Duquesne University Fraternities (Kappa Sigma Phi and Beta Pi Sigma)
 

are there any registered users who belonged to these two fraternities? I didn't see them listed in the Duquesne University website. What happened to them? These were two local fraternities in Duquesne campus. It'd be a shame if they "disappeared".

I knew a whole bunch of Kaps, so I wonder what they're up to.

later,

j.c.

I didn't realize Duquesne had locals :confused:

How long ago was this when you were there?

I know the fraternities and the administration didn't get along well for awhile.

My brother had a friend at Duquesne who was a Gamma Chi. That's a local, I would imagine. It was also a gazillion years ago!

Yup... Duquesne had a couple of locals:

fraternities: Kappa Sigma Phi, Beta Pi Sigma.

sororities: Sigma Lambda Phi, Tau Delta Tau.

Through this forum, I found out what happened to the Sigma Lambda Phi (the Lambs); I knew a whole bunch of them. I had also found out they joined a national sorority (don't remember which). The Tau Delta Tau sorority did the same thing.

by the way, I remember when Sigma Alpha Epsilon (am I right?) used to be Zeta Beta Tau (in Duquesne, of course). Why they changed? don't know.

They even had a chapter of the now infamous Delta Tau Chi...
the fraternity of the movie "Animal House". They shut down this fraternity almost nationwide. I met a guy who was a Delta Tau Chi, who told me in 1990 that his fraternity was reduced to two campuses (I started in Duquesne the year after they were banned in campus).

I went to Duquesne from 1988-1992, B.A.

1992-1995 (M.A.) but ended up graduating in 1997; I had moved and was doing "field work" (independent study).

Thanks for your reply. It is somewhat sad that a new generation does not know that Duquesne University had local fraternities. are you in a fraternity/sorority? Go check out the yearbooks... you'll find some interesting things (I know I did) :D

I would appreciate if you find out something and let me know. I'd let you know (privately... e-mails and private messages) some of the stuff that went on then.

later,

Perdido88

Truhan El Mero-Mero

Thanks for the reply, Honeychile. I know you're very active in this forum.

But one correction: its Gamma Phi, not Gamma Chi.
Duquesne had Gamma Phi, also known as the Gammas. Good bunch of crazy guys. I had a couple of friends, who were Gammas, but I didn't hang out with them as much.

Know your brother's friend's name?

Thanks for the Reply.

perdido88

It was Don Something. I'll ask him tomorrow - and yes, he was crazy!!! Even though my brother is now a pastor, he sowed a few wild oats himself in school!

Actually, the fraternity in Animal House was based on Alpha Delta Phi at Dartmouth. They became the local Alpha Delta in 1969 and still exists at Dartmouth.

Delta Tau Chi never existed as an organized national fraternity - there may have been various local groups who thought it was cool to name themselves after the Animal House fraternity, but it was simply a case of likemindedness. "They" (whoever "they" are) did not shut down this fraternity nationwide - there was nothing to shut down nationallly. More likely the different groups either died out or joined national fraternities.

There is, of course, a Delta Chi fraternity, but it has nothing to do with either Animal House or Dartmouth.

Well, I didn't know that. They did take themselves seriously, those Delta Tau Chi. My friend spoke of them as if they were the real thing. If I seem to remember the yearbook correctly, Duquesne 1987, they had a charter and all the privileges of a national fraternity. Thus, the confusion.

Thanks for clearing that up. In hindsight, I think it was cool to have met someone from that group. It was a part of history... even if it was not entirely legitimate.

Still, I would like to find out what happened to the Kaps (Kappa Sigma Phi) and the Betas (Beta Pi Sigma) if possible. I tried to contact the Duquesne Greek office, but they haven't replied to my e-mail.

later,

perdido88

Don Altmeyer.

Re: Duquesne University Fraternities (Kappa Sigma Phi and Beta Pi Sigma)
 

Hey i go to duquesne now and the only local that is there is Gamma Phi. The Kaps had their charter revoked this year as did the Lambs. As for the Betas I haven't seen any on campus for awhile so they must have left before i came there. Officially the Lambs are not a npc sorority and while duq is searching for another sorority i dont know if it will be the lambs. And i so agree with honeychile, the gammas are one crazy group of guys that are great to have fun with!

