Xi Septaton (ΞΣ) is an undergraduate chapter of Phi Sigma Kappa Fraternity [http://www.phisigmakappa.org/?actionchapters_directory®ion4], founded on November 18th, 1995, and is located at George Mason University (GMU) in Fairfax, Virginia. The chapter has been a recognized student organization at GMU since 1995.
History
Founding
In the early 1990's, a group of gentlemen lived on Washington 2nd in President's Park . They became a close-knit group and participated in multiple intramural sports. The group called themselves "The Looney Bin" and even made up t-shirts. Some went out to rush existing fraternities but just didn't find what they wanted. The group would often hold social events on their hall and people enjoyed these events greatly.
One member, Josh Elliott, decided that it might be a good idea to start a fraternity out of this group. His father was a member of Phi Sigma Kappa. They contacted the national headquarters regarding expansion. Chris Hoye, who was the Director of Expansion at the time for Phi Sigma Kappa, visited and meetings were held for several months regarding membership and organization.
Twelve men were associated into the George Mason University Colony of Phi Sigma Kappa in April, 1993. Josh Elliot's father and Tim Vojtasko, a current Grand Council member, performed the Ritual of Association. The group needed to be recognized as a student organization by GMU but could not designate itself by Greek letters.
The new colony also needed to list a mascot with the University. A rooster was chosen because of the offensive, yet proper, alternate name for roosters. Eventually, the interest group went by the name "The Roosters." During the next two and a half years, many joined and many left. The period leading up to official recognition and chartering is a long and frustrating one. Two members eventually left and actually became presidents of established fraternities on campus.
The IFC did not welcome expansion at the time and it wasn't until the fledgling Colony gained the highest GPA on campus that chartering was finally granted to them. Brothers from the Chi Hexaton chapter at Virginia Commonwealth University along with the new Director of Expansion, Mike Tice, performed the Ritual of Initiation. The charter was granted from the Grand Chapter on November 18th, 1995.
Founding Date Error
The Charter of Xi Septaton Chapter states correctly that it was founded on November 18th, 1995. A paddle was created with the founders' names which wrongly states the chapter was founded on November 17th, 1995.
Founding Reason Error
A myth has prevailed among some members that the chapter was formed because Mike Zimmerman's father was a Phi Sig and he thought it was a good idea.
1995-2000
Xi Septaton was founded at an important time at George Mason University. The university was transforming itself from a safety school serving primarily commuters in the Washington, DC-Metro area to an institution with higher standards and a more active campus. Some organizations (such as Phi Mu and Beta Theta Pi) did not survive this transition as GMU became more popular and so Fraternity & Sorority Life came under greater scrutinization by the school administration and the national offices of the organizations. The chapter remained between small and medium size during this time period.
2001-2006
The addition of Iota class in Fall 2000 would begin a trend of growth in the chapter. With the exception of Lambda and Pi classes, every other Fall class has ended with seventeen or more bothers being initiated. The chapter remained one of the largest (and often the largest) on campus for several years. These years also saw the acquisition and eventual loss of an unofficial chapter house, the accumulation and subsequent complete payoff of a sizable debt, and survival in the face of a changing university with many new or revived policies.
Awards
GMU
Philanthropy & Service
* 2006 IFC Philanthropy
* 2003 IFC Philanthropy
Athletic
IFC
* 2006 Interfraternity Council Champions (All Sports Award)
Rec Sports Tournaments
* Intramural Sports 3rd Annual Dodgeball Tournament - 1st Place
* Intramural Sports 2nd Annual Dodgeball Tournament - 1st Place
* Intramural Sports 1st Annual Dodgeball Tournament - 1st Place
Sorority Tournaments
* 2004 Alpha Xi Delta Fuzzy Football - 2nd Place
* 2004 Alpha Phi Dodgeball - 1st Place
* 2004 Gamma Phi Beta Football - 1st Place
Fraternity & Sorority Events
* 2007 Greek Sing - 2nd Place
* 2005 Greek Sing - 1st Place
* 2005 Homecoming Block Party Competition - 1st Place
* 2002 Greek Week - 2nd Place
* 2002 Greek Sing - 1st Place
Phi Sigma Kappa Grand Chapter
* 2007 Most Improved Chapter
* 2007 Philanthropy
History
Founding
In the early 1990's, a group of gentlemen lived on Washington 2nd in President's Park . They became a close-knit group and participated in multiple intramural sports. The group called themselves "The Looney Bin" and even made up t-shirts. Some went out to rush existing fraternities but just didn't find what they wanted. The group would often hold social events on their hall and people enjoyed these events greatly.
