Institutions with national sororities
 

By my count there are now a total of approximately 765 institutions of higher learning that have functioning systems of national sororities on campus. I find that pretty amazing! I have done a decade by decade list which pretty much tells the history of sororities. The losses during the early years represents a tightening up of the rules, eliminating chapters at institutions not fully at college level. In later years it is surprising that many of the losses were the institutions closing, not the removal of a Greek system. The gains during the 1920s show how popular sorority life became at that time. The frenzied pace during the latter part of the twentieth century reflects a repositioning of sorority administrator attitudes, and the need to find chapters to replace the many lost at the older Greek systems.

The first column of numbers represents the number of institutions in which national sororities were introduced (or re-introduced from previous closures). The second column reflects the number of schools where national sororities ceased to exist.

1868-1880 35 added, 8 lost, net gain of 27
1881-1890 35 added, 21 lost, net gain of 14
1891-1900 24 added, 3 lost, net gain of 21
1901-1910 60 added, 25 lost, net gain of 35
1911-1920 45 added, 6 lost, net gain of 39
1921-1930 75 added, 5 lost, net gain of 70
1931-1940 48 added, 3 lost, net gain of 45
1941-1950 65 added, 7 lost, net gain of 58
1951-1960 63 added, 10 lost, net gain of 53
1961-1970 120 added, 6 lost, net gain of 114
1971-1980 124 added, 18 lost, net gain of 106
1981-1990 122 added, 18 lost, net gain of 104
1991-2000 74 added, 12 lost, net gain of 62
2001-2008 26 added, 8 lost, net gain of 18

In addition to the above there are several institutions where there is a minor Greek presence via multi-school chapters of NPHC or multi-cultural groups, but not representative or recognized enough to be called a functioning Greek system. Plus, there are additional schools on which there are local groups functioning as sororities, societies or social clubs.

I am going to do an accompanying thread which lists the national sororities that were the first group organized on the above campuses.

Interesting. DST's growth spurt occured in the 60s-70s, which seems to correspond to the the gowth spurt in the list.

Yep but does that contrast with the reported "worst of times for GLOs?"

The whole era was one of contrast. On one hand it was the peak of campus unrest--civil rights movement, Vietnam war, Black power movement, etc. By the same token PWIs were offering more opportunities for Blacks to attend, which in turn increased the pool of young women (and men) who wanted to join a NPHC organization--thus the number of charterings.

During that time existing chapters on PWIs also grew in membership, which I think was a reaction to the need to form solidarity groups. In my own case, the presence of DST at SIU Carbondale with from 1 to 50 within two years.

Then spurred by radical groups the anti-BGLO movement kicked in (the whole "Our Kind of People" resentment phase,) and in the 80s the numbers dwindled. I don't know, but WGLOS may have had the same thing happen, because of the whole "Woodstock" movement.

So as we said in that other thread the "worst of times" varies by type of organization.

Even for NPCs, you wouldn't pick up the fact that the 1960s were the "worst of times" because this is number of schools with a Greek Community instead of number of chapters. In the 60s, 120 schools added Greeks, with only 6 closures. Or does this include NPHCs too?

During the 1960s through the 1980s so many dramatic changes were taking place in the Greek world -- some good, some bad, often counter-balancing each other.

The bad: At many old and established Greek systems chapters were closing regularly (just check your own sorority's chapter roster).

The good: To counter balance this sorority administrators were seeking new institutions to establish chapters where Greek life had not previously been offered.

The bad: The percentage of students who elect to become Greeks is much lower today at most institutions than they were in the 1950s.

The good: Many more schools offer the opportunity for Greek membership today which probably evens out the loss at other institutions.

I am sure there are many other factors like this.

I know that more than a couple sororities have a policy of closing "weak" chapters, with the option of recolonizing in the near future. That could explain the more recent closings/recolonizations.

Is it not true that Greek Life runs in cycles?

We now seem to be in and upswing of expansion or going back and rechartering closed chapters.

Many GLOs will have a policy of closing chapters because of numbers and may or not return.:(

As far as GLOs starting out from the begining, I contend, they were at that point in time were all locals and then expanded.

I don't know.

My head is exploding.

Are you contending that all GLOs began as locals that decided to become national?

Wouldn't that mean that their original intent was to be a local sorority or fraternity versus, the obvious, that they only had an Alpha chapter/local designation (but always intended to expand)?

As I said, they each started as an individual chapter at a school or, the Alpha Chapter. So they were in retrospect only a local whether they wanted to or were going to try and expand.