Re: Re: Duquesne University Fraternities (Kappa Sigma Phi and Beta Pi Sigma)
 

Do you mean...when another NPC sorority is chosen...it's not a "done deal" that the Lambs will be a part of it?

well, thanks for those replies. Too bad the Kaps lost their charter. They were a staple in the Duquesne Greek community. There was a priest, Father Crowley, who was a longtime Kap (kappa sigma phi) and would sometimes wear a sweatshirt with his letters while wearing his priest "cassock" (?). I would feel bad for Father Crowley (if he's still alive) to have to go through that.

I guess the Betas disappeared (probably had their charter revoked) a while after I left. This is too bad also because they were very recognizable.... if not rowdy.

My feeling is that Duquesne administrators got tired of the antics of some of the local fraternities and just went after them.

I remember the Gammas were cool too... as I had a number of friends who were Gamma Phi.

I know somebody who posted is an Alpha Phi. I remember the Alpha Phis at Duquesne. They were cool... at least the ones I met.

Well, take care and many thanks.

Thanks to everyone who posted.

To those in Duquesne, enjoy your years over there.


later,

perdido88

Kappa Sigma Phi/Duquesne
 

To respond to those posts regarding the Kaps at Duquesne and the Betas...

I was (am) a Kap and was in contact w/ most of the guys from '97 to 2002. I ran out of money and had to transfer home in '99...where i finished my BA and MA at UMaine. I still flew into Pittsburgh for my birthday over my school spring break and stayed w/ some of the brothers the following four years after transferring out. Haven't been back to Pittsburgh since 2002. We lost our charter in either '98 or '99 due to Hazing bs I won't get into. Father Hogan had never really liked us to begin w/. I'm surprised our alumni was not more vocal when we had our charter revoked; however. I've been trying to punch names of friends and contacts I had at school into yahoo and google to no avail to get in touch...until I read Perdido's post (Father Crowley's name popped up), I hadn't really had any success! I'm sorry to say that Father Crowley passed away around the year 2000. He was awesome-he would sing the Maine Stein Song word for word before I even knew what it was! The Betas were active until at least '99...one guy from Maine (like me) was a member, but he's a PA in North Carolina right now. I never heard anything specifically...I know that they were in Carnival one of the years that I had come back for spring break but that's it. I'm sure the Kaps are still alive...maybe like the Sheiks at Duquesne stayed for awhile-without official school recognition. I thought that we were going to reapply for charter status though. Anyone who knows any Kaps from Duquesne drop them my email so that they can get in touch w/ me. Thanks,
Travis Geistert
FPC '97...Frankie, No Neck, and the Weebles...

OUT!

hey, geistert... did you get to meet James Jones, Geoff Pentes or marc Alzamora? there's a guy named Joe Nelson who still works at the Duquesne Library who is a Kap. if you want to get in touch, post a message and I will send you an e-mail with some of the names that I know.

by the way, I am not a Kap... I didn't join Kappa Sigma Phi... but I wish I was 'cause they were a cool fraternity... I just knew a whole bunch of them.

geistert, thanks for the post.

Father Crowley, Requiescat in Pacem... we will miss you.

later,

perdido88

Kaps @ Duq
 

I knew of (through the nightmares of remembering everyone's big brothers and big big big etc brothers) their names!! I think I met Joe Nelson wasted one night out at the White Eagle...remember that sketchy spot on the southside??!! Alzamora's name I remember really well...I probably did mad pushups for forgetting it a couple of times...but I never will again!!