One member, Josh Elliott, decided that it might be a good idea to start a fraternity out of this group. His father was a member of Phi Sigma Kappa. They contacted the national headquarters regarding expansion. Chris Hoye, who was the Director of Expansion at the time for Phi Sigma Kappa, visited and meetings were held for several months regarding membership and organization.
Twelve men were associated into the George Mason University Colony of Phi Sigma Kappa in April, 1993. Josh Elliot's father and Tim Vojtasko, a current Grand Council member, performed the Ritual of Association. The group needed to be recognized as a student organization by GMU but could not designate itself by Greek letters.
The new colony also needed to list a mascot with the University. A rooster was chosen because of the offensive, yet proper, alternate name for roosters. Eventually, the interest group went by the name "The Roosters." During the next two and a half years, many joined and many left. The period leading up to official recognition and chartering is a long and frustrating one. Two members eventually left and actually became presidents of established fraternities on campus.
The IFC did not welcome expansion at the time and it wasn't until the fledgling Colony gained the highest GPA on campus that chartering was finally granted to them. Brothers from the Chi Hexaton chapter at Virginia Commonwealth University along with the new Director of Expansion, Mike Tice, performed the Ritual of Initiation. The charter was granted from the Grand Chapter on November 18th, 1995.
Founding Date Error
The Charter of Xi Septaton Chapter states correctly that it was founded on November 18th, 1995. A paddle was created with the founders' names which wrongly states the chapter was founded on November 17th, 1995.
Founding Reason Error
A myth has prevailed among some members that the chapter was formed because Mike Zimmerman's father was a Phi Sig and he thought it was a good idea.
1995-2000
Xi Septaton was founded at an important time at George Mason University. The university was transforming itself from a safety school serving primarily commuters in the Washington, DC-Metro area to an institution with higher standards and a more active campus. Some organizations (such as Phi Mu and Beta Theta Pi) did not survive this transition as GMU became more popular and so Fraternity & Sorority Life came under greater scrutinization by the school administration and the national offices of the organizations. The chapter remained between small and medium size during this time period.
2001-2006
The addition of Iota class in Fall 2000 would begin a trend of growth in the chapter. With the exception of Lambda and Pi classes, every other Fall class has ended with seventeen or more bothers being initiated. The chapter remained one of the largest (and often the largest) on campus for several years. These years also saw the acquisition and eventual loss of an unofficial chapter house, the accumulation and subsequent complete payoff of a sizable debt, and survival in the face of a changing university with many new or revived policies.
Awards
GMU
Philanthropy & Service
* 2006 IFC Philanthropy
* 2003 IFC Philanthropy
Athletic
IFC
* 2006 Interfraternity Council Champions (All Sports Award)
Rec Sports Tournaments
* Intramural Sports 3rd Annual Dodgeball Tournament - 1st Place
* Intramural Sports 2nd Annual Dodgeball Tournament - 1st Place
* Intramural Sports 1st Annual Dodgeball Tournament - 1st Place
Sorority Tournaments
* 2004 Alpha Xi Delta Fuzzy Football - 2nd Place
* 2004 Alpha Phi Dodgeball - 1st Place
* 2004 Gamma Phi Beta Football - 1st Place
Fraternity & Sorority Events
* 2007 Greek Sing - 2nd Place
* 2005 Greek Sing - 1st Place
* 2005 Homecoming Block Party Competition - 1st Place
* 2002 Greek Week - 2nd Place
* 2002 Greek Sing - 1st Place
Phi Sigma Kappa Grand Chapter
* 2007 Most Improved Chapter
* 2007 Philanthropy
Middlesboro Mall is a small shopping mall located in Middlesboro, Kentucky along US Hwy 25E just outside the Cumberland Gap National Historic Park.
