According to this article (http://www.uleth.ca/unews/report/content/band-brothers) Kappa Sigma has been on campus since 2004. I found another archived article that noted it was the first fraternity on campus, and that the university president is a member (presumably from another chapter).

I wonder if we'll put in our hat for this one. We have a chapter at the University of Alberta, which is about five hours away in Edmonton, but I know a lot of those alumni move away from Edmonton to Calgary and other cities in Alberta.

AOII has been invited to colonize at Sonoma State this Fall! Go Network 8! :)

Sweet jeebus - SEVEN expansion selections this season? And two more presentations that haven't been decided!
Sonoma, Bryant University, Cal State San Marcos, Oregon State, Purdue, Texas Christian and Northern Kentucky Univeristy (2014, so you get some breathing room). What a mouthful!

I know! We're booming, and so many in Network 8 (West) where we have wanted to expand for years. Our new Exec Director is amazing!

Are they going to go back to being Sigma Delta local sorority, since SD was at Shippensburg for over 40 years and they were only TPA for the last 7?

Just wondering if any other organization that is currently not an international organization would ever try ever go international.

Ever? I'm sure more will eventually, especially if sorority life continues to gain popularity and more organizations feel they can support chapters in uncharted territory (for them). Right now, though, I'm not so sure.

Was Sigma Delta the teachers' sorority? If so, my aunt was a founder. She said hers had been absorbed by a national, but she didn't know the name. And for some reason, she never told me the original name of hers.

I believe Kappa Delta was presenting as well. My understanding is that this is for colonization opportunities in 2014 and 2015.

http://www.tarleton.edu/PROGRAMS/tex...sorority-.html

Tarleton State University (located in Stephenville, Tx) is looking to add a new sorority. As the article states, the 3 chapters at Tarleton have had quotas in the 50-60s rage for the last several years.

I found one thing interesting in the article: The article states that expansion was voted on and approved in November by the campus Panhellenic. The goal was to add a new sorority in the Fall 2012. However, the article states that the campus was told by the National Panhellenic Council that this goal was too ambitious. Because of the this, the new sorority will be invited to colonize in Spring, 2013.

I'm sure there are factors not mentioned, but I'm surprised that voting to expand in November '11 with the goal of adding the chapter in Fall '12 would be called "ambitious". We've seen several chapters invited in the spring who colonized the following fall.

If I remember right, this campus is west of Fort Worth but east of Abilene. The university itself has had some money issues - but I believe that is in the past. Expansion there may be coming out of the blue - and that may be why they have postponed having presentations so late.
The three groups they have already are strong, but somebody that has a strong group up the road at TCU might do well there?

That's what I would guess, especially since the alumnae support will have to come from Fort Worth (it's about an hour/hour and a half drive). Having enough alumnae in Stephenville to support a new group would be unlikely. If you've never been to Stephenville, it really is a nice little town, but to call it a small town would be a gross understatement.

Tarleton State
 

Something to consider...all 3 NPC groups begain Fall 2011 recruitment with 61-66 members each. Quota was 55. Perhaps retention is a big issue on this campus if quotas are so large and chapters only have 60 members when recruitment rolls around.

Perhaps that is why NPC wants them to wait a year to have presentations...to look at numbers for another recruitment.

Just my opinion...

I think there may be some historical context to the NPC's finding that moving that quickly @ Tarleton could be too ambitious (I am a Tarleton alumni). DZ & AGD colonized very closely together in the mid-80s...but ever since then, new colonies have struggled. ASA colonized in 1988 & within a few weeks, they participated in formal recruitment. Needless to say, their members were not prepared to compete against 2 chapters who had spent months practicing skits & songs, and it was disastrous for them. Also, all of their alumnae support came from a handful of potential alumna initiates...so there was not much by way of expertise for the new colony to lean on (remoteness from the metroplex, and the fact that ASA does not/did not have much of a presence in Texas also contributed...of course there was no Internet at the time either, so take that for what it's worth today). ASA closed in the early 90s.

Phi Mu came on in the early - mid 90s, and they too had a hard time getting a foothold. They came along as the result of a local social group seeking a sorority to colonize & there was no formal effort by the college panhellenic to pursue a new sorority (ASA was still struggling when their effort began; there were no presentations or invitations...the social group just started writing letters, and Phi Mu pursued it). Even though it was a young Greek system & you wouldn't think this would be the case, most PNMs had their hearts set on the established groups, and didn't give Phi Mu a chance. Phi Mu, to their credit, stuck it out & have become strong & in the past 3-5 years have reached relatively even footing with the other 2 groups....but it took them over 10 years (probably closer to 15) to really be stable.