The oldest guys that I knew well were Troy Grunseth and Romer...Petey DeCarli (wrestler)...Brian Corridoni...Lauris Rigdon...etc. there were other guys too that I just can't recall their names off the top of my head...yeah, send me that list.

peace,

Travis

Okay, I will next time. I don't know those guys that you mentioned... I was from an earlier time at Duquesne.. you want me to post the list here on this forum? or send it to an e-mail?

later,

perdido88

Kaps
 

know that this is an old thread but just came upon this site.

i know everyone you were discussing...most were my pledge brothers...i was Kaps FPC'88. i also knew joe nelson when he was actually "big joe." he may still go by this, b/c a nickname never goes away...but the memories never will. "all the morals" (alzamora), james earl jones (orsino), gee-off (geoff), etc.

who are you, datadr?? I knew all those guys too.

gary...aka chaka. who may i be speaking with...b/c if knew them, we've obviously met.

gary
(pharmacy class of 93)

groubert is your last name, right? yep, I remember you. My name is Juan-Carlos from Puerto Rico.. they used to call me J.C. I don't know if you remember me... skinny guy with glasses.

how ya been!!!! it's been awhile. saw a record at the hospital the other day with the name alzamora...and memories came back. so been on a mission to find as many of the old gang as possible. some luck so far, but still looking...got your info on other thread about henderson...will certainly sign up and get in touch.

will follow-up here often...glad to hear from ya again.

Gary

Current Locals at Duquesne University
 

I am the current president of Gamma Phi Fraternity at Duquesne University. As of my freshman year, 2004, the Gammas, Kaps, and Lambs were the only local groups on campus, so I'm not positive what happened to the other groups, but I can give you this...

Sigma Lamdba Phi sorority lost their charter in Spring '05. Most of the Lambs joined the national Sigma Kappa, the newest greek organization on campus, I dont even know if they officially recieved their charter yet, or if they're still a colony.

The Kaps had their charter suspended in Spring '05, but it is only a 4 year suspension and we REALLY hope they can come back from it.

So as of right now, the Gammas are the only local group on campus, still going strong as the oldest greek lettered organization on campus, founded in 1916.

www.greeklife.duq.edu

well, let's hope its a temporary suspension for the Kaps. Then, the Kaps alumni should help out rebuild that fraternity. The concern really seems that Duquesne replaced the Kaps with another fraternity Phi Kappa Theta. If you know any Kaps, encourage them to contact their alumni brothers in order to help when the suspension is lifted. There is a group of Kaps, who joined the myspace page. Tell them about it, so that they can keep in touch. Also, any kaps remaining on campus should open an account in the Duquesne alumni website (Duquesne U. website), in order to find out a current contact telephone number for alumni brothers. Anything I can do to help, please let me know.

later,

perdido88

Sigma Kappa is an official chapter at Duquesne now, it's in our latest issue.

Duquesne alum here
 

As a non Greek Duquesne alum, I knew a lot of Kaps back in the 1970s...some of my best friends were Kaps...

Whatever happened to the Beta Phi Sigma?

I think Tau Delta Tau is Gamma Phi Beta...

Some of the fraternities and sororities did not want to become part of the Hogan's Heroes club. The university started putting pressure on them. Beta Pi Sigma stopped participating in carnival (or maybe they were banned from it), and moved off campus... you only saw the Betas occasionally. They might have had their charter revoked or suspended and were unable to pledge new members. Slowly, I guess the remaining brothers graduated and the fraternity disappeared. I visited Duquesne years after graduating and just didn't see anyone wearing the letters Beta Pi Sigma anymore. This happened to the local fraternities and sororities only... and clubs like the Sheiks. My guess is that Duquesne just want national fraternities and sororities because they might be easier to control if they put pressure on their national administrative headquarters.

RedRover, are you still in touch with those Kaps that you knew? If you are, you could tell them to open an account on Myspace.com. There are many Kaps there, and they could probably communicate. If you're not, and you remember their names, let me know;I'll forward the names to a couple of the Kaps that I know. I'll send you a message to contact me.

later,

perdido88

It is true that we were going to merge with the Kaps. Our histories are interconnected by the fact that they were once a chapter of our National.

They dropped National because they felt the dues were too much. A merger at this point is unlikely and I believe they've petitioned the school to shorten their suspension (so they can take a class before all the actives graduate).

Sigma Lambda Phi was shut down after Meridith died and alot of their sisters are a part of the new Sigma Kappa.

Beta was shut down and Gamma Phi is still very very strong on campus as the last remaining local. If you have any more questions let me know.


Please tell me about the Shieks. I rented a house near Duquesne and Sheiks was painted on the wall, and I always wondered why.

