When it comes to greek governing councils, Iowa State’s are among the best.

ISU Collegiate Panhellenic Council earned the Sutherland Award and Interfraternity Council won the Jellison Award, both for council excellence, at the Association of Fraternal Leadership and Values conference in St. Louis.

The conference was attended by the Collegiate Panhellenic Council, Interfraternity Council, Multicultural Greek Council and National Pan-Hellenic Council.

“We are very fortunate to have all four greek governing councils represented at the conference,” said Erin McHale, Collegiate Panhellenic Council president and senior in child, adult and family services.

McHale said the conference is “truly a time for all of the officers to learn how they could expand their position into something even bigger than it already is at Iowa State University. [The conference] allows us to network with people across the nation to bring in to Iowa State University so our whole campus may benefit from our attendance and outstanding greek community. “

“We always bring a lot of people and try our best to spread out and attend every session,” said Josh Knust, Interfraternity Council president and junior in mechanical engineering. “It is very important to get as much information from the speakers and breakout sessions so that we can bring it back to our campus.

“It’s really a great experience for our officers in the early parts of their terms. We are able to bond as councils and really get excited for the work we will do during this semester and in the fall.”

Iowa State is recognized for holding themselves to a high standard when it comes to the AFLV conference, McHale said.

“The awards are won by the councils who submit documentation of criterion in a variety of different topics,” McHale said. “If we perform high enough in all of these areas more than other councils who have submitted for the awards, then we win the Sutherland.

“The only way you are eligible for the overall, large Sutherland Award is by applying in every topic; some councils only apply in a few but Iowa State applies in all eight areas.”

“The areas include: academic achievement; council management; leadership and educational development; membership recruitment; philanthropy and community service; public relations; risk reduction and management; and self-governance and judicial affairs.”

The greek community at Iowa State embodies the dedication and leadership necessary to actively earn esteemed awards and to represent the university in a positive light, McHale said.