Mother of Fraternities:

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Mother of Fraternities

• The Evolution of the Fraternity and Sorority
  Experience at Miami University

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Past

• Miami Greek History Until Today

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Alpha Delta Phi first Miami fraternity

• 1833 Alpha Delta Phi founder befriends Miami
  student William Groesbeck
• This chapter is the first fraternity west of the
  Allegheny Mountains
• 1835 Come out of hiding on campus

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Beta Theta Pi First Miami Alpha Chapter

• 1839 John Reilly Knox founds Beta Theta Pi with
  members of the Union Literary Society
• Quickly become rivals of Alpha Delta Phi
• Beta Bell Tower erected in 1939 to honor their
  centennial anniversary

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The Notorious Snowball Rebellion

• 1848s Snowball Rebellion resulted in both
  fraternities removed from campus
• Beta goes national by starting at Center
  College
• Phi Delta Theta started in North (Elliot) Hall
• Greeks return to Miami

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Benjamin Harrison, Miami 52

• Member, Phi Delta Theta Fraternity
• United States Senator from Indiana, 1881-1887
• 23rd President of the United States of America,
  1889-1893

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Fraternity Expansion

• 1852 An argument over sobriety results in Phi
  Delta Theta members forming a chapter of Delta
  Kappa Epsilon
• 1855 DKE members split over chapter poet
  elections form Sigma Chi
• Miami Triad complete

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New Miami goes Co-Ed

• New Miami opens in 1885 admits women
• Six progressive women found Delta Zeta in 1902
  as Miamis first sorority
• Miami President Guy Potter Benton openly supports
  Greeks

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Anti-Greek Sentiment

• Miami Triad known as The Ring on campus
• 1906 male students start a Non-Fraternity
  Association or Phrenocon
• 1916 group rename itself Phi Kappa Tau

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Delta Sigma Epsilon The Forgotten Alpha

• By 1914, Miami had numerous sororities most
  were local organizations
• Dean Harvey Minnich selects several women
• 1956 bankrupt merges with Delta Zeta
• 46 chapters 20,000 members

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Sorority Housing

• It is a common urban legend around universities
  that sorority housing violates an archaic
  brothel law
• Policies now viewed as discriminatory prohibited
  unmarried female students from living off-campus
  until the 1960s
• Sororities had already been leasing suite space
  on campus for decades

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Fraternity Houses

• By 1905, fraternities rented houses along Church
  Street and North Campus Avenue
• President Benton (ironically) ceded land along
  High Street for fraternity houses
• Phi Delta Theta, Sigma Chi, and DKE
• The smaller and local fraternities bought along
  South Campus Avenue
• Miami bought back land along High Street and
  chapters moved near others between High and
  Sycamore

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Old Fraternity Row
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New Fraternity Row
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Other notable firsts

• 1936 Zeta Beta Tau founded first traditionally
  Jewish organization at Miami
• 1940 Alpha Epsilon Phi first Jewish sorority
• 1951 first Greek Week of games
• 1955 Alpha Phi Alpha first NPHC fraternity
• 1969 Delta Sigma Theta first NPHC sorority
• 1989 Adopt a School program started

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Present
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Cliff Alexanders Gift

• Cliff Alexander 56, a member of Sigma Nu,
  creates Cliff Alexander Greek Affairs endowment
  in 2004
• Miami establishes first known endowed Greek
  Affairs office
• Exemplary funding for programming support

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Five Community Principles

• Scholarship and Learning
• Community Service and Philanthropy
• Leadership
• Community
• Brotherhood and Sisterhood

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Our Stats Sheet

• Nearly 5,000 members
• Roughly 33 of students are Greek
• 50 chapters in three governing councils
• 3.19 Greek cumulative GPA
• Unaffiliated cumulative GPA 3.06
• Nearly 200,000 raised for charities
• Nearly 25,000 service hours performed in Oxford
  and regional communities

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Future
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Miami Second Year Experience

• Sorority Living Learning Community created in
  Fall 2007
• Fraternity House Exemption set to begin Fall 2009
• Co-Curricular experience for second year students

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The Model Greek Community

• President Hodge included the Greek community in
  his Five Year Strategic Goals
• Develop a model Greek community that achieves
  national recognition for its commitment to
  intellectual achievement, leadership, personal
  growth, and service to the broader community.
• Strategic planning underway to indentify the way
  to achieve such a lofty goal

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Mike Raymond Collection

• 2007 donation of 4,000 items of Greek historical
  memorabilia
• On display at McGuffey Museum through November,
  2009
• Goal is to create a museum center for the study
  of the Greek experience at Miami

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Ways for Alumni to Be Involved

• Advising and Mentoring
• Serve on chapter alumni advisory board
• Share your own personal experience
• Share what you learned and gained
• Keep returning to campus!
• Ask to stop by the house or suite
• Financial support for housing, scholarships, and
  leadership development

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National Trends in Greek Life

• Multicultural chapter expansion
• Franklin Square Group of university presidents
  introduce concept of fraternal relevancy
• Standards and Accreditation Programs
• Coalition Assessment Project and AFA-EBI
  Assessment
• Marketing and Outreach

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What Makes the Miami Greek Experience Unique?
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Miamis Place

• Mother of Fraternities
• Miami Triad Six national organizations founded
• Four national headquarters in Oxford
• One third of students in 50 chapters
• Cliff Alexander Office endowment
• Monuments Campus Landmarks
• Significant Achievements and Contributions of
  Greek Alumni

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Questions Comments?
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