Quote:
Originally Posted by TSteven
As long as Beta Upsilon Chi allows duel membership (i.e. in BYX and in a "general" social GLO) they are not be eligible to join the NIC. However, a BYX chapter may join a campus’ IFC if that campus allows it. This seems to be the case at Tennessee.
For what it is worth, there have been “informal” discussions within the NIC regarding the possibility of grand-fathering organizations that allow duel membership. The GLO wanting to join the NIC would have to move to single membership, but the NIC would not require the individuals to renounce one of their memberships. In other words, if you were a member of both BYX and a current NIC organization, the NIC would allow the individual to continue to be a member of both. However, one or both organizations might require a member to “drop” membership in the other to remain a member. That membership issue would be up to the organizations.
There is a historical president for this. For example, Delta Chi initially was a “professional fraternity” for law students and some members also held membership in “general" / "social” fraternities as well. Delta Chi moved to single membership in the early 1900s which allowed them to become a member of the NIC. My understanding (I’m not sure on this, so perhaps a Delta Chi might be able to confirm) is that the members of Delta Chi who held duel membership prior to Delta Chi moving to single membership were allowed to “keep” both memberships.
Now the other side of the current duel membership discussion is that the NIC should require the individual with duel memberships to resign from one of the organizations. I suspect that could be a deal breaker for some GLOs that might consider joining the NIC.
As for Sigma Phi Epsilon leaving the NIC, I haven’t heard any specific talk about them doing so. (Doesn’t mean it isn’t happening.) But what is interesting is that since the NIC’s founding, many members have left and then rejoined later. And it seems like one or more NIC member is considering doing so at any given time.
I have heard that since Kappa Sigma and Phi Delta Theta left the NIC, there have been “unofficial” discussions regarding one or both rejoining the NIC. As such, and given the history of GLOs leaving and rejoining, it wouldn’t surprise me if either fraternity returned -- or if one or both elected to continue to remain independent of the NIC (for the time being).
As for Kappa Sigma’s recruitment success, that really is not due to them leaving the NIC as the NIC does not have quotas or chapter totals. Kappa Sigma seems to simply be doing well with their process. And they have been opening more chapters in recent years as well. That has also contributed to an increase in their numbers.
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TSteven -- thanks for all the great info/insight! Also, forgive me if I implied that Kappa Sig's recruitment success was tied to them leaving NIC. Not at all. I just meant that they've seen a lot of success even though they aren't members. I think, for the reasons you gave, they would have experienced the same results whether they were NIC members or not.
I think it will be interesting to watch BYX as they continue to grow and/if campus cultures change. I wonder if, going forward, we'll see more schools choosing not to recognize organizations that are tied to a specific faith or denomination. If so, I wonder how BYX will choose to handle that. It honestly won't surprise me if they do join the NIC at some point. NIC doesn't tell members who they have to extend bids to, and like all fraternities, BYX would continue to seek men who they believe to be a good fit for the organization.
Thanks again for the info!