Kyle Carson ’21, Jaylen Jude ’21, Kaden Baker ’21, Luke Martin ’21 (left to right) each presenting their own individual Outstanding Leadership and Service Award received at the Outstanding Leadership Awards Ceremony.

JAYLEN JUDE’S: TRANSFORMATIVE LEADERSHIP AND ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE

Remember High School Superlatives – Best Dressed, Most Original, Most Likely to Succeed, and Best All Around? Jaylen Jude, Valparaiso ’21 definitely embodies these superlatives and more.

Jude, a 2024 graduate in business management and first year Valpo Graduate School student, has been a leader in Phi Psi since his freshman year, serving as Risk Management Chair, Intramural Chair, Parliamentarian, Corresponding Secretary, and Messenger, some of these during a very challenging period for Indiana Epsilon.Instead of shying away from the challenges, he stepped forward with others in his class to “initiate a complete transformation” of the Chapter’s culture. Judeandeightotherbrothersrebuilt the relationship and trust of the University and Headquarters to put the Chapter on the right path and Jude on a continued path of transformative leadership. In 2023, Jude was elected to serve the brotherhood as the District III Archon, continuing his tradition of transformative leadership at the national level.

Jude stands out academically as well. He started his tenure at Valpo as a Lilly Endowment Scholarship recipient, a program which provides four full-tuition scholarships to selected students from each county in Indiana. This past spring, Jude became a 2024 Phi Psi National Scholarship awardee, receiving the William H. Blanning Scholarship. The Blanning Scholarship is awarded to brothers attending graduate school who demonstrate outstanding academic achievement, leadership, and character. William Blanning, Dickinson ’37, believed in the brotherhood of Phi Psi, and this scholarship was created for those demonstrating leadership and character, exactly as Jaylen Jude does daily.

In his commencement speech “The Journey of Resilience” given as the student speaker at Valparaiso’s 2024 graduation, Jude said “Yes, I am here. But I’m not here because of myself. I’m here because of those who helped me.” Jaylen credits being ready for life and his future not only to his dedication and grit, but to his professors, classmates, family, and Phi Psi brothers. “You need to find the people who value you. Find them and cherish every moment you have with them. Those are the ones who are going to stick around forever. It’s not just a college friendship; they’ve all become part of my family.”

William Blanning remembered Phi Kappa Psi in his estate when he passed away at the age of 95. The Blanning Scholarship is one of 15 named scholarships in the Phi Kappa Psi National Scholarship Program. National Scholarships recognize undergraduate and graduate Phi Psis who excel in the areas of academics, chapter leadership, and campus involvement. Recipients like Jaylen Jude display outstanding academic achievement and excellence in service to Phi Psi, their campuses and communities, as well as active membership in athletics, campus organizations, community groups, and philanthropies. These awards are possible because of gifts of Phi Psis like William Blanning and alumni who want to make sure brothers are ready for life.

In the fall of 2021, the Indiana Epsilon Chapter of Phi Kappa Psi was placed on disciplinary probation and given the hard choice to clean up or shut down. The brothers, having chosen to clean up, were handed a laundry list of structural changes the university required as part of the probation. Not only did the chapter have to contend with the structural changes, but it also had to change its fundamental culture. Knowing what the chapter needed to do, the brothers began a year-and-a-half-long rebuilding process.

It was a time full of long and difficult conversations about what the brothers wanted the chapter to be and how that fit into what the university expected the Chapter to be. Through these problematic and intimate conversations, the brothers learned the “why” of each brother. Why did you join? Why did you stay? Why are you putting in the effort to be better? After discovering everyone’s “why,” the next question was, what is the one “why” that unifies the chapter? While the chapter struggled to find a unified why, the brothers continued to check off the items required by the university for probation.

The chapter underwent significant restructuring. The officer election process was changed

to be more efficient. The committees were consolidated, and chair positions were removed to make the committees more effective. The new member process was rebuilt from scratch to reflect better the culture the Chapter was trying to build. Many bylaws were updated, replaced, or completely removed. It focused on risk and introduced many items/procedures to mitigate risk. And the Chapter built up processes to better fulfill university requirements in the future.

As the probation continued, the chapter slowly regained some of its privileges as the brothers fulfilled probation requirements. The chapter was able to host parties, hold joint events with other chapters, and begin reintegrating into the larger Greek community. The Chapter held events such as painting with Kappa Delta, a field day with Sigma Phi Epsilon, bowling with Kappa Kappa Gamma, and a formal with Pi Beta Phi. It also hosted a Greek block party for freshmen to meet all the chapters on campus. The Chapter hosted a Greek Week cookout for all the chapters to come together and celebrate a fun week of competition.

After a year and a half of hard work, the chapter completed the terms of its probation and had a unified goal: to be the best chapter on campus

and the best Phi Psi chapter nationally. With these goals in mind and with the newfound freedom of being off probation, the Chapter moved into the academic year of 2023-24. and immediately got to work planning recruitment events, events with other chapters, philanthropy events, and service events. This culminated in the Chapter hosting six events with different Greek organizations accumulating 1,400 service hours and over $4853.28 raised for charities, the highest amount ever raised by the chapter for the local Boys and Girls Club, and winning the university intermural sports league by a wide margin. In additino to these accomplishments by the chapter, 100% of chapter members involved with other clubs or sports, with many members in leadership positions in other organizations.

The university recognized the Chapter’s achievements and hard work with the Pillar of Excellence, the second-highest award a Greek organization can win. Having received this award, the chapter eagerly awaited GAC.

At GAC, the Chapter’s efforts were acknowledged with the Chapter Excellence Award and the Most Improved Chapter Award.