Anyone know of any other current Kappa Sigma expansionary activity?

[hayden83]

In my District, I have chapters of 20 members on campuses of 25,000 with a total of 100 Greek students, so you're not alone.

There may be an interest group forming at UCR. I will PM you the contact information of our recruitment manager who can help you get connected.

Originally Posted by flffydg9

I am willing to be an alumni advisor for a colony at UC Riverside, but it looks like it would be a daunting task. There are only about 300 students in 10 fraternities out of a total enrollment of almost 20,000 and growing... Is there any interest and support for the idea of starting a chapter out there and becoming the 11th fraternity on the campus and the largest?

[als463]

Sorry for crashing but, I felt compelled to leave a message in the Kappa Sigma forum. I hope you all don't mind.

The other night on campus (Penn State Harrisburg-where I am now a Graduate Student) I walked out of class early after a test. I was excited to get a chance to go home early. Generally my Wednesday class is over at 9:15 p.m. and I have an hour and a half drive home from there.

I had gotten done with my test as I walked out to the parking lot. I hopped in my car and my engine wouldn't even turn over. I didn't leave the lights on and I had no idea why it wasn't starting. I freaked out because I was about an hour and a half from home-so, for anyone to even come pick me up-getting home could have been a total of 3 hours when all is said and done.

I quickly hopped out of my car to find someone who was willing to help me try and jump start my car. I carry my own jumper cables and all I needed was someone with a car that worked. I walked around the parking lot until I came upon two young-attractive guys dressed up in suits. I felt bad asking them because they were dressed so nice and obviously had some place to go. As soon as I walked up to their car (because they were hopping out of it) without even having to say a word-they stopped talking and greeted me.

I asked them if they would be willing to help me jump start my car and they were more than happy to help out. I was so thankful. Even though I had an idea how to do it, the one guy took charge of the cables and told me not to worry because he works on cars all the time. After hearing that-that made my night. I went from being tired and ready to go home-after freaking out...to meeting some great guys who were willing to help at the drop of a hat.

Maybe I got lucky because they noticed my hat. Who knows? I forget how it came up but, I began to tell them about how I was in graduate school. The one guy made a comment about how he realized I was most likely there for graduate school because he noticed my Penn State Phi Mu (lettered hat) that I was wearing. I smiled and said, "Oh-are you guys Tekes?" The reason I asked is because from all I knew they were the only IFC/NIC group on campus. They both smiled and said, "No-we are brothers of Kappa Sigma!" We began talking about Greek Life as my car was getting jumped and I took down their names and information so I may send them "thank you" cards and let them know how thankful I am.

Apparently, the guys were dressed up because they had something going on with the fraternity that night-I want to say it was something like a sorority's pinning ceremony (if that's something fraternities do). They were dressed very nice and willing to help me out. Had it not been for them-I would have never made it home. I just wanted to let the brothers of Kappa Sigma know how wonderful their new chapter/ colonization/ expansion is at Penn State Harrisburg because if those two guys are an example of Kappa Sigma brothers on this campus-you will have great pledge classes for years to come!

[chicostateksig]

well we are losing chapters fast too. I believe SDSU is in probation. and UC Santa Barbara is gone. wow that sucks.

[irocz89]

Penn State Harrisburg,, made into Pi Lambda Chapter on November 1st 2008

[stufield]

A New Year's Rant:

The Fraternity did reasonably well with charterings and recharterings in the first half of the 2008-2009 academic year, chartering new chapters at Coastal Carolina University (Pi-Theta), Cal State Chico (Pi-Iota), Bentley College (Pi-Kappa), PSU-Harrisburg (Pi-Kappa), Methodist University (Pi-Mu), Ramapo College of New Jersey (Pi-Nu), and Colorado State University (Pi-Xi), and rechartering at Dickinson College (Beta-Pi) and Jacksonville State University (Lambda-Gamma). Lambda and Gamma-Phi chapters were rechartered at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and West Virginia University, respectively, but I can't recall whether those recharterings occurred prior to or since the commencement of the 2008-2009 academic year.

