The 181st Psi Upsilon Convention Awards Banquet celebrated the achievements of both undergraduate chapters and distinguished alumni whose service and leadership exemplify our Fraternity’s highest ideals. Attendees gathered to honor outstanding students, unveil a new Emerging Leader Award, and recognize seasoned alumni for their unwavering commitment. The evening culminated with a keynote address and the presentation of the David A.B. Brown Award for Distinguished Alumni.
The Psi Upsilon Outstanding Junior Award honors a third-year undergraduate who exemplifies our Fraternity’s highest ideals by making meaningful contributions to campus, community, and brotherhood; by pursuing ambitious life goals with moral, intellectual, and social excellence; and by fostering enduring friendships. This award recognizes a junior whose leadership and integrity set a standard for all Psi Upsilon brothers. Two Outstanding Juniors were in attendance to receive this Award in person:
The Griffin Award for Senior Excellence honors a Psi Upsilon undergraduate in his or her final academic year who has demonstrated exceptional dedication and commitment to the chapter. It aims to recognize and encourage sustained involvement by seniors and to foster strong ties between graduating brothers and their chapter. Two Griffin Award Recipients were in attendance:
This year marked the debut of the Psi Upsilon Emerging Leader Award, created to recognize younger alumni who demonstrate exceptional engagement and principled leadership within the Fraternity. The inaugural recipients are:
Madison Turkette, Delta Omicron ’19 (Purdue)
Supported our newest chapter at Purdue and transformed her alumni board into a proactive partner for undergraduates, fostering a welcoming environment that upholds Psi Upsilon’s core values.
Joey Cobau, Phi ’21 (Michigan)
Revitalized the Great Lakes Founders Day Dinner in Michigan, drawing 130 brothers—the largest turnout in the event’s 70-year history.
Additional Recipients of this inaugural class of the Emerging Leader Award will be announced at our online Awards event in October.
The Distinguished Alumni Service Award recognizes brothers whose service to their chapter, or the International Fraternity, is worth special commendation. Since its creation by the 155th Psi Upsilon Convention in 1998, 36 alums have received this honor. It is customary for a recommendation to come from an alumni association or another member of the fraternity and then is discussed by the Awards and Recognition Committee, who then recommends to the Executive Council or the Psi Upsilon Convention to consider the alum for the award. All award winners are presented with a medallion recreated by our Director of Member Engagement, Jonathan Chaffin, Gamma Tau ’00 (Georgia Tech) and originally designed by Murray Eskenazi, Lambda ’56 (Columbia).
The 181st Convention was able to recognize three alums with this award:
Bob Correll, Epsilon Iota ’82, was a founder of the Epsilon Iota Chapter, Archon, served as President of the Alumni Association multiple times, and was a member of the Executive Council of Psi Upsilon. From his recommendation: “Robert has been a true rock for the fraternity. Collegiate Undergraduate and Alumni associations can famously have short institutional memories as membership and active engagement turn over; Robert’s continuous presence at both business and social events has created persistent stability and a sense of continuous connection between many generations of Epsilon Iota brothers.”
Mat Ross, Pi ’86 and Jim Cornacchi, Pi ’86 currently serve as the President and Vice President of the Pi Trust at Syracuse University and work closely together and it was fitting that they were both publicly recognized at the same time while the Pi was celebrating its 150th anniversary. From their recommendation: “… they have worked diligently as a team to help build one of Psi U’s most successful chapters. There is no one single program or policy that makes a chapter successful – it takes building a culture. One that balances a respect for tradition, an eye on the future, a care for the individual and an ethos of accountability. Over the years Jim and Mat have helped support the chapter and keep this kind of culture in their chapter: whether it is organizing speakers for initiation, leading a capital campaign to help restore the beauty of the chapter house, or responding to sudden crisis that arise.”
View the full list of recipients of the Distinguished Alumni Service Award.
In addition to receiving this recognition, members of the Eta Chapter delegation returned the original composite of the Pi Chapter, pictures of its five founders from 1875, which happened to be recently discovered “at a garage sale”…
The David AB Brown Award for Distinguished Alumni, goes to an alum who brings honor to the Fraternity by exemplifying the true spirit and meaning of brotherhood in all that they do and say, for dedicated and unselfish service in pursuit of the advancement of the Fraternity, and for demonstrating a commitment to serve the educational environment, their community, and their country and has distinguished themselves in their chosen profession.
Tom O’Brien, Pi ’83, has had a storied career. As president of Weather Group, he drove transformative growth—launching The Weather Channel en Español, pioneering an advanced streaming app, and introducing industry-leading mixed-reality graphics—efforts that earned the organization over 35 major awards under his leadership. His earlier roles at Nexstar Media Group and NBCUniversal further attest to his strategic acumen and professional integrity. Beyond his corporate achievements, Tom has dedicated himself to community and educational causes, serving on the Board of Directors for the American Red Cross – Georgia Region and supporting the International Radio & Television Society Foundation, nurturing the next generation of media leaders. His blend of innovation, service, and brotherhood brings great honor to Psi Upsilon and makes him a most deserving recipient of this award!
View the full list of recipients of the David A. B. Brown Award
If you know of a deserving alum, and would like to recommend them for an award, please submit their information to the Executive Director of Psi Upsilon, Thomas Fox at tfox@psiu.org.