The only one I know of that started as a National was TKN who got a group of locals together to form themselves. They later in 1939 merged with LXA.

Interesting.

It really hurts for me to type this, but at least in regards to DST what Earp has said is technically true. We first incorporated Alpha Chapter and it was years later after establishing more chapters that we incorporated as a national body.

Sorry, I did not mean to infer that some local sororities are different than their national counterparts. The "functioning like" was in the plural to describe all three kinds of groups. However, I have found that there were campuses where groups were called sororities but their memberships were assigned instead of selected--a big difference. I guess I need an editor to clean up some of my phrases!

You might want to re-check your facts:

NPC founding years:
Alpha Delta Pi (1851)
Phi Mu (1852)
Pi Beta Phi (1867)
Kappa Alpha Theta (1870)
Kappa Kappa Gamma (1870)
Alpha Phi (1872)

Your local: 1872

Just sayin'.

yeah you imply, the reader infers. :D

Locals are not in the league of any NPC in terms of active members, alumnae, resources, programming, housing, networking, etc. That's a simple fact. NPC members are rightly proud of what their groups have achieved.

That doesn't mean that a local group cannot have a strong sisterhood, traditions, or campus presence. It doesn't mean a local is just a "clique" - but some are indeed more like clubs than sororities. As oldu pointed out, some of them are run radically differently than NPC sororities. There's really no need to be so defensive. It makes you look like you have a chip on your shoulder. Many locals, after all, eventually become NPC sororities, which would not be the case if the women weren't of the same "caliber" as their brethren in the NPC. Heck, we all started out as "locals".

I don't blame ClioGirl06 for feeling defensive, because when you say things like "some are more like clubs than sororities" - well hell, there are chapters of NPC sororities who are like that. Just because you send a report in to national saying you did this philanthropy and held that meeting doesn't mean it's true.

There is a lot more accountability than there used to be, but I bet most of us can think of a national chapter here and there who did nothing but social functions and mixers and got away with it for one reason or another.

Some (note I said SOME not ALL) locals are indeed more like clubs than sororities the way we think of NPC members. As oldu pointed out, some of them have assigned membership. Some of them want to wear greek letters in an attempt to be "cool", but really don't want to do anything other than the social.

As to the nationals - I'd like to think that any NPC chapter that did nothing but socials would soon be put right by their HQ and advisors. I really can't think of a national chapter at any of the schools I attended or have worked at or with that would fit the description of a mere club.
Obviously, Clio's local has a great deal going for it or it wouldn't have been around as long as it has. That is why she need not feel defensive .

Umm . . .re-read what you posted from my quote. My whole point was that you were indeed of the same caliber. In fact, that's what I said.

Are you disputing what I said about the achievements of NPCs? Because otherwise, why bring it up to say that it is justification for being defensive? If it's true (and it is), then why should it make you defensive ? What in the world did I state that would make you feel I thought "if your (SIC) not NPC your (SIC) not real"?

The guilty man flees where none pursue . . .

But let's just halt this hijack right here. YES Clio - your local is a very real GLO who I am sure has a strong sisterhood and tradition. Okay? The topic of the thread is specfically national sororities. That isn't to say locals aren't important, or valid, or worthy of their own thread. It just means that this particular thread is dealing with national/international groups.

CG, I'm a member of a local, and I don't think anyone here is belittling locals. It's a fact that my local doesn't have the same infrastructure as a national org. It's not putting us down to say that, it's just a fact. And, what SWTXBelle said about caliber was a compliment. It's been established that pretty much every NPC started out as a local, and we know that many sororities today that are local may not be local at some point in the future. That's a credit to the strong sisterhood of locals.

I also don't think she or anyone else was implying that a local that has always been and will always be local is inferior. At least, that's not how I interpreted it at all.

Just out of curiosity, have you looked at gains/losses specifically during times of war? Specifically, WW1, WW2, Korean War, Viet Nam, Desert Storm, and the Invasion of Iraq.

Thank you, pbear. You stated what I wanted to better than I did! For what it's worth, my mother was in a local in college, and in fact I was named for her Theta Psi Delta sister.

As an aside - it seems like everyone and their dog lately has been being "offended". How about we all try and be a little more forgiving, and assume that most people aren't trying to offend, and that it might be a simple matter of miscommunication or misinterpretation?

eta - I think one of the problems when discussing locals is that, by their very nature, they are all very different and so it is hard to make general statements about them. I would imagine they would be very reflective of their campus, and thus more individualistic.