Unfortunately, four colonies, the Okanagan (i.e., Kelowna) campus of the University of British Columbia, The College of New Jersey, the so-called Colony at South Bend (which was actually at the University of Notre Dame) and, most sadly, the Kappa-Psi recolonization at Villanova University, all folded during the first half of the year, bringing to 34 the number of colonies that have closed in the last three to four years ... an unbelievable number, and clear evidence that the Fraternity is establishing many colonies that never should have been established in the first place. While I suppose one could always advance such platitudes as "noting ventured, nothing gained" and "you'll never know unless you try", the actual fact of the matter is that the status of Greek life, or the absolute lack of any Greek life, and in some cases the absolute opposition of the school administration to the introduction or expansion of Greek life on its campus, meant that about 20 of those 34 colonies were doomed to failure from the outset. The aforesaid South Bend / Notre Dame colony was one of those.

As for new colonies, the fraternity seems to have established ten new colonies in the first half of the current academic year: altogether new colonies at (1) the University of California at San Diego, and (2) Central Michigan University (both are schools at which we should have colonized/chartered 20 to 30 years ago, and at which we have been conspicuously absent ever since); recolonizations of (3) Kappa Chapter at Vanderbilt University, (4) Alpha-Psi Chapter at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, (5) Delta-Nu Chapter at UCLA, (6) Alpha-Alpha Chapter at the University of Maryland, College Park, (7) Epsilon-Rho Chapter at Kent State University, (8) Delta-Gamma Chapter at the University of Wyoming, and (9) Kappa-Iota Chapter at Middle Tennessee State University; and, most recently, (10) another altogether new colony at Texas Women's University. Some of those recolonizations may actually have commenced before the beginning of the current academic year. But as they were not posted on the Fraternity Website until the current year, I'm counting them as having been established this academic year.

It may be that another colony was, or another two or three were, established before school let out for the Holiday Season, and simply has or have not yet been posted on the Website. The Website's postings are not always up to date, and what is posted is often inaccurate. But I understand that the long-anticipated recolonization of Gamma-Upsilon at Rutgers University, and an altogether new colony at Florida Gulf Coast University, located in Fort Meyers, may already have been established ... or perhaps soon will be.

The establishment of ten colonies in one-half a school year would ordinarily be a noteworthy expansionary achievement. But in a year when (a) the Fraternity had set an objective of having 300 active chapters and colonies at the time of the 2009 Biennial Grand Conclave this July, (b) had 250 active chapters and colonies at the beginning of the school year, and (c) shortly thereafter closed at least two active chapters (Epsilon-Nu at the University of Southern Mississippi and Epsilon-Theta at the University of California at Santa Barbara), ten colonies falls far short of the desired objective. I know that the Fraternity wanted to have established colonies at a minimum of ten other specific schools by the Holiday Season. Hopefully, those schools will all be colonized in the second half of the academic year, although I suspect that some of those specific projects have failed. But even IF those ten other schools ARE colonized, and all the present colonies and active chapters are still active in July (a most unlikely prospect, given the penchant of the SEC for closing chapters and the high failure/closure rate of our colonies, in large part because many of them are at schools where they have little or no chance of ultimate success), that would still leave the Fraternity over 30 chapters and colonies shy of the 300 mark. That objective was totally unrealistic when it was set, and it clearly now unattainable. In fact, the most recent issue of The Caduceus does not even mention it, and I suspect we will never read another word about the "300 by Conclave" objective. The Fraternity simply is not going to establish 40 new colonies between now and July, and close no chapters or colonies.

