities mean little without transformational leadership.

Founder Bell understood that better than anyone.

His life reminds us that Sigma Chi is not simply about buildings, titles, or accolades — it is about developing men of character who elevate those around them through friendship, leadership, courage, and learning.

Your unrestricted, tax-deductible support of the Bell Chapter Challenge directly helps fund leadership programs, scholarships, and opportunities that shape the future leaders of Gamma Theta and Sigma Chi.

Founder Bell understood that better than anyone.

🔗 Bell Chapter Challenge Overview:
https://sigmachi.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Bell-Chapter-Challenge-Booklet.pdf

🔗 Bell Chapter Case for Support:
https://sigmachi.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Bell-Chapter-Challenge-Case-for-Support.pdf

🔗 Gamma Theta Campaign & Alumni Information:
https://sigmachiuf.com

Happy 194th Birthday to Founder Thomas Cowan Bell.

All honor to his name.

IHSV!
Happy 194th birthday to Founder Thomas Cowan Bell, Miami University 1857, who was born on May 14, 1832, and entered the Chapter Eternal on Feb. 3, 1919.

All honor to his name!

Remembering Sigma Chi Founder Isaac M. Jordan on his birthday. (May 5, 1835 – December 3, 1890)

Isaac M. Jordan was born on a farm in central Pennsylvania on May 5, 1835. He was named Isaac Alfred Jordan by his parents. He was 20 years old at the time of Sigma Chi's founding. When he was a boy, he moved with his family to Ohio and that is where he first met and became friends with Benjamin Piatt Runkle. Jordan and Runkle, landed at Miami University together for college, and fittingly became fraternity brothers, first as Dekes, then with five others became the founding members of the new fraternity, Sigma Phi, in 1855 which later became known as Sigma Chi. For the second half of the college year 1855-56 Jordan was chosen as Consul Primus, or presiding officer, of old Alpha. It was the only term that Cooper did not serve in that office until the graduation of both with the class of 1857. This one office was the only one in the chapter known to have been held by Jordan. Jordan graduated from Miami University in 1857 and obtained his master's from Miami in 1862.

Jordan is remembered for his AMBITION.

He stayed active in the Fraternity all his life. For the first Grand Chapter, the historic event at Melodeon Hall, Cincinnati, in 1857, he was the unanimous choice of Alpha as its Orator for the closing banquet. Jordan aided in the organization of the Cincinnati alumni chapter in 1881, was involved with the planning of the 14th and 15th Grand Chapters in 1882 and 1884 and served as the Orator of the latter. In the speech he gave in 1884, he stated the Standard by which all pledges and brothers should be judged by, which today is now known as the Jordan Standard. Founder Jordan had been more closely in touch with the Fraternity and its membership than was then any other founder.

Isaac Jordan may have been born a Pennsylvania farm boy, but his ambitions were far grander than tending animals and harvesting crops. Following graduation from Miami, he studied law, was admitted to the bar and practiced law in Dayton, Ohio. It was at Dayton that Brother Jordan ceased the use of his middle name, Alfred, and assumed, instead, simply the initial “M,” without any full name for which the initial stood. He did this to distinguish himself from his brother and law partner Jackson A. Jordan, because he thought people would confuse J.A. and I.A. Jordan.

After nearly two years in Dayton, young Jordan decided that the city of Cincinnati offered larger opportunities for his lifework. By the start of the Civil War in 1861 Jordan had become the law partner of the Hon. Flamen Ball, a prominent member of the bar. Mr. Ball had been the law partner of the Hon. Salmon P. Chase, until the latter became a member of the cabinet of President Lincoln. Through these associations Founder Jordan was appointed to special service and using is law knowledge worked with Union Government Originations throughout the War.

Brother Jordan was united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth Phelps of Covington, Kentucky, on May 5, 1863. The couple had five children. Two of the children died in childhood. The survivors included two daughters-Mrs. Elizabeth Jordan Kinney of Cincinnati, and Mrs. Katharine Jordan Magoun, of Chicago
plus, a son Isaac Alfred Jordan who was educated at Yale University and became a member of his father’s former law firm in Cincinnati. The son Isaac did not become a Sigma Chi due to the fact there was no Sigma Chi Chapter at Yale until 1984.

In 1882 Founder Jordan was made the Democratic candidate for Congress in the Second Cincinnati District. The District was strongly Republican, but he was elected by a majority of two thousand votes. His re-election two years later was regarded as assured, but the death of his older brother, Jackson A. Jordan caused Founder Jordan to decline a re-nomination.

The death of Founder Jordan occurred on Wednesday morning, December 3, 1890, and was sudden and tragic. He was leaving his offices on the third floor of Lincoln Inn Court, when he paused at the elevator door to greet a friend. Without his observing it, the elevator climbed to a floor above. However, the door remained partly open. With his face still turned in greeting and with his natural, quick movement,
Mr. Jordan stepped into the shaft and plunged to his death.

The tragedy created a shock throughout the city of Cincinnati. All courts adjourned, and for a time even public business was stilled. The newspapers of the day devoted entire pages, with prominent headlines and drawings, to the dreadful occurrence. The Cincinnati Enquirer of the day following said, “Probably no other man’s death would have caused more general sorrow and regrets throughout the city. In so far as the fate of a single individual could be so considered, it was regarded as a public calamity—a great and irreparable loss to the community.”

Isaac M Jordan was the third founder of Sigma Chi to enter the Chapter Eternal. IHSV!