I fear that there may be some unrealistic expectations on the part of Tarleton about what NPC groups will respond to their call for packets...they will want a group that is strong & well known in Texas. Unfortunately, most of those will not be looking to expand at a school that size or of that "tier" (I can say that b/c I went there...I know many extremely intelligent people who went to & graduated from Tarleton, but it is something of a commuter school, not known for it's academics, and many kids go there intending to transfer to A&M or elsewhere after a year or so...but one of the reasons enrollment is growing is b/c it is one of the best kept secrets in Texas for bang for the buck...it is seriously inexpensive in terms of tuition & cost of living. I absolutely loved Tarleton, and would move back to the 'Ville in a heartbeat if it were practical).

As others have mentioned, retention & alumnae support will also be factors, but I don't think insurmountable. I'm glad they are taking the NPCs words seriously, though...at least they aren't looking before they leap.

I'm glad that you said this, because I was thinking it but didn't want it to come off the wrong way. I'm very curious to see who, if any, sends in packets. It seems like the groups that are stronger in Texas will not be interested, and the groups that might submit a packet will struggle with the alumnae base to support the group.

That being said, Tarleton has a really rich history and traditions that I don't think many people realize, and Stephenville has an undeniable charm.

The good news is that in this era of electronic communication, remote advisory boards can (and do) work...but the chosen sorority should still invest a fair amount in having an ELC in residence, at least for significant chunks of time during the colonization process. There are some groups that are emerging at other Texas schools that would have a good chance of success at TSU; but the school & students & existing Greek Orgs will have to be on board in supporting and promoting them.

And I agree wholeheartedly with your last statement...I think people would be surprised to know how many meaningful traditions we have, and how loyal are our alumni. (Oscar P!) Like I said...I'd go back in a minute, and if my kids weren't shooting for careers that aren't really nurtured @ Tarleton, I wouldn't hesitate to point them that direction.

Tarlton
 

Thanks dzandiloo for your historical information on the current NPC groups on campus. And about the campus culture...

I will be very interested to see Fall 2012 recruitment statistics. Some campuses that are experiencing growth in the Greek system may be too quick to want to open for extension based on only a year or two of quota numbers...not looking at the entire picture of extension and total chapter size at the end of the spring semester and not just after recruitment.

If the secret is getting out on this school, maybe their population is growing. But if they are still losing a large percentage of their classes to transfers, that doesn't bode well to member retention. And the big Texas sororities probably want to avoid that whole "join one chapter and transfer to the BIG chapter later" thing.

I could see a colonization with a full year to do PR and a very heavy focus on "how long do you intend to be here at Tarleton?" in the interviews. But pick one this spring and colonize this fall doesn't seem like the easiest path to success.

I looked up the retention rates and Tarleton has a LOT of first year transfers and a low graduation rate. The graduation rate was roughly 40% even after 6 years, which doesn't necessarily mean a lot of dropouts but probably a lot of transfers. I could see where this could really be a problem in trying to organize a chapter. Students that stayed all four years were happy with their education and thought the smaller classes and small town helped them with their education, but it wasn't for everyone.

This is one of those chicken/egg deals.

If the activities are there, especially things like a strong Greek life, students are more likely to stay for 4 years; but students won't stay for 4 years until activities, especially things like a strong Greek life, are there.

We now have much more of a presence in similar Texas schools (5 more chapters) than we did last time around, not to mention a very successful chapter in Oklahoma, so who knows, maybe we'll bite.

Very true...I think the retention rate @ Tarleton for students in GLOs is higher, but I don't know those stats. Would be interesting to see if ASA gives it another go, given their success @ WTAMU and UTEP. And they did install the chapter, so there are initiated alumnae w/Tarleton ties. Who knows?

TSU has been eyeballing expansion for several years, and one thing they did do right is to wait for everyone to consistently be making quota/remaining at or above total. One of the factors in favor of bringing another sorority on is that everyone wants the average chapter size to be more manageable & conducive to strong sisterhood, while offering something for everyone that wants a home in a sorority; and pledge classes of 50+ on a campus that size isn't necessarily preferable.

