How to Start a Fraternity
So you’ve seen the movies (Animal House to Van Wilder’s Raj of Taj), heard the stories, and even witnessed the parties. But your school doesn’t have any fraternities that interest you. Here’s how to start your own!
As someone who has experienced the process of starting a fraternity, here are the key steps to becoming a Founding Father of your favorite fraternity.
First and foremost: Get to know the concept of a fraternity. Travel to the chapters and do more than experience the house party. Find out about the type of fraternity it is – social, professional, etc. Look into the activities and events the fraternity already attends, and brainstorm some ideas for future expansion. Be sure to meet as many brothers as possible, and think “Do I want to be this man’s brother?” Every fraternity has something different to offer, and often times these become a wash and people think all fraternities are the same. They are not. One fraternity may have a great house to party in while another may help place you in a great job 4 years from now. Make sure you know the fraternity in and out before you decide you would like to start your own.
Next – find those who will carry through the process with you. Starting a fraternity is no easy task. You will need to have meetings with administrators, Greek councils, and other important people. You will need to develop policies, creeds, and terms of brotherhood. Everything must be kept confidential as well. You cannot and do not want to have loads of college students going around blaring about your new fraternity. This is not the concept of brotherhood and Greek life. Based on your research of fraternities, you will have to develop something new and unique to offer to your peers at your university. Starting a fraternity difficult; joining should be too.
Lastly – get in touch with your school’s Greek powers. Each school will be unique in its policies of creating a fraternal order. Each school has a different attitude on Greek life, some more receptive than others. You will have to have strong support from your future founding fathers and display a great knowledge of fraternal life. You will also have to show that you are ready to create and enforce the rules by which your fraternity operates. Becoming recognized as a colony sometimes takes a long period of time of dedication before approval. Schools often have Greek Council’s of existing fraternities and Greek members who decide if the addition of your fraternity will benefit your Greek community.
All in all, starting a fraternity is a great idea when done properly, with hard work and motivation. Too many people may get the idea to start their own fraternity without the proper knowledge of what it takes. Make sure you know WHAT a fraternity is and does, have a legitimate group of friends ready to embark on the journey, and follow the guidelines set forth to you by your school.
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Yes, starting a fraternity is challenging. But this generalized and cliche’-ridden article does not do justice to the true concept of being a Founding Father. First and foremost, joining should not be difficult…not if you are interested in becoming an organization based upon values and ideals. This author suggests that hazing should be part of the process. If you want to be different, do not allow hazing to compromise your vision of a brotherhood. Secondly, you must publicize what you are doing in order to attract good members. Secrecy has no place in starting a fraternity. Let people know what you stand for and why you are different from the established chapters.