Fraternity and Sorority Life, a unit of the Dean of Students Office, is proud to announce current president of the Interfraternity Council (IFC) Ramiro Jimenez has been honored with the Undergraduate Award of Distinction by the North American Interfraternity Conference.
The Undergraduate Award of Distinction recognizes fraternity men who have grown in their leadership and personal development throughout their collegiate experience. The organization says that recipients “are exemplary members of their organizations and serve their brothers, campuses and fraternity/sorority communities with humble confidence.”
Jimenez has been a proven leader on the Illinois State campus and has taken great pride in enhancing the fraternity experience for IFC members. After joining ACACIA in 2015, he began taking on leadership roles within the organization, initially serving as their service chair. In this role, Jimenez has organized service projects that have a direct impact on the community, from completing household chores for the elderly to establishing partnerships with local organizations such as the Humane Society and Habitat for Humanity.
Through his previous role as IFC delegate, Jimenez built strong relationships with other chapters in IFC. His commitment to serving and demonstrated integrity led him to obtain additional roles, such as becoming a member of the IFC cabinet and vice president of programming. Throughout these opportunities, Jimenez created trust among the fraternity community, ultimately becoming the current president of IFC.
“Ramiro has been one of our strongest and most forward-thinking leaders among our fraternity members,” Coordinator of Fraternity and Sorority Life Alex Snowden said. “He has been able to guide and lead our young men through a cultural shift that has led to higher GPA’s, fraternal growth, and self-accountability.”
Jimenez is a senior social work major from Justice, Illinois. In addition to his involvement in Fraternity and Sorority Life, he is also a proud member of the campus Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC). Jimenez is a wonderful example of the positive impact fraternal membership has on students.
Over the last two years, the Division of Student Affairs established a Greek Life Task Force and Implementation Team to enhance Four Pillars for Life, a comprehensive program that incorporates the pillars of academics and scholarship, brotherhood and sisterhood, leadership, and service and philanthropy.
This model and the work of the task force has attracted interest from donors such as Eric and Karin Burwell ’90. They made a multi-year major gift commitment and established the new fund Greek Areté, which means “excellence” in Greek. The Burwells’ gift contributes to the goal of raising $500,000 in support of Fraternity and Sorority Life through Greek Areté.
The creation of this fund is the beginning of the potential impact on the Greek community through the support of generous alumni. The Burwells’ gift and others that come through Greek Areté will strengthen the Greek experience for thousands of students like Jimenez.
The Burwells’ gift is part of the University’s $150 million comprehensive campaign, Redbirds Rising: The Campaign for Illinois State. The most ambitious campaign in the University’s history, Redbirds Rising supports scholarship, leadership, and innovation.
Congrats Brother. You earned it !