An Update on the Current State of the Chapter: 

Created by Joshua Tsyrkin (Vice President), and reviewed/approved by all current members of the Alpha Zeta Chapter of the Sigma Chi International Fraternity at Beloit College (March 4, 2026) 

Members of the Beloit College community and the greater Beloit area: 

I, Joshua Tsyrkin, am currently Pro-Consul (Vice President) of the Alpha Zeta Chapter of the Sigma Chi Fraternity here at Beloit College. Issac Guttormson, our current Consul (President) and all current members of the chapter have decided that an update on the current state of the chapter is extremely necessary, and long overdue. 

Transparency with our community is not something that has been lost on us — this update and statement has been deliberated numerous times since the events that took place in the Spring of 2024. At the time, we thought that commenting on the issue would bring more resentment and uneasiness towards us, and that the best course of action would be to make changes behind closed doors. 

This was counter-intuitive, because as we engaged in various difficult dialogues with faculty, administration, and our own student body, the same sentiments persisted. And why wouldn’t they? Our culture was changing, yet the community was not given the chance to see it. 

We wanted to permanently break the cycle of irresponsibility, hate, and ignorance that had plagued the chapter before us. And I honestly think that although it has been a long road, we have changed this organization drastically. Instead of focusing on showing how we have changed, we simply used the time to focus on ourselves and make that change. We wanted to

build back the trust, comfortability, and respect that this community had for us before our own members destroyed it. 

Currently, our top three positions are held by Issac, Josh, and Ryder. We three were the ones who saw the effects of the past first-hand and understood the feelings and perspectives of everyone on campus who are part of this community (as well as the rest of the chapter). We have made a concerted effort since the day things occurred to recruit quality men so that we can avoid repeating a hurtful past. The easy thing to do was to jump ship and leave the chapter, and we all considered it. But our chapter is storied, and is among the top twenty continuously standing chapters that have never lost their charter. I firmly believe that Isaac, Ryder, myself, and the rest of the chapter are committed to “turning the ship around,” as we have been doing step by step, ever since men who were never fit to represent our chapter graduated. Even though individuals who were a part of our organization did not represent our core values/ideals in the slightest, we resonated with the true ideals of Sigma Chi and knew that turning the ship around would be difficult, but possible with time.  

We also recognize that the way we went about our official and initial apology, and the delayed timing of our second apology was unfair, disappointing, and lacked depth in the understanding of the true effects we had scarred unto our own community we had worked so hard to bring together during Derby Days of 2024. 

The men that were around to see events unfold in 2024 did not have a majority in the house, and decisions were made based on previously elected officers and seniority. Three sophomores and three freshmen had to take control of a ship that had been sunk by the previous people we had trusted to represent our organization. Knowing that our voice still did not represent a majority in the house, and the future we would go on to hold was almost forced upon us upon entry because of the unnecessary hate and total irresponsibility of others. 

As everything stands, we know trust is not built overnight, and it takes a lot of time, difficult conversations, and effort to make true change. It requires individuals who still have strong concerns to speak out so that we can all effectively communicate and open dialogues as a student body. 

All in all, the entirety of this chapter is now composed of good men who hold each other accountable each and every day, and our democratic processes and leadership are something we are now truly proud of. We pride ourselves in our brotherhood, commitment to public service, integrity, and ability to have difficult conversations. We hope to continue to have open, honest, and consistent dialogues with all members of our community — whether they be with members of our student body, Greek life, clubs, organizations, faculty, administration, etc. With time, we hope to build back the trust our community had for us so that we can support each other and so that our chapter can leave a positive impact on the community.

Featured image: Wikipedia