Having mentioned the Texas Women's University colony, I would be astounded if it survives. It is just the latest example of the Fraternity establishing colonies at schools with no fraternity system, either never having had one or once having had one but every previous fraternity at the school having failed, or with just one or two other fraternities with low campus presence ... colonies with little or no prospect of success. Meanwhile, there are over 250 schools throughout the USA and Canada with well-established Greek systems at which the Fraternity is presently unrepresented (over 50 of these are schools at which we have a dormant/inactive chapter) and at which a Kappa Sigma chapter would thus have a much better chance of succeeding, if a colony could first be established there. Of course, many of those schools are closed to further expansion at this time. At some other schools, the fraternity system is expanding, various fraternities have been invited to make presentations for acceptance as the next fraternity to expand to that school, and Kappa Sigma either was not invited to make a presentation or did make one but was subsequently not selected. But for the most part, Kappa Sigma remains on the outside looking in at these schools because the Fraternity's present expansionary plan ... if one could even call it a plan ... is NOT to target specific schools where the Order is conspicuously absent and to attempt to expand there, but instead to 'take what comes', to only deal with interest groups who approach the Fraternity about possibly becoming a colony/ chapter, and with alumni who want to see a return of their dormant chapter. So the Fraternity receives solicitations from interest groups at all sorts of schools, many of which are obscure, minor schools that almost nobody has ever heard of, that have no fraternity system on campus, that would not enhance the Fraternity's status much even if a colony were to be established and ultimately chartered. Look at the list of present colonies and the schools in the Xi, Omicron, and Pi chapter series and you will see what I mean. Chapters and colonies at a number of schools that most of us have never even heard of, let alone that would advance a fratenity's reputation. Texas Women's University is the latest of these. Yet just in the State of Texas alone, we have at least four inactive chapters that could be recolonized (the University of Texas at Arlington [which the Fraternity has been attempting to return to, and may even recolonize this school year], Texas A & M, Kingsville [formerly Texas A & I], West Texas A & M [formerly West Texas State], and St. Mary's University), there are at least three other public universities with well-established Greek systems (Tarleton State University, Angelo State University, and Texas A & M, Corpus Christi) and a few other private schools with established Greek systems (Houston Baptist University, Schreiner University, and the University of the Incarnate Word) at which we have never had a colony or chapter. But rather than actively seek to colonize those schools, we instead colonize Texas Women's University, which has no fraternities, because a group from there approached the Fraternity. I'm sure nobody at IMH know it, but Phi Kappa Psi had a colony there about five years ago. It flopped miserably. Anyway, such are the vagaries of the Fraternity's curious expansion policy, such as it is or if one even exists.

The rationale for this is that the fraternity gets approached by so many interested groups that it does not need to actively attempt to establish interest groups or colonies, and can just sit back and deal with those groups that approach us. But this policy does not take into account the iffy nature of so many of the schools where these groups are located, and the fact that few of these approaches actually materialize into an actual colony ... thus, as aforesaid, only three altogether new colonies this past half-year. Meanwhile, the Fraternity continues to be unrepresented at so many schools with strong Greek systems that we should be a part of, but at which we not only are not a part of, but are not even trying to be a part of unless some interest group approaches us. As a result, the Fraternity has only one active chapter in the entire State of Illinois, only four in Indiana, three in Michigan (but happily, the new colony at Central Michigan, if it survives), four in Ohio, one in West Virginia, to name just a few States where we are seriously underrepresented (the Fraternity is seriously underrepresented throughout the entire Northeast and Midwest; yet see how few colonies we have in those regions; but instead of actively attempting to expand the number of those schools, the Fraternity sits back and takes what comes to it).

