UTPB students aim to form lasting bonds

Students at the University of Texas of the Permian Basin looking for campus organizations to be involved with may need to rush.

Over the years, several students have attempted to form sororities and fraternities at UTPB. Currently, only one fraternity has been able to earn a national charter: Kappa Delta Rho.

This spring, however, two other sororities are attempting to form a Greek chapter.

Interested groups, Theta Eta and Zeta Xi Nu, are in the process of trying to garner the attention of a national sorority. The sororities are currently considered interest groups and are in the process of recruiting more girls, or “rushing” for new members.

In order to be affiliated with a national sorority, interest groups must meet varying guidelines such as proving it can maintain membership, keeping a minimum grade point average and participating in community service.

McKenzie Ferrell, a junior biology major at UTPB, is the president of the interest group Theta Eta. She said she transferred from North Texas University where she was an initiated member of the national sorority Delta Gamma.

“I think UTPB needs Greek life,” she said.

She said Theta Eta has 28 members and anticipates recruiting more this semester. She said as a Delta Gamma, she would love to see Theta Eta granted the Delta Gamma chapter, but is open to other groups as well.

“Being part of a sorority was very exciting for me,” she said. “Now I’m helping create one.”

Ferrell said a sorority is important in college because it is a place to be involved, show leadership and it creates strong ties among members.

“It’s almost like creating a family,” Ferrell said.

Michael Anzano, president of UTPB’s chapter of Kappa Delta Rho, knows about the responsibility of creating a new Greek chapter. Anzano said he was part of the founding fathers who established the fraternity in spring 2010 with 11 members. The group became a nationally recognized chapter in the fall and currently has 23 members.

“A lot of people see fraternities as what you see on TV, and at first people were against us,” he said.

Now, Anzano said people’s views of fraternities at UPTB are changing due to the group’s ability to be leaders on campus.

The UTPB fraternity, whose local name is Epsilon Gamma, operates under national chapter guidelines. The members must maintain a 2.5 grade point average, pay annual dues of $300 dollars, and participate in community service projects and two other campus organizations.

“To get people more involved, I feel like Greek life is the way to start,” Anzano said.

He said membership has been steady and will hold a formal rush from Feb. 6 to Feb. 10. Formal rush includes a week of meet and greet activities

“If we add 10 (new members) throughout the year and keep them, that’s good,” Anzano said.

Anzano said he thought it was great that more sororities could be coming in the future and hoped to work with the sororities to have social events and establish a stronger Greek life program at UTPB.

Christina Lira, president of Zeta Xi Nu, said she also thought creating a Greek program at UTPB was important. Lira transferred to UTPB after spending one year at the University of Texas at El Paso as a member of the national sorority Zeta Tau Alpha.

“I really missed my sisters, and the whole experience,” she said, which prompted her to start her own sorority at UTPB.

Lira said Zeta Xi Nu currently has seven members, but they hope to add more during recruitment in the spring. She said starting a sorority has been a challenge.

“I’m almost on my own,” Lira said, noting none of the other members had ever been in a sorority before.

Lira and Ferrell said they have both sent the necessary paperwork to the National Panhellenic Council are awaiting approval into one of the national groups. Neither of the groups knows how long it will take to earn a national charter, but are hoping to hear something soon.

“We really want to get everyone involved,” Lira said.

Jessica Martinez, director of student life at UTPB, said the movement toward adding Greek life on campus has been strong in the past year. She said she thought the new growth in Greek life would help with retention rates and student success rates.

“I think it’s a great opportunity for students to be involved,” she said.

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