By Ashlyn Beck | Staff Writer
The Baylor chapter of the Alexander Hamilton Society was awarded National Chapter of the Year last year, surpassing many well-renowned schools largely due to its intention to build relationships.
Valerian Sikhuashvili, director of academic programs at Alexander Hamilton Society in Washington, D.C., said what set Baylor apart was the students’ sense of responsibility for their community as well as their ability to relate to others.
“We talk about families and what they’re doing and how they are, and I liked that about the [Baylor] chapter,” Sikhuashvili said. “We try to have meaningful relationships with students, and it’s very easy to do that with Baylor kids.”
The Alexander Hamilton Society is an organization that brings speakers from around the country to speak to students at schools. Each chapter is responsible for hosting events for the speakers, and it is then given points based on event quality, attendance, professionalism and more.
Pittsburgh junior and president of the Baylor chapter Luke D’Ambrosio said politeness, hospitality and personableness are large indicators of a quality event.
“Fortunately, we are very professional in the way that we dress and the way that we present ourselves, especially when a speaker comes,” D’Ambrosio said. “We want to be as accommodating as we can be so that the speaker has an easy time coming.”
D’Ambrosio said he thinks the Baylor chapter was successful at the national level because it has something that other schools, despite their prestige, do not.
“We tend to care about more than just the professional field,” D’Ambrosio said. “We care a lot about relationships and actually getting to know people on an individual level, and I think that makes us more authentic.”
Additionally, Sikhuashvili said their sense of responsibility as citizens sets them apart.
“The reasons that they did all these things were something that I felt very proud of,” Sikhuashvili said. “They had a deep understanding of why they wanted to put on this event. They felt very responsible as citizens toward the country and the role that [they] have in the world.”
Similarly, D’Ambrosio said one of the driving factors of officers’ involvement in the society is the opportunity to serve students, faculty and the speakers who visit.
“The Alexander Hamilton Society is here to serve Baylor,” D’Ambrosio said. “We want people to come and experience this group. They’re going to be welcomed no matter what. We want to keep fostering those relationships, those friendships, that network, too, for Baylor students to take with them beyond college.”
Both Sikhuashvili and D’Ambrosio said the Alexander Hamilton Society provides a plethora of benefits to students who participate. It helps students gain insight into different career paths and fosters meaningful and respectful conversation among peers.
“The most exciting thing for me is to show students and help them create a forum where they can have serious and constructive conversation — conversations with each other about U.S. foreign policy and our role in the world — to know that they can have strong and firm ideas and beliefs but engage with people in a decent and civil manner,” Sikhuashvili said.
D’Ambrosio said the Alexander Hamilton Society has helped him grow as a student and as a servant to his peers.
“I’ve grown up in a legacy and tradition of being excited about serving other people, and this is a very tangible way to do that,” D’Ambrosio said. “Serving as the president of the Alexander Hamilton Society is quite simply an act of service for this campus, and to be able to host these events and see the joy that it brings on students’ faces? I see that as a success.”