This mall is located in Eastern Kentucky. It has the usual mall services, however, many of the stores are local retailers as opposed to the normal mix of local and national.
Anchors
*Belk
*Sears
*JC Penney
*Steve & Barry's
This mall is located in Eastern Kentucky. It has the usual mall services, however, many of the stores are local retailers as opposed to the normal mix of local and national.
Anchors
*Belk
*Sears
*JC Penney
*Steve & Barry's
El Machetero is a Toronto-based poet/spoken word artist/MC/DJ and community activist who first began performing at open mics and slams in Toronto and New York City around 1997, after many years of being a steady fixture in the underground Hip-Hop, hardcore punk, and progressive/activist communities in Toronto.
Born Daniel Rojas-Orrego on April 29th, 1975, the oldest son of political refugees from Chile who arrived in Canada in 1978 after fleeing the regime of military dictator Augusto Pinochet, El Machetero first became known by many as a passionate and militant young activist who worked at the grassroots level around issues of racism, imperialism, police brutality, prisoner's rights and solidarity with various anti-colonial struggles throughout the world. A gifted orator and organizer from the time he was young, he shifted gears more towards the cultural field in the late 1990s and began to focus on his lyrical and poetic skills and gained prominence as a DJ who would blend Hip-Hop, Reggae, Afrobeat, Classic rare groove, Funk, breakbeat, Salsa and Alternative Rock at house parties, cultural/political events and assorted hangouts in downtown Toronto, and occasionally on the air at Ryerson University's radio station 88.1 CKLN FM.
Deeply desiring to stop just being a mere consumer/spectator of the art forms he loved and admired so much and heavily and equally influenced by legendary poets such as the Last Poets, Gil Scott-Heron, Nikki Giovanni, Pedro Pietri, Sonia Sanchez, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Jean Binta Breeze, Mutabaruka, Miguel Pinero and Sandra Maria Estevez, as well as mid-1990s Hip-Hop acts such as Organized Konfusion, Freestyle Fellowship, De La Soul, , Wu-Tang Clan, Gang Starr, OutKast, Fugees, Souls Of Mischief and A Tribe Called Quest, he began writing and performing his unique brand of passionate explosive poetry, blending insights he was struggling to place in perspective about his own experiences with race, culture, street life, the criminal justice system, relationships, and the immigrant/refugee experience, with an angry, humorous, bombastic, passionate machine gun fire delivery and stage presence, which he was pleasantly surprised to find very well received by Toronto audiences, particularly as a fair-skinned South American active in a deeply politicized, culturally refined and primarily African/Caribbean scene.
His first known recording was the deeply introspective track "Lost Ones", produced by legendary UK expatriate DJ and poet Malik X (aka Ismail Malik Al-Ghazali), which appeared on the 1999 compilation "Return of the Style Exiles", which was never officially released, but which nonetheless enjoyed a healthy amount of play on college radio around that time. He released his first demo CD, Ona Hustle Ona Humble Inna Struggle in the summer of 2003, which sold quite well and was very well received by fans and critics alike. It featured stellar production by Rasul Phoenix of Blacklight Studios.
He released a full-length CD titled Clash Like Rock Smackin Tank in 2005, which contained remixed and remastered versions of some of the same tracks produced by Phoenix which appeared on his demo, as well as newer tracks produced by Gigz the Unknown Producer, Dov Shalyn-Gray, Masked Man and DJ Curtis Smith (host of CKLN's "Out Of D'Ordinary"), and which featured collaborations with poet Love Le Dream, MC Mindbender, poet/beatboxer Da Original One and DJ Sawtay. Although well-received by all who heard it and purchased it, it suffered from poor sales and distribution, and brought to light many of the difficulties faced by poets/spoken word artists looking to expand upon their art form and transition into the musical realm. All the same, he gained the great honour of being nominated for a 2005 Canadian Urban Music Award for Best Spoken Word Recording for his semi-autobiographical track "2Pac Syndrome", which despite the fact that he did not win, he still viewed as being a proud moment in his career.