I understand the reasons why some of the bigger name groups might not pursue the school, and I imagine in this day & age my own sorority would not give it more than a passing glance if we were not already there...but I can honestly say that this is one of those "diamond in the rough" situations that could be a real gem for the NPC that takes the chance & does it right once they get there.

Pi Kappa Phi has closed the colony at the University of California-Santa Barbara. Closure was due to low numbers and retention of colony members.

Hey guys! Just a little news from the Peach State. Delta Phi Epsilon Colony Eta, here at Georgia Southern, is doing great and looking forward to chartering in May. I'm one of the Founding new members and things are looking really great! Just thought I'd give a little report to anyone out there who was interested. :)

Much Love,
Madison

Arkansas Fraternity Expansion
 

According to Facebook and Twitter, IFC is ready to announce the fraternities that will be joining the University of Arkansas this fall. The four fraternities that presented are: Alpha Tau Omega, Beta Theta Pi, Kappa Alpha Order, and Pi Kappa Phi. The link is:


https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/University-of-Arkansas-Greek-Life/136698696356260


Some quotes from the link:
"We have a BIG Announcement! We need 290 more followers before we share our good news! THIS IS A BIG DEAL!"


"Like our FB page at University of Arkansas Greek Life! Big Announcement at 5pm! But, we need 300 more friends & followers!"


"We Have a Big Announcement! But, we need 300 more followers & 300 more FB friends! If done by 5pm, we will share the news!"

WPS! I'm also a Maple St. Alum!

Just from reading here, the campus does sound like that "diamond in the rough" you have described. I wonder if ADPi will look at it and consider it or give it "a passing glance" as dzandiloo said.

It's been announced, Beta Theta Pi and Kappa Alpha Order are colonizing this fall at the University of Arkansas. Congratulations!

From Twitter
https://twitter.com/#!/ArkansasIFC

We are very excited to work with these two fraternities and can't wait to see them on campus! @BetaThetaPi @kappaalphaorder
Congratulations to @kappaalphaorder and @BetaThetaPi as the two newest members to our community! #IFCexpansion2012

https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profil...cks_normal.jpg

Congratulations to Beta Theta Pi and Kappa Alpha Order. There will be four colonies this fall at the University of Arkansas: Alpha Chi Omega, Beta Theta Pi, Kappa Alpha Order and Phi Mu.

Per Santa Clara Panhellenic's Twitter Account, looks like ADPi is the third sorority making presentations there.

Beta Theta Pi is also colonizing at High Point University this Fall. Kappa Alpha order will be joining the HPU greek community in Fall 2014.

The University of the Incarnate Word IFC has invited 3 national Greek letter organizations to formally address the student body for the opportunity to expand to the University. Headquarters representatives will be visiting on the following days:

April 24th: Tau Delta Phi Fraternity, Inc. & Phi Iota Alpha Fraternity, Inc.

April 26th: Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity

https://orgsync.com/9997/news_posts/32757/show

Gamma Phi Beta has been invited to colonize at the University of South Florida. Congratulations and best wishes on a successful colonization.

This may have been mentioned, but Alpha Delta Pi is coming home to Mississippi State! This was and will be our Epsilon Eta Chapter.

I just saw the tweets! You're so on top of things, Sig. Or Lane. Whichever fake nickname you'd prefer.

So far, the only reason I've found to like Twitter is the quick access to expansion news.

Congratulations Gamma Phi Beta! I hope you guys are chosen at Texas State as well!

UW (Washington) has extension presentations this week.

Tuesday was Alpha Omicron Pi
Wednesday was Phi Sigma Sigma
Thursday (tonight) is Phi Mu

I believe a decision will be announced sometime next week - I'm not sure of an exact date.

WORKING MY MOJO - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxujVBkAX9E

(Back in the day, it was "Fight Bobcats all the way" . . . I guess that was too violent or something.)

Go G Phi all the way,
lift that mode and brown on high,
Go G Phi all the way,
until you hear Belle's victory cry!
We're gonna yell for our girls tonight,
until the whole world knows our name.
There's no doubt about it,
we're gonna shout it,
Gamma Phi should win this game!

Loves!

And... double loves!

Northeastern University is now open for expansion.

This school's Greek Life is growing fast lately. Good luck to all groups that choose to submit packets.