Just to piggyback on other GC'ers comments ... a lot of the locals at your school were at some point NPC chapters (and IFC) that chose to severe their ties with the National because they didn't want to adhere to the strict rules that the National office had. There are also some that were National at some point but went local when the school banned Nationals and just never reaffiliated.

So chill out.

Actually just a few days ago I was reading this thread and I can't remember if I followed a link that was originally there somewhere or if I Googled it seperately, but there was a page I recall seeing that included one of your Clio chapters and a few others that were once part of nationals. There were numerous locals (both fratnerities and sororities) that were listed as previously being affiliated with NPC/IFC organizations that voluntarily returned their charters because of the "strict rules"...

but I digress.

Herein lies the problem. You are trying to correct all these pasts wrongs by over-reacting to perceived slights in this particular thread. That would be the "chip on your shoulder" I referred to earlier. Since we don't know about the other "bits and pieces" or "things I've heard elsewhere", your reaction here looks defensive. Apparently the problem here is the definition of a "legitimate GLO". Had you shared your criteria of single sex membership and selected membership we might have been able to avoid some useless bickering. Don't assume that because NPC GLOs are proud of their achievements and history that it means they must look down on locals. I'm glad you've found a home and sisterhood that makes you happy.

You corrected me on that years ago. :p

I don't think you even read what I post. :rolleyes:

I quoted you above, and wrote quite clearly. You were the one who started by trying to slam NPCs with your (incorrect) comment about how your local was older than ANY NPC. After making that kind of error, you'll have to pardon us for thinking that perhaps your Greek knowledge and experience is rather limited and parochial.

If you don't want us to think you have a chip on your shoulder, how about you stop acting so defensive and give it a rest? Really, I've tried several times to calm the waters and return to the topic at hand, but you just won't stop being defensive. Let it go, already. The thread is about national sororities so either contribute positively to the topic or go post something in the local forum.

BACK ON TOPIC
 

I wonder - does housing play any part in deciding whether or not a Greek system continues or closes? Is a system without housing, or only with university housing, more likely to close?

I know the issue of housing is an important component of the Greek experience on some campuses - even figuring into quota on some campuses. It was an issue in the late unpleasantness at DePauw. Thoughts, anyone?

It is funny to me that when someone says they are offended about a post and says why, others jump on the person about being offended instead of just saying "so noted." It sounds like me doth think ye protest too much and feel guilty about the offense.

Just like when we protested about the lack of inclusion of NPHC groups in these "statistics", we were told by some posters every reason why not. But now oldu has become a little more sensitive about it has sought to remedy the offense.

If Clio is offended that is her perception and she has the right to express it. And btw, I, too, get a general impression for GC that locals are considered "less than."

CMU has had NPCs since the mid 40s. The male fraternities have been around longer than that. Panhel GLOs used to have sections in one of the nicer dorms and in the late 70s, the university built townhouses for the 5 women's groups. The men got duplexes across campus. Neither are gorgeous but they are functional.

More importantly, it put the respective groups on an even playing field since all the Panhel GLOs had 16 beds, the same square footage, etc. It was up to each House Board to decorate the homes.

The University of Richmond does not have Greek Housing yet Greek Life there is fairly strong. The male fraternities have lodges on the outskirts of the campus. The Panhel groups meet in various locations on campus. Although the students don't have parietal hours, all UR housing is single-sex.

I believe it plays a major role. On my tiny campus, Greek life has declined from approximately 75% Greek during my era (mid-90s) to about 50% now. In talking to the collegians and college officials, one major reason is housing. Our houses are college owned. They were built in about 1950, and have few amenities common to today's college student. When I was there, every house was filled to capacity, and every sorority was at total.

Today (on a campus where 100% of students live on campus) with new apartment style housing being constructed, with the dorms being remodeled to include air conditioning, and with what the university calls "tiered housing", we struggle to fill our house at times. Only two of the sororities are at total (which has declined from 90 to 68 in the past three years). The students want to live in the nice dorms, and the college encourages it. The anti-Greek feelings are strong these days, and the college would love nothing more than to close our chapters, and take our houses (which they would then turn into themed housing and charge out the wazoo).

My overall perception of locals has heretofore been based on the locals on the campuses I attended and worked at. To tell you the truth, none of them have been that impressive. But I know my experience is hardly a representative sample.

YIKES - any chance of getting new housing? I would think being stuck in 1950s housing is hurting the Greeks.

Sounds like I stumbled upon the truth.

Hey, that's my experience. But I've always assumed that because my experience is so limited that it is hardly representative. Therefore, I've tried to keep an open mind, and not tar all locals with the same brush. So slam me for not basing my judgement only on my real life experience.