El Machetero's recordings tend to draw from his sensibilities as a DJ, embracing a wide variety of musical influences from free jazz to hardcore punk to dancehall reggae, but the most dominant element is a sound and production style quite similar to the dusty soulful sample-heavy "Golden Age Hip-Hop" sound most commonly associated with producers such as the RZA, 9th Wonder, Pete Rock, Da Beatminerz and Jay Dee, often with a smooth lush sound that contrasts quite nicely with his often abrasive rapid fire delivery.
He presently still lives in Toronto, where he continues to write and DJ, and is looking to release his second album (produced by Gigz the Unknown Producer and featuring the vocals of Amina Alfred) titled Permanent Underclass sometime in 2008. He plans to relocate to New York City sometime that year as well.
Born Daniel Rojas-Orrego on April 29th, 1975, the oldest son of political refugees from Chile who arrived in Canada in 1978 after fleeing the regime of military dictator Augusto Pinochet, El Machetero first became known by many as a passionate and militant young activist who worked at the grassroots level around issues of racism, imperialism, police brutality, prisoner's rights and solidarity with various anti-colonial struggles throughout the world. A gifted orator and organizer from the time he was young, he shifted gears more towards the cultural field in the late 1990s and began to focus on his lyrical and poetic skills and gained prominence as a DJ who would blend Hip-Hop, Reggae, Afrobeat, Classic rare groove, Funk, breakbeat, Salsa and Alternative Rock at house parties, cultural/political events and assorted hangouts in downtown Toronto, and occasionally on the air at Ryerson University's radio station 88.1 CKLN FM.
Deeply desiring to stop just being a mere consumer/spectator of the art forms he loved and admired so much and heavily and equally influenced by legendary poets such as the Last Poets, Gil Scott-Heron, Nikki Giovanni, Pedro Pietri, Sonia Sanchez, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Jean Binta Breeze, Mutabaruka, Miguel Pinero and Sandra Maria Estevez, as well as mid-1990s Hip-Hop acts such as Organized Konfusion, Freestyle Fellowship, De La Soul, , Wu-Tang Clan, Gang Starr, OutKast, Fugees, Souls Of Mischief and A Tribe Called Quest, he began writing and performing his unique brand of passionate explosive poetry, blending insights he was struggling to place in perspective about his own experiences with race, culture, street life, the criminal justice system, relationships, and the immigrant/refugee experience, with an angry, humorous, bombastic, passionate machine gun fire delivery and stage presence, which he was pleasantly surprised to find very well received by Toronto audiences, particularly as a fair-skinned South American active in a deeply politicized, culturally refined and primarily African/Caribbean scene.
His first known recording was the deeply introspective track "Lost Ones", produced by legendary UK expatriate DJ and poet Malik X (aka Ismail Malik Al-Ghazali), which appeared on the 1999 compilation "Return of the Style Exiles", which was never officially released, but which nonetheless enjoyed a healthy amount of play on college radio around that time. He released his first demo CD, Ona Hustle Ona Humble Inna Struggle in the summer of 2003, which sold quite well and was very well received by fans and critics alike. It featured stellar production by Rasul Phoenix of Blacklight Studios.
He released a full-length CD titled Clash Like Rock Smackin Tank in 2005, which contained remixed and remastered versions of some of the same tracks produced by Phoenix which appeared on his demo, as well as newer tracks produced by Gigz the Unknown Producer, Dov Shalyn-Gray, Masked Man and DJ Curtis Smith (host of CKLN's "Out Of D'Ordinary"), and which featured collaborations with poet Love Le Dream, MC Mindbender, poet/beatboxer Da Original One and DJ Sawtay. Although well-received by all who heard it and purchased it, it suffered from poor sales and distribution, and brought to light many of the difficulties faced by poets/spoken word artists looking to expand upon their art form and transition into the musical realm. All the same, he gained the great honour of being nominated for a 2005 Canadian Urban Music Award for Best Spoken Word Recording for his semi-autobiographical track "2Pac Syndrome", which despite the fact that he did not win, he still viewed as being a proud moment in his career.
