Where is the largest chapter of your GLO located? How many members?

[KSUViolet06]

The 2 largest Tri Sigma chapters are Elon University (80-90 girls) and University of Virginia (80 -90 girls). We're mostly at smaller schools, so we don't have any 200+ chapters just yet

[Firehouse]

I think Sigma Nu at Ole Miss has over 200.

[Xylochick216]

Jocelyn, according to Elon's Greek Life website, Sigma had 162 members in the Spring of 2004

Link to Elon's Greek Life website

[KSUViolet06]

Originally posted by Xylochick216
Jocelyn, according to Elon's Greek Life website, Sigma had 162 members in the Spring of 2004

WOW. I stand corrected! That's really awesome, thanks hun!

[AGDee]

Gamma Delta chapter of Alpha Gamma Delta at Auburn University... well over 200.

Dee

[Taualumna]

Originally posted by AGDee
Gamma Delta chapter of Alpha Gamma Delta at Auburn University... well over 200.

Dee

Whoa! Do they all know each other? My high school graduating class had 86 people, and I don't think I can name every single person.

[PhiPsiRuss]

I believe that our Texas Alpha chapter, at the University of Texas, has over 170 active members.

[sugar and spice]

I think Tri Delta's Ole Miss chapter has 250ish.

[Erik P Conard]

it seems insane to even call a group a fraternity or a sorority if it
has in excess of, say, 150. I remember we called the Sig Alphs at
KU "the happy hundred," and laughed when they could not even
identify the actives. To have 200 or more is ridiculous unless the
motive is to have a palace or simply overwhelm others with a
hyper-abundance of blonde cuties...
But, to each his own. I am sure the 200+ chapters have little in
common with their yankee sisters whose chapters may be under
30.
And, the quota system, varies from campus to campus, 5 to 95...
Well, my .02. This really smacks of hypocrisy...and some wonder
why others do not jump into Ole Miss with a chapter....LOL
But don't dare call yourselves close if'n you got a coupla hundred
in your club.
Sometimes I think we have strayed from our purposes.
And often it takes 2 or 3 fraternities at CU to even hold a function
with a sorority. And a couple of them had their charters pulled as
they were down to 85 members!
Well, this tirade will surely unleash some replies! Cheers!

[honeychile]

I've always heard that Alpha Delta Pi's University of Texas chapter is the largest, but Auburn University has over 230 members.

This amazed me:


(from 2 years ago)

[Firehouse]

Eric, my dear friend and fellow devotee of the Wilson Heller school of thought...I am reminded of the commerical that begins, "Don't hate me because I'm beautiful."
Fraternities are free to have as many or as few members as they want, uness their national office interferes. Membership often depends on how many they can attract, or how many they feel they need to compete, or how many they feel they should have in order to be what they want to be: intramural champs, first in the hearts of the sororities, national award winners, etc.
A friend of mine - a Lambda Chi alum - tells his chapter this about size: "If you have a fraternity of thirty men," he says, "Then you might make ten friends that you'll have for the rest of your life. If you are in a good, successful chapter of 100 men, you may take forty or fifty good friends with you through life."
There are exceptions, including some big campuses like Penn State, but the near universal reality is that, as Heller said, "all wanted benefits follow size." It's almost always true that the largest fraternities are the strongest, most prestigious, most accomplished, most popular. And, this is important: strong, accomplished chapters can attract who they want. We used to say: first class fraternities attract first class men; second class fraternities attract third class men.
You said one motive for having 150 men might be to "have a palace or to be overwhelmed with cute blondes." Eric, don't knock it! Palaces and cute girls are timeless attractions for the top pledges.
Again, it varies from campus to campus. At my school, my chapter has 180 men and I want them to have 200. We're building a $4 million house. We alumni want the undergrads to dominate sports, student government, standing in the sororities, all of it. Look, here is the bottom line: I do not believe that the quality of friendships is greater or lesser depending on the size of a chapter. I do believe that the quality of fraternity experience is greatly enhanced when the chapter is size-competitive.

[33girl]

Our James Madison U (Harrisonburg VA) chapter is the largest. I think they have 150+.

Erik, I know what you mean...I used to think how can a chapter that big have ANY sisterhood if they don't even know everyone in their pledge class, let alone all the sisters. I've come to the conclusion that you can, it's just different, that's all. I think it's the same for people who've gone to really large or small high schools. I know I would have not been comfy in that size chapter, just because of my personality - but if someone else can be happy that's cool for them. I wouldn't have been comfy at a huge school either...different strokes for different folks. It only becomes a problem when people start thinking every chapter should be like the mega huge chapters and make policy changes and dictates accordingly.

[queequek]

I believe our Brown Charge is the largest, with around 80+ men. Don't quote me, though, since Dartmouth and Stanford Charges are also around 75+ men.

I don't think we will ever reach more than 100 men in any of our Charges.

[Erik P Conard]

Yes, but our pal Wilson Benton Heller never envisioned chapters
of much more than a hundred. After WWII, especially in Florida,
the vets swelled, for a while, chapters of upwards of 180. TKE at
Louisiana Tech, a big jock house, had 176 men a few years back.
The attrition was atrocious. And, the well-known footballer Terry Bradshaw was a member there then. The chapter soon slimmed
down to a hundred, perhaps less. U of IL, Penn State, huge old
systems, rarely had chapters of a hundred. I was TKE adviser at
U of I, jock house, many All Americans...never got over 80. Beta
at Kansas U has an 80-some chapter, all live in. Grades, top on
campus for almost every year in past 60 years. When you went to play the Betas on an IM game...there was no question as to
who'd win...just how bad the Betas would beat you. Phi Psi, SAE,
Phi Gam, Phi Delt...all over a hundred...never had a chance. Beta
could have 200 easily....but somehow keeps the lid about eighty.
Imagine a function with a 95 member Chi O pledge class with the
35 member Tekes, the 25 Pikes, the 40 Lambda Chis (not real)
And, since so many woman vs. men, size-wise, none were to be
required to attend...hoping that the lop-sided numbers would somewhat reconcile. Is this a real exchange, or what?
Naw, true, you can have as big a chapter as your little ole heart desires, and build a 4 million or even 10 million dollar house.
What lesson are you teaching?
I do not think Heller would go ape shit over the thought of the
huge, the mammoth, the mega-chapter. And I personally knew
him well, collaborated with him many, many times...
But, I spoke my piece and you yours...that is what makes this site
valuable. But the definition of 'fraternity' will obviously vary, and
just look at the variety of clubs we have on a variety of campi.

[PhoenixAzul]

mine is the largest...17 beautiful and wonderful girls. (it's nice to not have any competition )