Fall 2007/Spring 2008 Sorority Recruitment Dates/Results

[irishpipes]

Originally Posted by LaneSig

Wow, what happened at LSU during the '80s?

closed
1980 - Alpha Omicron Pi, Alpha Phi

1983 - Phi Sigma Sigma

1984 - Alpha Epsilon Phi

1985 - Alpha Delta Pi, Alpha Gamma Delta

1988 - Alpha Xi Delta

Seven closed chapters in an eight year period?

So with AOPiRose's correction that Phi Sig closed in 1933, that leaves us with the "alpha curse" of LSU.

[honeychile]

Impressive thread, irishpipes! So, when do you plan to be THE NPC President? Or at least, Historian?

A bit of trivia to add: on many campuses, you see when a chapter was founded, but not that it was ever dormant. At Pitt, the entire ADPi chapter closed in 1942 to support the War Effort, and came back right after the war. One of the alumnae who was involved in the recolonization was just in my office today, telling me how impressed all the freshmen were to see such total commitment, both to the War Effort AND to bringing the chapter back on campus! So, while a local became ADPi in 1920, there were 4 years when the chapter was dormant.

[irishpipes]

Originally Posted by honeychile

Impressive thread, irishpipes! So, when do you plan to be THE NPC President? Or at least, Historian?

A bit of trivia to add: on many campuses, you see when a chapter was founded, but not that it was ever dormant. At Pitt, the entire ADPi chapter closed in 1942 to support the War Effort, and came back right after the war. One of the alumnae who was involved in the recolonization was just in my office today, telling me how impressed all the freshmen were to see such total commitment, both to the War Effort AND to bringing the chapter back on campus! So, while a local became ADPi in 1920, there were 4 years when the chapter was dormant.

On your first question, the answer would be NEVER! I am just your run-of-the-mill history buff.

I know that AOII also closed chapters during the war, as some members felt that it was inappropriate to engage in a "triviality" like Greek life during that time. (I believe our chapter at SMU was one, and then never reopened.) Other chapters took the position that they could support the war better by staying together. It is interesting, and I added a note to your chapter at Pitt.

[aggieAXO]

Originally Posted by sigmadiva

Couple of notes on TAMU:

As I recall A Phi was chartered 1989 / 1990 (my junior year at A&M), but must have closed a few years after that. I do remember that they did not have a house on sorority row, they had a lodge.

There was one sorority at A&M right before 1975 and that was Phi Mu. They were not on campus for very long.

hmmm, my freshman year was 1990 and though I did not go through rush that year I knew several people that did-I don't remember Aphi just colonizing (I think my rush book said they colonized in 75 but I will have to dig it out or maybe some lovely APhi member can answer the question on when the chapter was colonized?). They had a house on Athens (I went to their house during rush for the first couple of days so I know it was there-it is now the pi kappa phi house). They tried to reorganize in 1995 or 96-they sold or leased their house to Pi Kappa Phi (I am not sure if they still own this house TechAphi was a member of this chapter-she may know). They had a lodge for a couple of years and then closed all together. I can't answer the Phi Mu question except that during pledgeship we had to know every sorority that was on campus and there was no mention of Phi Mu ever being there. I know my rush book says that Delta Zeta was the first sorority but I will dig out to double check.

edit to say: found rush book-DZ was the first sorority est at A&M. The book did not say when Aphi was established.

[ForeverRoses]

Great list!
Just a couple pieces of info- University of Southern Indiana and Southern Indiana University are one in the same. The school changed it's name to University of Southern Indiana in the 1980s when it became a fully independent state school (when it was SIU, Indiana State still had some control over it).

Also, the Phi Sigma Sigma chapter at Ohio University went dormant in 1994.

[Regina Filangie]

Originally Posted by irishpipes

So with AOPiRose's correction that Phi Sig closed in 1933, that leaves us with the "alpha curse" of LSU.

I have a friend who goes to LSU who was telling me about the "alpha curse". She said something happened (can't remember what the reason was) and all the alpha chapters were forced to close around the same time. Is that just an urban legend or did something actually happen?

[irishpipes]

Originally Posted by Regina Filangie

I have a friend who goes to LSU who was telling me about the "alpha curse". She said something happened (can't remember what the reason was) and all the alpha chapters were forced to close around the same time. Is that just an urban legend or did something actually happen?

