Emilee Theno: A Reflection from the Emerging Leaders Institute

This past week, I attended the Alpha Phi Emerging Leaders Institute at Butler University. The conference was absolutely incredible and it is by far one of my favorite memories from being in Alpha Phi so far. As cheesy as it sounds, ELI really showed me that joining a sorority is really something that is not just four years but for life. I attended the conference with 49 other girls from all across the United States and Canada, and it was amazing to see how that even though we were all from different chapters, we all bonded so quickly with each other. The first day that we were there, we went to a team building challenge course, and we all had so much fun! It was a great way for us to get to know each other quickly because we had to really depend on one another during all of the activities, and we really became a cohesive support system throughout our time at the challenge course. It was so wonderful getting to hear about other chapters all around the nation because everyone had so many different ideas. I gained so much valuable knowledge from hearing about other girls’ experiences within their own chapters and I made so many wonderful friendships throughout the entire week. 
At the conference, we participated in lectures and discussions on how to refine our leadership skills not only within our chapters, but also throughout all aspects of our lives. We learned about listening skills, how to best deal with confrontation, how to best use our own values within our own leadership roles, and many other topics. We also had a question and answer session with alumnae, which was definitely one of my favorite parts of the week. I really saw how the friendships they built within Alpha Phi, as well as the values that Alpha Phi teaches its members carries on past college graduation. ELI is by far one of my most favorite memories of joining Alpha Phi so far, and I came back with so many great memories and knowledge to share with my own chapter at LMU.