And I've looked in vain for anyone denying anyone the right to his/her opinion.

SWTXBelle decoded
 

No opinion here. Just fact. NPC chapters have anywhere from 40-170 active chapters (most over 100) and anywhere from 15,000 to 240,000 members (most over 100,000---granted some are deceased alumnae). With numbers like that, there's no way a local can compare with the resources that an NPC offers.

These are things that locals AND NPCs can offer. Otterbein also comes to mind when I think of a campus with a strong local tradition.
There is this one local (I think at a CUNY school) that has Ariel, the Little Mermaid as its mascot. I think this is a good example of why some people see locals as "not real" and unfairly lump them all together as "not real".
I'd agree with this.
Exactly. SWTXBelle is saying that the women in locals are usually of the same caliber as women in NPC sororities. This is one reason why, often, an NPC is happy to asborb a local.

ETA: Clio, some people are skeptical about locals for several reasons:
1. Because there is no HQ to answer to, a local can get away with much more (hazing, parties, underage drinking, other risk management issues) than a(n) (inter)national. That doesn't mean that all locals are risk management nightmares, however.
2. Some locals, particularly the more recently founded ones, have mascots like Ariel, Calvin and Hobbes, Babs bunny, etc. or their letters are Eta Omega Tau and they advertise themselves as "HOT" girls or they have mottoes like "No ugly people allowed" or their colors are "hot pink and black" (all real examples from GC). The mascot, letters, or motto makes one question what their sisterhood is really about. After my initiation, I was really moved by the real meaning of our symbols, letters, etc. and how they fit together and really show purpose instead of being arbitrarily chosen because hot pink and black are my favorite colors. (NOTE: I highly doubt this applies to your local since it was founded in 1872)
3. Similar to #2, some locals are perceived as having less staying power because some don't have a solid purpose, (some are copycats of NPCs, some were founded by a transfer, some were founded by an angry girl who got cross-cut, etc.) or merely because they are young and have not stood the test of time. Again, this probably does not apply to your local.
4. The resources. Locals can not compare to the resources that NPCs offer merely because of numbers. Some people think that more resources=better. I love thinking that I can move almost anywhere in the country (or even in Europe) and know that there will be Sigma Kappas nearby.

Know that what I said aren't necessarily things I believe, but reasons why some people think locals are inferior.

When I think of my high school drama bunch, officially called the Midnight Players, we are kind of like a local, co-ed fraternity. We are all very close, and alumni are super loyal and come back for shows and support each other in post high school dramatic endeavors. Do we have the money, manpower, scholarships, networking, etc. that would compare with a national counterpart? No. Does that diminish what I treasure from being a Midnight Player? Of course not.

Housing
 

I attended my school just as Greek housing became a part of Greek life. For the longest time the University said no to sorority houses. Delta Zeta basically just said, "Tough Darts, Farmer" and bought a beautiful Victorian. I think they were punished for a semester or two, but at the end of the day, they had a house, and the rest of the sororities had to play catch up. Delta Zeta still has a gorgeous house - they've added to it over the years. Chi Omega has a lodge, but to tell you the truth they are strong enough that it really doesn't matter that they can't house any girls. Alpha Xi Delta had a real renaissance because they were the first to build a house - it really helped them forge an identity. I'm not as familiar with the Zeta, Delta Gamma and ADPi houses - there is one Victorian that was DG, but is now ADII, Delta Gamma has a house which I've never seen, and Zeta has a nice house near A Xi D. I know AOPi was on campus and at one point had two houses, but for whatever reason they did not last very long. For the last 20 years there has been talk of a Greek Park, but so far it has come to nothing. Many of the older fraternity houses and a few of the sorority houses are in neighborhoods that the University may well need to expand. Our old house is right next to parking lots that used to be the TKE and Kappa Sig houses. Because the Kappa Alpha house is in-between the university and our old house, so far it hasn't been paved over. But I'd be surprised if the KA and old Gamma Phi houses weren't eventually sold to TX State. I would LOVE to see a Greek Park/Village kind of thing, and it may happen someday. The next sorority to come on would, I think, need to be committed to providing housing.

As to how big a part housing plays at TX State - well, the NPCs have been around only since the 60s,(sororities were local before that), and housing has only been a concern since the late 70s. It's tough to say what impact actually buildling a Greek Park/Village would have. Housing is a problem, so it might be that providing housing could positively impact the popularity of Greeks.

I miss our house! It was so cozy! My brother was a KA at SWTSU so I remember their house as well. They've been rennovating it (new carpet, wood floors on the first floor, new cabinetry) so I would be said to see it go.