More than 50% of the members of the "alpha" chapters developed a strange rash. No one was ever ill or had any other symptoms, but it made PNMs reluctant to pledge those sororities, and the chapters soon didn't have enough members to participate in recruitment. After all the chapters had closed, a toxicology study revealed that it was due to a mold found in the house building materials. It could have easily been eliminated if it had been identified. Unfortunately, by the time that happened, the chapters were all closed and the legend had formed a life of its own.

[irishpipes]

OK, that was mean. I'm just kidding.

[33girl]

RF - here's the thread where the "alpha curse" was brought up.

http://www.greekchat.com/gcforums/sh...d.php?p=249285

Basically, a really bad case of a self-fulfilling prophecy.

[sigmadiva]

Originally Posted by aggieAXO

hmmm, my freshman year was 1990 and though I did not go through rush that year I knew several people that did-I don't remember Aphi just colonizing (I think my rush book said they colonized in 75 but I will have to dig it out or maybe some lovely APhi member can answer the question on when the chapter was colonized?). They had a house on Athens (I went to their house during rush for the first couple of days so I know it was there-it is now the pi kappa phi house). They tried to reorganize in 1995 or 96-they sold or leased their house to Pi Kappa Phi (I am not sure if they still own this house TechAphi was a member of this chapter-she may know). They had a lodge for a couple of years and then closed all together. I can't answer the Phi Mu question except that during pledgeship we had to know every sorority that was on campus and there was no mention of Phi Mu ever being there. I know my rush book says that Delta Zeta was the first sorority but I will dig out to double check.

edit to say: found rush book-DZ was the first sorority est at A&M. The book did not say when Aphi was established.

Either way, I don't think A Phi was there in '75. I think they were there closer to '89/'90/'91. I know they were there by '91 because they extended a bid to an African American woman that year and it caused a big ruckus on campus.

What I remeber about Phi Mu was that there was a 'greek' year book at A&M and they mentioned it in the year book. I came across the year book in the stacks next to the regular Aggieland yearbooks, and it did mention Phi Mu being there back in '75 or so. The only reason this tid-bit of information has stuck in my head was that someone wrote in the margin of the page 'Phi Mu - died at TAMU'. This person also wrote some very unsavory things about all the sororities, it was proabaly a guy......

[aopirose]

Originally Posted by irishpipes

OK, that was mean. I'm just kidding.

That's pretty funny, actually, and it's also known as the Alpha Syndrome. Seriously though, these chapters were never forced by the university to close. They just came to an unfortunate end.

http://www.greekchat.com/gcforums/sh...ome#post110302

awesome. just a little addition. emory university is in atlanta, georgia (not decatur). also, delta phi epsilon is still active.

[irishpipes]

Originally Posted by ErinKathleenNJ

awesome. just a little addition. emory university is in atlanta, georgia (not decatur). also, delta phi epsilon is still active.

I am laughing at myself. I have been to Emory many times - my brother got his PhD there, and while doing so he lived in Decatur. I didn't even realize I had typed Decatur instead of Atlanta.

[aggieAXO]

Originally Posted by sigmadiva

Either way, I don't think A Phi was there in '75. I think they were there closer to '89/'90/'91. I know they were there by '91 because they extended a bid to an African American woman that year and it caused a big ruckus on campus.

What I remeber about Phi Mu was that there was a 'greek' year book at A&M and they mentioned it in the year book. I came across the year book in the stacks next to the regular Aggieland yearbooks, and it did mention Phi Mu being there back in '75 or so. The only reason this tid-bit of information has stuck in my head was that someone wrote in the margin of the page 'Phi Mu - died at TAMU'. This person also wrote some very unsavory things about all the sororities, it was proabaly a guy......

Are you sure this as not a greek yearbook from another school? Greeks were not mentioned in Aggiland YBooks until 1990 edition. I also believe Pi Phi was the newest sorority on campus when I joined in 1992. I will ask an Aphi b/c now it is bugging me.

[sigmadiva]

Originally Posted by aggieAXO

Are you sure this as not a greek yearbook from another school? Greeks were not mentioned in Aggiland YBooks until 1990 edition. I also believe Pi Phi was the newest sorority on campus when I joined in 1992. I will ask an Aphi b/c now it is bugging me.

No, it was a yearbook separate and diffierent from the Aggieland. There was only like one or two issues. It's that it was in the stacks *next* to the Aggieland yearbooks. Yes, greeks did not appear in the Aggieland until 1990.

My Aggieland yearbooks (1987-1991) are at my mom's house. I think they give a bit of chapter history for each greek org that was on campus. I'll have to look also.