Should I start my own fraternity?

[Shaymus1]

There are so many factors that go into this question I know it is a lot to ask, so I will try to sum it up and answer some probable questions quickly.
1. It is a community college in NE Ohio.
2. There, so far, will be about 15 members.
3. I have yet to speak with College administrators.
4. There are no other fraternities or sororities on campus.
I hope this helps you to help me a bit more!

[Sen's Revenge]

No,m you should not start your own fraternity, in my opinion.

First and foremost, it is way more work than you could possibly imagine. So much work, in fact, that that if you are a founder, you almost don't even get to enjoy being a member because there is SO MUCH WORK.

You might be wondering what kind of work: incorporation, fundraising, insurance, trademark protection, bylaws, recruitment, expansion, planning conferences and meetings, etc.

Even among your 15 founding members, some of them will never do any work. Others just won't have the skills necessary to be what the organization needs.

At a community college, you will also have a lot less time to get things done, since you will be leaving in two years. I am also sure a lot of the individual members work crazy hours because they are putting themselves through.

If I were you, I would talk to your administration and see if they would be interested in hosting a chapter of another fraternity. Being an expansion group is not easy, but it's easier than being a founder.

I do not know which orgs would expand to a community college, but perhaps there are some small national orgs or regional orgs which will.

[Kevin]

I can't envision how a group with a 2-year membership cycle could enjoy the sort of stability needed to run what looks like a traditional fraternity. I want to say that I recal Eric Conard waxing eloquent at some point about TKE's ill-fated foray into community college expansion.

I just don't see this working out. I mean, one bad rush and you're basically done for.

[IrishLake]

There are some "community colleges" in Ohio that offer 4 year degrees.

Shaymus, Sen still has really good points. If your friends who want to join will be around for more than 2 years, it may be worth pursuing. Talk to your campus about chartering a chapter of an existing fraternity.