Here is another example of the Fraternity's goofy expansionary practices. We have a chapter as far away from the Fraternity's founding and headquarters location at Charlottesville, Virginia, as the University of Hawaii, and a colony equally as far away as the University of Alaska at Anchorage. The Fraternity has had chapters in all 48 other States (although there are presently three such States in which we have no chapters or colonies, and are just barely hanging on in a couple of others), and in three Canadian Provinces. Yet there are two universities within an hour or so's drive of Charlottesville with well-established Greek systems at which we have NEVER had even a colony, let alone an active chapter: Longwood University, in Longwood, just a mile or two from Upsilon Chapter at Hampden-Sydney College, and Lynchburg College, in Lynchburg (beautiful campus). Yet several other fraternities, some with no historical connection to the State of Virginia and with half the number of chapters as Kappa Sigma has, have chapters at one or both of those schools ... right under our proverbial noses, in our figurative back yard! How can the Fraternity allow that to have happened and to continue to happen? One would think that the Fraternity's very first expansionary priority would be to actively colonize both those schools, located so close to our mother chapter and International HQ. Yet year after year passes, and still no Kappa Sigma chapter at either school ... or at Old Dominion University, another, more prominent, Virginia school at which Kappa Sigma has never had a colony or chapter. But sure enough, we've had colonies at such little-known and far-flung schools as Eastern Oregon University, Southwestern College, Wayne State College, West Liberty State College, Oklahoma Panhandle State University, UBC Okanagan, none of which had a ghost of a chance of succeeding. Meanwhile, Sigma Nu, which was also founded in Virginia (at VMI) has chapters at BOTH Longwood AND Lynchburg, which makes perfect sense. Apparently too much sense for Kappa Sigma. I was told in September that we have (had?) a VERY STRONG interest group at Lynchburg (again, the Fraternity waiting to be approached by a group, rather than going out and starting one as we did until a few years ago). Yet even apparently with a strong interest group at Lynchburg, and despite its proximity to Charlottesville, still no colony there.

In South Carolina, a State with a strong Kappa Sigma presence, we have no less than seven active chapters, as well as an inactive chapter at Clemson, which the SEC closed with considerable rancour and resulting hard feelings. Yet we have never had a chapter at Furman University, one of the best small, private colleges in the South, and which has had a fraternity system for over 100 years. This is a school at which we should already have had 1,000, 1,200, or more initiates over those 100 years, just as we have had at such comparable regional schools as Davidson, Mercer, and Wofford. Yet it is now 2009 and we still have no presence at Furman (and have never even had a colony there in the 40+ years that I have been following the Fraternity's expansion ... or lack thereof). One would think that Furman is another prime example of a school to which the Fraternity is actively and aggressively seeking to expand. But no, we are waiting year after year for some group to approach us.

Well that is enough raving to start the New Year. Here's hoping that the first few months of 2009 see a rash of new colonies and recolonizations. Chicostateksig's Fall postings referred to new colonies at the University of the Pacific and the new Merced campus of the University of California, as well as a recolonization of Beta-Phi Chapter at UC Davis. No evidence as yet of any of those colonies; hopefully we'll see them all this Spring.

If anybody does know of any other expansionary prospects for this year, I'd love to hear about them.

[stufield]

The month of January has no passed, and not much seems to have happened expansion-wise.

The one especially positive development is that the long-anticipated recolonization of Gamma-Upsilon at Rutgers University, referred to in the fourth paragraph of my January 2nd posting, evidently HAS formally occurred, as the Gamma-Upsilon Colony is now included in the lists of active chapters and colonies on the Fraternity Website.

Two other positive events, though they are not strictly expansions, but rather successful completions of prior recolonizations, are that the Kappa and Mu-Omega Chapters at Vanderbilt and Southeastern Louisiana Universities, respectively, have now been restored.