Well, nothing against Phi Kappa Theta. I personally wouldn't like the Kaps or Kappa Sigma Phi die out because the university decided to get rid of local fraternities or sororities (how do you get rid of a fraternity which shut down during the 1940s because all their members volunteered to serve in WWII). ... because then they're gonna ask their former members for funds or whatever.

The Sheiks were a notorious (and much disliked by the university administrators) social club like Esquire.. and part of the '80s social clubs like the Playboys and others. I used to think they were the members of Delta Tau Chi in Duquesne when they'd have lost their Greek charter. Later, I found out that Tau Kappa Epsilon disaffiliated in the 70's or '80s and took Delta Tau Chi as their Greek fraternity name (obviously from the Animal House)... So I don't know when the Sheiks started. They were a huge presence during my imprisonment at Duquesne.. considering they were football players for the most part... and used to wear t-shirts around their heads resembling a turban or Arab headdress. They used to piss the hell off Father Hogan whence they entitled themselves Hogan's Heroes in some of their banners. when did they start? I don't know. I just know that it was a social club started sometime during the '80s... alongside with other social clubs like the Playboys (gone by the time I went to Duquesne) and Esquire Social Club.

I got the book on the history of Duquesne, thinking that it would shed some light around these groups, fraternities and sororities.. but it was a major disappointment. Some were just mentioned as part of a list in the group of greeks or social clubs from a certain decade or time.

Take care... best of luck with your group.

later,

perdido88

Sheiks and Playboys were "social club," more than athletic clubs than social fraternities. Sheiks -- my roommate was one -- had blue and white jackets, Playboys -- one of my best friends -- had brown ones.

The social clubs were sort of fraternity lite. Esquires were earlier; I was there 1976-80.

BTW, whatever happened to the Zebes, they were quite strong on campus in my day.

Well, I did some reading into that Duquesne history book. I found out that the Sheiks and the Playboys were around back in the 1960s.. and yes, they were a social club like Red Rover said.

Zeta Beta Tau is predominantly a jewish fraternity. They admitted members of other races and religions; two friends of mine are Puerto Ricans and they were admitted. Around 1994-1995, I saw members of Zeta Beta Tau sporting the Greek letters for Sigma Alpha Epsilon. I realized they changed, but I didn't think that could be done. I found out that they were having problems with the national headquarters due to a dwindling number of new jewish members in the fraternity; this is hard because Duquesne is mostly a Catholic university. anyways.. by that time, they had become one of the most despised fraternities around campus due to a series of incidents regarding one of their members. Such Zebe wanted to be president of the sga. there were elections and the zebea won.. ...apparently there were a number of votes not counted, so there were requests by the other candidates to do a recount or re-election... the night of the decision (I was there with my friend Kappa Sigma Phi Phil Cordier) the zebes burst into the room with baseball bats, hockey sticks, etc. Still, it was decided that a re-election would be made... the zebe lost and the other candidate won (I guess many people found out about the incident and just changed their minds). After this, around May, there was an incident that I called the 4th Floor Towers Kickass party. Classes were over, finals were done... people were celebrating the end of the year. The incident started in Loafer's (Molly's, whatever... next door to what used to be Corleone's). I wasn't there, so I guess there were arguments amongst the other fraternities and the Zebes. I was getting all my stuff ready for packing and going out later that night. I left Towers and when I came back to the lobby, I saw many Greeks going into the elevators and stopping at the 4th Floor (Zeta Beta Tau Wing)... I even noticed one frat guy saying to his brother: "hey, look. everybody's stopping at the 4th floor.". The next day, as I'm moving stuff out of campus, I noticed many zebes leaving... sporting broken arms, black eyes, bruises, etc. So my conclusion was that the other fraternities just burst in and started fighting them. So why the change? hard to know.. it could be problems with national headquarters or they decided to clean up their image after all the problems.

So that's my interpretation of what happened to Zeta Beta Tau in Duquesne.

later,

perdido88

former lamb
 

I dont know how I got to this website but I'm glad I did. I am a former lamb and I lost touch after I graduated in 1990. I am in Shock with the fact that there is no more LAMBS. No wonder its been a while since i received fund-raising calls. Does anyone know specs of what happened?

