Let's hear it for the Charter Members!

[LucyKKG]

Hi GCers!

As much as I love hearing rush stories and stuff about 50-year-old chapters, I also love being a charter member! I go to a very non-Greek school. When we got our charter in April 2007, we formed a collegiate panhellenic council. It's so different compared to other schools!
So, I want to hear from other charter members. Were you in a local org before? What is Greek life like on your campus? How have you grown/changed since getting your charter?
I'll let other people respond before I get into more details about the Eta Mu chapter of KKΓ!

[lilzetakitten]

Hi! I'm a charter member of the Kappa Phi chapter of Zeta Tau Alpha. We weren't formed from any other organization, but from what I understand (I was a freshman when I joined) in the past few years the school had grown quite a bit, and the three sororities on campus just could not handle the amount of girls who were now interested! So ASA colonized a year before we did. So far both of our chapters have been doing really well!

It's been a pretty unique experience. I've personally interacted with national officers that some members will never even see, and I've been able to watch my chapter grow from nothing to the group it is today. I've also had to deal with some pretty awful comments though (a former friend of mine actually told me that my bid was no big deal, everyone who went through got one, and now I was a member of the reject sorority! There's a reason why we are no longer friends).

However, I think it's proved to also be a strong lesson in learning to deal with a lot of different types of people. In a colony, you don't get to choose the sisters you get. Your pledge class is all there is, and you had better get to learning to get along with people very different than you!

All in all, I know I made the right choice. It's been amazing to watch my chapter grow, especially now that I'm a senior and I've seen it go from literally nothing to a strong chapter that I know will survive even after all of my pledge class has left!

[cuteASAbug]

Not a charter member, but fraggle is a charter member of our chapter and she is awesome so I'm just taking the moment to send a shout out to her! <3

[Kevin]

This thread happens every 3 months or so.

Hello again, I'm a founding father of the Mu Tau chapter of Sigma Nu, badge #5.

Yes... I know that's MTV.

[LucyKKG]

Originally Posted by Kevin

This thread happens every 3 months or so.

Hmm...I did a search for "charter members" but nothing like this came up. You would know better than me, though.

I was the third member of a local sorority created to become nationally affiliated. Our school wouldn't let the NPC come and build a chapter from the ground up; the chapter had to be "student-driven" and thus a local before that. We had 19 charter members. The 15 of us left in the fall held our first panhellenic recruitment with Gamma Phi Beta, and we recently initiated 13 amazing girls! 28 members on our campus is a pretty good size. We'll definitely grow a lot more in the next few years - probably at least 45 by the end of the year.

Although I love paving the way for future girls in our chapter, I wish we had a lot of the traditions older chapters have. OH, how I wish we did lavaliering! *sigh* Maybe someday! It is nice to make our own decisions and not become TTWWADIs. ("That's the way we always do it"...I love that acronym.)

[tld221]

Originally Posted by Kevin

This thread happens every 3 months or so.

Hello again, I'm a founding father of the Mu Tau chapter of Sigma Nu, badge #5.

Yes... I know that's MTV.

ohhhhhhhh i get it, cause V = 5, and thats your badge number...

[BabyPiNK_FL]

Originally Posted by LucyKKG

Hmm...I did a search for "charter members" but nothing like this came up. You would know better than me, though.

I was the third member of a local sorority created to become nationally affiliated. Our school wouldn't let the NPC come and build a chapter from the ground up; the chapter had to be "student-driven" and thus a local before that. We had 19 charter members. The 15 of us left in the fall held our first panhellenic recruitment with Gamma Phi Beta, and we recently initiated 13 amazing girls! 28 members on our campus is a pretty good size. We'll definitely grow a lot more in the next few years - probably at least 45 by the end of the year.

Although I love paving the way for future girls in our chapter, I wish we had a lot of the traditions older chapters have. OH, how I wish we did lavaliering! *sigh* Maybe someday! It is nice to make our own decisions and not become TTWWADIs. ("That's the way we always do it"...I love that acronym.)

That's a good thing though! You can build your chapter's traditions. My chapter has the tradition of the big sister doing the lavaliering upon a year of membership (but it varies depending on how active in the school community that the member is. If she has shown herself to be very active (like I was) you may get it earlier for putting your org. and yourself out there in such a positive light and working so hard).

[LucyKKG]

Oh, I meant lavaliering by a boyfriend in a fraternity. My boyfriend is a Theta Chi. Our school doesn't really do lavaliering...I wrote another thread about it.

[BabyPiNK_FL]

Start lavaliering in your chapter then! It's very inexpensive for silver and for those who MUST have-gold is a reasonable stretch. You've gotta start somewhere. Why wish when you can do!?

[LucyKKG]

Originally Posted by BabyPiNK_FL

Why wish when you can do!?

Ohhh I just have to get the idea across to my man. A silver Greek-letter drop isn't seen as something that significant. Obviously, there is more significance behind the object than its retail value.

Maybe I'll bug some of his chapter's alumni that I know. :-P

[DaemonSeid]

Charter Member of Gamma Chapter @ Morgan State University

2 Gamma Spring 1994
The Black Sheep
Phi Omicron Psi Frat., Inc.

[ealymc]

Originally Posted by LucyKKG

Ohhh I just have to get the idea across to my man. A silver Greek-letter drop isn't seen as something that significant. Obviously, there is more significance behind the object than its retail value.

Maybe I'll bug some of his chapter's alumni that I know. :-P

It never will be until someone makes it significant... what better time than the present?!

[Tom Earp]

Founded the local that affiliated with LXA with in the school year.

I was the first one initiated which was in secret and the rest were done in the afternoon.

Quite and experience to say the least. Does it mean something to me? You bet and every member of the local who were initated are very special to me and most of us still stay in touch. Founding a Chapter is a very special thing and means a lot to those who did.

Congratualtions to one and all who have! It took a lot of hard work but was well worth it.

[lauralaylin]

I am a charter member of the Iota Delta chapter of Alpha Phi at the University of Rhode Island. We were formed from a local, and I joined the chapter after they had affiliated with Alpha Phi but before they were installed. It was a lot of fun to be a part of the colony, and Alpha Phi meshed really well with the traditions of the local too. All the sisters from the local were very happy with how the two came together.

[Alpha Sig Scott]

Founding father of Delta Omicrom Chapter of Alpha Sigma Phi, Badge # 6.