About the Chapter

The Upsilon Chapter of Sigma Tau Gamma at the University of Arkansas at Monticello in Monticello, Arkansas began with nine Founding Fathers in 1938 The chapter is over 80 years old, with over 1,000 brothers initiated since its inception.

Fun Facts

• 2016 Greek Week Champions
• 2016 Intramural Softball Champions
• Former President Bryson Berry voted Greek Man of the Year (2016)
• Brother Brett Courville plays/played for the UAM Football team

Chapter History

Dean James H. Hutchinson established the Upsilon Chapter of Sigma Tau Gamma at what was then known as Arkansas A&M University. Some of the chapter’s original members include Billy Ritchie, Milton Higgason, Walter Brewster, John Bowen, Harry N. Murphy, Hudgens Jeter, James Robert Clark, Byron Wilson, George Lyon, Edward Saunders, Ray Byargeon, Norman Butler, Bill Smith, R.P. Smith, Lathan Abernathy, and Zeb Freeman. Sigma Tau Gamma was the first fraternity to be established on campus and remains active today.  Dean Hutchinson organized the group of noble men on The Hill (where the main buildings on campus were located), and on December 17, 1938, the Upsilon Chapter of Sigma Tau Gamma was born. These men were dedicated to high ideals of manhood, scholarship, citizenship, congeniality, personal characteristics, social poise, mature thinking, as well as action, loyalty, and service to college, community, country, and fraternity. Many organizations have come and gone, but Sig Tau has been there through it all.

Throughout the years, many people have played an essential and fundamental role in shaping the Upsilon Chapter. Many men are brothers from the Upsilon Chapter such as Paul R. Carter, a UAM graduate, and former Chief Financial Officer for Walmart. One of the most influential men was a longtime advisor, Mr. Joe Guenter. Guenter was a member of the UAM faculty from 1962 (when the school was known as Arkansas A&M College) until his retirement in 2008. From 1965 to 1985, Guenter served as a faculty advisor for Sigma Tau Gamma Fraternity. Guenter is a lifetime member of both the Arkansas Academy of Science and the American Association for the Advancement of Science and is a Wilson C. Morris Fellow. He served as Province Governor for all Sigma Tau Gamma chapters in Arkansas and received the Grubbs Chapter Advisor Award. He was, and still continues to be, a huge impact in the history of the chapter.

Many things had changed since 1938 when the Upsilon Chapter was born, but one thing remains the same; the men of the chapter have exemplified the Principles of Sigma Tau Gamma.

Chapter Funds

A Chapter Fund is a restricted account from the Sigma Tau Gamma Foundation. In this case, the restriction is that the funds and earnings on the investment of the funds may be used only for a particular chapter, meaning that if you donate to your chapter’s fund, it may only be used for your chapter.

Chapter Funds may be used to:

• Award scholarships based on academic and leadership criteria
• Technology grants for purchase and upgrade of chapter computer technology
• Educational facility grants to the selected chapter
• Leadership education grants for participation in institutes, seminars, and conventions.

The Foundation manages the fund. This management includes fund accounting, investing, and preparing required reports for the Internal Revenue Service. The policy of the Foundation Board of Trustees is to involve chapter alumni association leaders in the creation of criteria, formation of program priorities and selection of grant recipients.

Submitting Changes to the Chapter’s History

Any member of the fraternity and/or chapter is welcome to submit a request to update/change/correct information listed within the chapter history portion of the page. submissions will be accepted in two ways: should a correction need to be made, please submit the entire sentence/paragraph, that needs to be updated with the correction highlighted in yellow or in a different color. If something new or updated needs to be added, please submit the entire text that needs to be added and/or revised with the new information highlighted in yellow.

This information should be submitted to noblemen@sigtau.org, where is will be reviewed by HQ Staff. Your submission will not be acknowledged unless it has been added to the website. It is very important that the chapter’s history accurately and objectively reflects the chapter, so all corrections, additions, and revisions should be reviewed by other members of your chapter before being submitted.