UNK’s Delta Tau Delta fraternity recognized as top chapter

February 5, 2024 Tyler Ellyson

KEARNEY – The University of Nebraska at Kearney’s Delta Tau Delta fraternity continues to receive national recognition for overall excellence.

UNK’s Theta Kappa Chapter received a Court of Honor and Hugh Shields Award for Chapter Excellence during the Region 13 Emerge event last weekend in Omaha. For the second year in a row, the UNK chapter ranks first among all 132 Delta Tau Delta chapters and colonies nationwide.

Originally chartered at UNK in 1993, the Theta Kappa Chapter also received the Hugh Shields Award for Chapter Excellence in 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2023, recognizing its ranking among the top 10 chapters in the nation. The UNK fraternity has received the Court of Honor distinction 12 times, indicating its ranking among the top 20 chapters.

Both awards signify excellence in areas such as chapter finances, recruitment, membership education, academics, alumni relations and community service.

Delta Tau Delta received the Leadership and Campus Engagement Award last spring during the annual Fraternity and Sorority Life awards banquet on campus, and the fraternity was named Student Organization of the Year in spring 2022 during the annual Applauding Excellence awards ceremony hosted by the UNK Division of Student Affairs. Last fall, the chapter received the William R. Nester Cup presented to the UNK fraternity with the highest average GPA (3.62).

UNK students Zane Grizzle of Fairbury, Connor Gutz of Osmond, Lance Haberman of Utica, Joseph Hiatt of Spencer, Andrew Jacobsen of Neligh, Brodie Mitchell of Cambridge, Derek Pfeifer and Dylan Pfeifer of Central City and Jett Simpson of Maxwell attended the Region 13 Emerge event, which focuses on leadership training and executive board development. Other Region 13 chapters include the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado State University, University of South Dakota, University of Iowa and Iowa State University.