Unfortunately, however, the only other new expansion shown on the lists of active chapters and colonies on the Fraternity Website is an altogether new colony at the Brooklyn College unit of CUNY, the City University of New York. This is another example of the Fraternity expanding to a school that has no, or, in this instance, almost no pre-existing fraternity system, as opposed to a school with a well-established fraternity system with a variety of fraternities. The only other fraternities at Brooklyn College are Alpha Epsilon Pi, Sigma Alpha Mu, and Zeta Beta Tau, all predominantly Jewish in membership, and tiny Alpha Delta Phi. So this may be another example of the fraternity colonizing at a school at which it has little or not chance of long-term success, as it has done so many times in recent years, or a great opportunity for Kappa Sigma to establish itself at a school where it has little competition for members, and thus perhaps a chance to establish itself successfully. I suppose that only time will tell. To me this is another example of the Fraternity's second-rate,'take what comes along' expansion policy, which brings us colonies at many schools where there is little likelihood of long-term success and that do little to advance the Fraternity's stature, instead of actively pursuing colonies at prominent schools with established Greek systems at which Kappa Sigma is notably absent. In NYC, other fraternities expand or return to NYU (where we have a dormant Gamma-Zeta Chapter, founded in 1905, inactive since 1974) and Columbia University (where we have never had a chapter); Kappa Sigma expands to Brooklyn College. It IS a good school, with an attractive and growing campus, a good reputation, and an increasing enrollment. L just don't see a chapter there succeeding long-term. However, I'd love to be wrong.

Perhaps some other colonies have been established but just are not yet listed on the Fraternity Website. Perhaps there is a flurry of expansionary activity going on out there that just has not yet manifested itself in the formal establishment of colonies. If anyone is aware of any such new colonies or expansionary activity, please share what you know or have been told.

[LucyKKG]

I heard whispers of a Kappa Sigma colony starting at UC Santa Cruz. We'll see!

[stufield]

That would be terrific. Another northern California chapter would be a very welcome addition to the chapter roll.

Theta Chi has had a chapter at UCSC for years, and Sigma Pi just chartered there in January. There may be one or two other fraternities there as well ... LucyKKG do you know what fraternities presently have active chapters at UCSC?

Hopefully there are still enough unaffiliated men on the UCSC campus who would be willing to join a new fraternity that a Kappa Sigma colony/chapter there would prosper. Or perhaps there is a strong local fraternity that is looking to 'go national'.

[NinjaPoodle]

Originally Posted by stufield

That would be terrific. Another northern California chapter would be a very welcome addition to the chapter roll.

Theta Chi has had a chapter at UCSC for years, and Sigma Pi just chartered there in January. There may be one or two other fraternities there as well ... LucyKKG do you know what fraternities presently have active chapters at UCSC?

Hopefully there are still enough unaffiliated men on the UCSC campus who would be willing to join a new fraternity that a Kappa Sigma colony/chapter there would prosper. Or perhaps there is a strong local fraternity that is looking to 'go national'.

Originally Posted by LucyKKG

I heard whispers of a Kappa Sigma colony starting at UC Santa Cruz. We'll see!

Pardon me for crashing but..
The Academy of Art University in San Francisco has an active colony. I met some of the guys the other night and they are really pumped about being the 1st national fraternity at the school but also being the first Kappa Sigma chapter in San Francisco. They don't' have a website yet but here is the link on the school website: http://my.academyart.edu/case/clubs.html
and a link on the national Kappa Sigma website: http://www.kappasigma.org/chaptersByState.php?state=CA

[LucyKKG]

Originally Posted by stufield

That would be terrific. Another northern California chapter would be a very welcome addition to the chapter roll.

Theta Chi has had a chapter at UCSC for years, and Sigma Pi just chartered there in January. There may be one or two other fraternities there as well ... LucyKKG do you know what fraternities presently have active chapters at UCSC?

Hopefully there are still enough unaffiliated men on the UCSC campus who would be willing to join a new fraternity that a Kappa Sigma colony/chapter there would prosper. Or perhaps there is a strong local fraternity that is looking to 'go national'.

Oh woah, that's crazy that you know that. I mean, not that crazy. Anyway, Theta Chi is still very active (60+ members) and Sigma Pi is thriving and brand spanking new. I went to their reception after their chartering. We have an AEPi chapter, but they're not very active. The other NIC members here are cultural orgs (Lambda Phi Epsilon, Phi Iota Alpha, and Sigma Lambda Beta) + local orgs.

ETA: I saw flyers for someone trying to start a SAM colony last quarter, but they're not registered with the school, so I don't know what happened to them.

