Staff Report
The New Mexico Alpha chapter of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity at UNM has been awarded two of the international fraternity's most prestigious awards this year.
The Gold Star Award, presented to individual chapters for superior excellence in chapter operations and the Founders Trophy, presented to the best chapter of Phi Delta Theta on medium-sized campuses, are two of the highest accolades presented each year by the fraternity's general headquarters.
"These awards are the culmination of several years of hard work," said Mike Padilla, president of the UNM chapter. "This is a great honor for everyone involved, and it feels good to see our dedication recognized."
This year's Gold Star Award is the fifth of its kind awarded to the New Mexico Alpha chapter.
"It is a prestigious award and we are very pleased to receive it again," Padilla said. "It is a measure of a chapter's success throughout the year."
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This is the first Founders Trophy for the chapter, after receiving an honorable mention for the award last year.
This year's chapter award winners were recognized at the Phi Delta Theta General Convention in Toronto.
Padilla said that he believes the chapter's dedication to brotherhood and willingness to enhance its relationship with the surrounding community and fraternity alumni are reasons why it received the award.
"We have increased our alumni support and have tried to be as active as possible in our community service," Padilla said.
Padilla said that the fraternity is proud of being among the top three fraternities on campus in overall GPA for the past four years and that its list of community service activities is continually growing.
He named volunteering at the Ronald McDonald House and participation in several events such as the annual Aids walk and the ALS walk, an event designed to increase awareness about Lou Gehrig's Disease, as examples of their volunteer activities this year.
According to its Web site, the New Mexico Alpha chapter was also awarded the President's Cup this year, an award presented annually to the best fraternity at UNM.
