Phi Delta Theta is a new fraternity at Quinnipiac University this semester. They have been trying to bring the fraternity to Quinnipiac since 2019 and have finally been welcomed on campus, recording one of the largest founding classes the university has seen.
“The average founding class at QU over the last four years has been 31 new members for Interfraternity Council,” Avery Moses, director of fraternity & sorority life, wrote to The Chronicle.
Phi Delta Theta doubled that, welcoming 65 new members to its founding class this semester. This has been a long time in the making for the fraternity.
“The Office of Fraternity & Sorority Life has been working with Phi Delta Theta since 2019 to determine when to bring the fraternity to campus. With COVID-19 and other expansions slated for other semesters, we were able to finally allow them to expand here this semester,” Moses wrote.
Phi Delta Theta is excited to join Quinnipiac and give back to the community.
“Giving back to the community, that’s a big thing for us. We just want to give back to what they gave us in a way. Doing our part around campus, like the community, and making it a better place for everybody,” Christian Burger, a sophomore in the applied AI and business analytics 3+1 program and fraternity member, said.
Interest in the new fraternity really started growing last spring, but they weren’t able to join Quinnipiac until this year.
“So come the beginning of fall term, that’s when recruitment really started to push through and eventually we got the results, and we’re happy with them,” Noah Sampson, a first-year finance major, said.
Of the 65 founding members, about 50% of them are juniors and the other 50% is made up of sophomores and first-years. They have created a diverse group of students eager to participate.
“With the help of the nationals rep., it was open recruitment, so anybody was able to have an interview,” Burger, who has been selected as the recruitment chair for next semester, said.
Unlike other fraternities and sororities, who have rigorous recruitment processes, Phi Delta Theta focused on bringing in a variety of like-minded students for their founding class.
“What we did differently is we kind of jumped the gun. We didn’t do the whole formal dinner or stuff like that, we just come to the house and if you connect with the guys then it’s your right fit,” Sampson said.
Their goal was to create an inclusive and supportive environment.
“It was more like creating a good group of people, a nice foundation for us to build upon,” Burger said.
With such a large founding class, the fraternity has been able to hit the ground running. Already this year they have raised charity funding for ALS and domestic violence awareness through “Pie a Phi” events and held a walk for Alzheimer’s disease.
They made their largest achievement last weekend.
“(On Nov. 2) we launched a new non-profit. We’re partnering with a corporation called Supportive Care, where they hold over 350 nursing homes around the country and we are going to be volunteering at a local nursing home in New Haven,” Sampson said.
Other local nursing homes have already reached out to Phi Delta Theta looking to get involved. The goal is to grow this non-profit into a national program.
“It’s going to take some time. So, right now we are just more focused on a slow and smooth transition,” Sampson said.
While their projects continue to grow, recruitment for the fraternity will slow down in the coming semesters.
“Next semester, it will be different, like we probably won’t have 65 guys recruited again, but we are still looking to keep that open inclusivity,” Burger said.
As the new fraternity continues to grow on campus, faculty and students are looking forward to what it will bring to Quinnipiac.
“I hope that Phi Delta Theta enriches the greater QU community, offers a place for belonging for men on campus, and creates a lasting legacy for years to come,” Moses wrote.
For Sampson, it already has.
“We do believe that we are all one big team and one big family,” he said.
He encourages anyone interested to reach out and get involved.
“So, if there is anyone out there who is second guessing themselves about joining a fraternity, take that chance,” Sampson said.