Well, apparently Duquesne started cracking down on the local fraternities and sororities. Then, the Lambs had an unfortunate incident where a girl named Meredith died at one of their activities. It was a party, not a pledging function as originally believed by some, and there was alcohol involved. This put the Lambs in a bind. The Lambs lost their charter... then the university got a replacement with the Sigma Kappa sorority.

Despite everything, I don't think the sorority Sigma Lambda Phi should disappear just like that. Its a big part of Duquesne history. Local fraternities and sororities are what make a university stand out from the rest. But I guess the administration does not agree.

That is just my opinion.

later,

perdido88

To Perdido88
 

Perdido88, your knowledge of KAP is astounding, and your kind words are great appreciated. I am a KAP (85 -90) and had the honor of pledging most of the brothers you mentioned. All of them are great guys, and I still keep in touch with many of them.

Most everything posted is accurate. The KAPS have been suspended from all campus activity. The current KAPS posted pictures on a non related website that showed under age drinking, and that’s what the administration, and Hogan, used to suspend the KAPS. The KAPS, much like the Lambs, had been targeted by administration for many years. And it is a great injustice to remove both groups who have such a history on campus. Most of my female friends are Lambs, and we are all still very close. As recently as November ‘06, we all met up in Pittsburgh for a sort of reunion.

The KAP alumni have been very involved in trying to keep the KAPS on campus, and overturn the administration’s decision. For a brief period, there were talks with Phi Kaps to merge the remaining brothers, but it was voted down by both actives and alumni. It was nothing against the Phi Kaps, it just wasn’t the right road to take for KAPS. At this point, the future of KAP at DU is unclear.

There is a KAP alumni group on Yahoo, DuqKAPS. I believe the member count is 70+ currently.

I doubt any national would be ok with being represented by name in Animal House anyway. If you search Delta Tau Chi on the internet, the chapters that come up are locals founded after the movie was out, as far as I've seen.

As for Delta Chi's, I know some who like to think there's a connection to Animal House.:rolleyes: I gently argued this at first, since the screenwriter has a book about Alpha Delta, but eventually gave up. It makes them happy to think there's a connection in there somewhere. That and if they took down all memorbilia in the house that references Animal House they'd have big bare spots on the walls.

oh, cool.. there are some brothers on MySpace.com... since I'm not a brother, I probably won't be able to join the yahoo group.. however, let me know what I can do to help. I've included some responses in your writing.. but it doesn't look anything different from the original post..

perdido88

yes, the thing was that the Delta Tau Chi people I met spoke of their organization as a national fraternity.. so I could be wrong. The Tau Kappa Epsilon brothers at duquesne branched out sometime during the '80s and renamed themselves with the greek letters Delta Tau Chi and were probably not chartered by Duquesne. you have to understand that back in the day, some fraternities lived up to the Animal House lifestyle, which is why the movie was done in the first place.. I saw the last of the "Animal House" days at Duquesne, where carnival tents had plenty of beer and cops in front of them guarding the area (it was bizarre! cops wouldn't arrest anybody as long as the beer was inside the tent); this is before 1990 and George Bush Sr. policy of dry campus and financial incentives to universities that maintained one. so yes, there could've been a "national" fraternity known as Delta Tau Chi (or a bunch of people who decided to use the name and encouraged others).. or the most likely thing is your assertion: local groups using the greek letters Delta Tau Chi.. its kinda hard to ascertain because there are occurrences that happened before the internet was available.... so more research will have to be done... thanks for the post.

Yeah it would be interesting to see if there was a loose organization nationally. I can easily believe that's what it was like in the "old days". There's plenty of chapters that try to live up to it (and the house and the atmosphere and the people remind me of certain friends of mine...BUT), still, but these days liability is such an important issue...and there's plenty of things in that movie that would probably end up in arrests and charters being pulled these days because of legal issues.

They were primarliy known as the Delts. I was at Duquesne from 88-93, and Kap. One of the last remaining Delts, Father Ed, was a good friend to the Kaps.

It's still the bluff!

yeah, I remember Father Ed! He was a great guy. do you remember his real name, though? It seems everyone knew him by that nickname..

Father ED
 

Alright, you guys are truly showing my age now...and no...for the life of me I don't even know if he did have a "real" name...LOL.

Gary
FPC '88