As far as having enough unaffiliated men here...I don't know! I'm sure they'll pop up. Santa Cruz is generally not very friendly towards Greeks, but my chapter and Sigma Pi have managed to start up and thrive, so I'm expecting good things.

[nate2512]

Originally Posted by LucyKKG

Oh woah, that's crazy that you know that. I mean, not that crazy. Anyway, Theta Chi is still very active (60+ members) and Sigma Pi is thriving and brand spanking new. I went to their reception after their chartering. We have an AEPi chapter, but they're not very active. The other NIC members here are cultural orgs (Lambda Phi Epsilon, Phi Iota Alpha, and Sigma Lambda Beta) + local orgs.

ETA: I saw flyers for someone trying to start a SAM colony last quarter, but they're not registered with the school, so I don't know what happened to them.

As far as having enough unaffiliated men here...I don't know! I'm sure they'll pop up. Santa Cruz is generally not very friendly towards Greeks, but my chapter and Sigma Pi have managed to start up and thrive, so I'm expecting good things.

If we're over here following Sig Pi and Theta Chi around, I think we're in the wrong business.

[KSigkid]

Originally Posted by NinjaPoodle

Pardon me for crashing but..
The Academy of Art University in San Francisco has an active colony. I met some of the guys the other night and they are really pumped about being the 1st national fraternity at the school but also being the first Kappa Sigma chapter in San Francisco. They don't' have a website yet but here is the link on the school website: http://my.academyart.edu/case/clubs.html
and a link on the national Kappa Sigma website: http://www.kappasigma.org/chaptersByState.php?state=CA

Have you heard whether the school is welcoming of a fraternity on campus? I with the guys luck, hopefully the school is willing to work with them (rather than treat them as an unwanted group).

Good luck to the Santa Cruz colony as well - coming from a campus that wasn't very welcoming to Greek Life (at least until I was a senior), I know how much of a struggle it can be to get momentum.

[stufield]

KSigkid posted

"Good luck to the Santa Cruz colony ..."

Good luck indeed IF a colony there materializes. Note that Lucy KKG simply posted that she had just heard a rumour ... not even that, "whispers" ... of a possible Kappa Sig colony. Whispers of a possible colony is far short of a colony actually getting off the ground. Over a year ago, chicostateksig advised that he had heard rumours of new Kappa Sig colonies at the University of the Pacific and the University of California at Merced, and a recolonization of presently inactive/dormant Beta-Phi Chapter at UC Dsvis. To date, none of those colonies have been established. So a UC Santa Cruz colony may not be in the works at all.

[LucyKKG]

Originally Posted by stufield

KSigkid posted

"Good luck to the Santa Cruz colony ..."

Good luck indeed IF a colony there materializes. Note that Lucy KKG simply posted that she had just heard a rumour ... not even that, "whispers" ... of a possible Kappa Sig colony. Whispers of a possible colony is far short of a colony actually getting off the ground. Over a year ago, chicostateksig advised that he had heard rumours of new Kappa Sig colonies at the University of the Pacific and the University of California at Merced, and a recolonization of presently inactive/dormant Beta-Phi Chapter at UC Dsvis. To date, none of those colonies have been established. So a UC Santa Cruz colony may not be in the works at all.

Well, there's a Facebook group, and I've seen a few events announced. I'm just not sure what their status is with Kappa Sigma HQ or my school's office for student orgs. We don't have an office for Greek life, so they wouldn't know anything about it. I know there's the intent, I'm just not sure how far along everything is.

[NinjaPoodle]

Originally Posted by KSigkid

Have you heard whether the school is welcoming of a fraternity on campus? I with the guys luck, hopefully the school is willing to work with them (rather than treat them as an unwanted group).

Good luck to the Santa Cruz colony as well - coming from a campus that wasn't very welcoming to Greek Life (at least until I was a senior), I know how much of a struggle it can be to get momentum.

So far so good.