El Machetero's recordings tend to draw from his sensibilities as a DJ, embracing a wide variety of musical influences from free jazz to hardcore punk to dancehall reggae, but the most dominant element is a sound and production style quite similar to the dusty soulful sample-heavy "Golden Age Hip-Hop" sound most commonly associated with producers such as the RZA, 9th Wonder, Pete Rock, Da Beatminerz and Jay Dee, often with a smooth lush sound that contrasts quite nicely with his often abrasive rapid fire delivery.
He presently still lives in Toronto, where he continues to write and DJ, and is looking to release his second album (produced by Gigz the Unknown Producer and featuring the vocals of Amina Alfred) titled Permanent Underclass sometime in 2008. He plans to relocate to New York City sometime that year as well.
A comic soon to be released in 2008. Not much is known at this time except for a few notes about the main character and a bit of the story.
Story
While traversing his hometown, Max, a young boy destined for greatness, stumbles upon an alleyway in which he has never seen before, to find a portal to an alternate universe known as Meroa. He arrives at a town known as Aleport and is declared to have been the prophecy come true. He is given a "digit" which is a small device looking similarly to a "digivice" from the Digimon series. Using this device he can change into his future selves.
Characters
Max(8 years old)
A young boy who is destined to be a great leader, but to give a great sacrifice costing him his own life. Although the events are not known, the boy finds something to aid him, known as a digit. Using this device he can change into his future selves. 3 of which that were announced to be his teenage form, his adult form, and his midlife form.Each of them being 15, 30 and 50, respectively. While this is the only known information of Max at the time, what has been said is that, while he is courageous and smart, he can be a trouble maker.
Max's confirmed style of fighting is to be by using assorted toys such as yo-yos and slingshots and the like.
Max(15 years old)
By the time he would have been 15, he would have been proficient in the ways of magic, using spells to hurt and heal. He has rather long and mangy hair and is a bit immature, constantly cracking jokes.
Max(30 years old)
Looking strangely similar to Solid Snake from the Metal Gear series, this version of Max is very mature and athletic. His style of fighting involves the use of firearms. Not much is known at this time.
Max(50 years old)
Noticeably, he can't walk for some reason and uses the aid of a wheelchair to get around. Although he still manages to be an excellent fighter, using a simple sword and sheild, along with mainly everything else he has learned. He is much more lighthearted and easily finds humor in everything.
Story
While traversing his hometown, Max, a young boy destined for greatness, stumbles upon an alleyway in which he has never seen before, to find a portal to an alternate universe known as Meroa. He arrives at a town known as Aleport and is declared to have been the prophecy come true. He is given a "digit" which is a small device looking similarly to a "digivice" from the Digimon series. Using this device he can change into his future selves.
Characters
Max(8 years old)
A young boy who is destined to be a great leader, but to give a great sacrifice costing him his own life. Although the events are not known, the boy finds something to aid him, known as a digit. Using this device he can change into his future selves. 3 of which that were announced to be his teenage form, his adult form, and his midlife form.Each of them being 15, 30 and 50, respectively. While this is the only known information of Max at the time, what has been said is that, while he is courageous and smart, he can be a trouble maker.
Max's confirmed style of fighting is to be by using assorted toys such as yo-yos and slingshots and the like.
Max(15 years old)
By the time he would have been 15, he would have been proficient in the ways of magic, using spells to hurt and heal. He has rather long and mangy hair and is a bit immature, constantly cracking jokes.
Max(30 years old)
Looking strangely similar to Solid Snake from the Metal Gear series, this version of Max is very mature and athletic. His style of fighting involves the use of firearms. Not much is known at this time.
Max(50 years old)
Noticeably, he can't walk for some reason and uses the aid of a wheelchair to get around. Although he still manages to be an excellent fighter, using a simple sword and sheild, along with mainly everything else he has learned. He is much more lighthearted and easily finds humor in everything.