Theta Phi Alpha returns to Nebraska
 

Catholic sorority restarts on campus after lengthy hiatus
By Jill Wiest
© 2010 Daily Nebraskan
Published: Thursday, September 2, 2010

After a 71-year absence from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Theta Phi Alpha sorority is returning to campus.

Theta Phi Alpha was historically founded in 1923 to meet the needs of Catholic women who wanted to further Catholic interests among university students.

Excellent! I didn't even know that was coming. Only comment about the story itself : TPA was founded in 1912... maybe 1923 is the chapter's founding year (reading this from my phone so I can't research) but it makes it sound like thats when the Fraternity was founded...

The chapter was originally installed in 1924, maybe the process started in 1923.

Is there a full article or just a little blurb? I couldn't see anything more than what TSteven wrote when I clicked on the link. Might just be my computer though.

I just looked at UNL's Greek Affairs page and Theta Phi will be joining 17 other chapters! This will be interesting to watch since Theta Phi is only at small-ish schools with a small Panhellenic community...
I like it! It makes me feel like big changes could be coming! :)

Theta Phi Alpha is at Pitt which is hardly a small school or small Panhellenic. :)

That is true..I suppose a better wording would be that TPA hasn't colonized anywhere large in a very long time. Kappa at Pitt is our 2nd oldest surviving chapter so they've just kinda always been there (and hopefully always will be!!) :-)

I wonder whether they will try to get competitive housing, or whether they will try to build a niche-market small chapter via informal recruitment. Sigma Delta Tau seems to be thriving under that model on a number of competitive campuses with big, expensive houses (Alabama, Texas, USC, etc.). It might make a lot of sense for a historically Catholic organization, just as it does for a historically Jewish one.
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How To Roll A Joint

They may be successful without housing. It is surprising that at a campus where huge NPC & IFC houses have in the past seemed to be a must, so many are now operating without housing. Alpha Delta Pi has been unhoused for several years. Among the fraternities, Beta Sigma Psi, Chi Phi, Pi Kappa Alpha & Tau Kappa Epsilon don't have houses. While some are new, both Chi Phi & Pike have been around several years. Does anyone know how successful these unhoused groups are? Pi Kappa Phi is newly returned to campus and I note they took over the former Kappa Sig/Triangle house.

The TKE chapter at Nebraska is Sigma, and it's been on and off campus several times in its history. When my husband was an active they were one of the biggest chapters on campus with two houses on University Terrace next to KD and DG (they acquired this house after ZTA left in 1980), an annex across R street next to the AXiD house, which is now a parking lot, I think, as well as another big house that they rented on T Street. I know we've received calls in the past few months asking for donations for their recolonization and one of Mr. NUBlue&Blue's college friends who still lives in Lincoln has been working hard for years to get the chapter active again.

In the 1980's, Chi Phi, ADPi, Phi Mu and Triangle were housed in University owned buildings behind Harper Schramm Smith. I did notice that Triangle was in the Kappa Sig house the last time I was on campus a couple of years ago. Pi Kappa Alpha and Pi Kappa Phi were not on campus at all in the early 1980's (how new are they?....I think I missed everything that happened in the 1990's because I had 4 small children).

Old AOPi (she has a second daughter at UNL) reported that ADPi particpated in rush with all the other chapters this year, but in the recent past they've operated more like a local or affiliate sorority and did recruitment after formal rush. It will be interesting to see which path Theta Phi Alpha will follow as they reestablish this chapter.

Pi Kappa Phi revived their chapter (which closed for the second time in 1972) in 1986 and it closed for the third time in 1995. It was revived again during the past couple years and, I think, leases the house built by Kappa Sig and later used by Triangle (which has now closed?). Pi Kappa Alpha reopened for the third time in 1998-99 and has been unhoused. How successful they are I do not know. Beta Sigma Psi and Phi Kappa Theta were both revived during the past 2-3 years and I think PKT may have a small house somewhere. Chi Phi has been around for a long time to still be unhoused so apparently it is possible to survive without a large house. Competitive housing at an institution like NU requires mega-bucks which even the best endowed national organizations are nervous to commit to.

I honestly think that comparing sororities and fraternities is apples and oranges as fraternities don't have a quota or total they have to meet (unless it's self-imposed by their national organization).

Anyone familiar with Nebraska's campus have any news about construction of the new Theta Phi Alpha house? From the mock-up I've seen it looks like it will be gorgeous!

I don't believe they are going to have a house built for them on campus by the Newman Center anymore. Theta Phi Alpha now has a house south of campus near ADPi.
A quick Google search will pull up old info on the Newman Center's site stating Theta Phi Alpha will have a house built along with a drawing of the house. A newer page on the Newman Center's site shows a picture of a sign that says 'Future Site of the Pi Alpha Chi Sorority Chapter House.' It looks like Pi Alpha Phi is a new local sorority for Catholics.