Greek Life Returns to Campus

CU Denver welcomes six new fraternal organizations

After years of careful planning, CU Denver has selected and introduced six fraternities and sororities to the community and has begun to promote them around campus.

Of the six, four of these groups have started this fall semester, while the other two will soon follow. The current four groups are Alpha Phi, Alpha Psi Lambda, Delta Lambda Phi, and Lambda Sigma Upsilon. According to CU Denver’s Sorority and Fraternity Life (SFL) page, “deciding to join a fraternity/sorority at the University of Colorado Denver is to make a lifelong commitment to better yourself and your community. The student participants in SFL will be some of the most engaged students on campus.” The CU SFL page mentions that students who become members gain leadership and social skill when joining one of these organizations.

The Alpha Phi sorority is a woman’s international fraternity group that has been around for nearly 150 years. In 1872, the ten founding women were, “some of Syracuse University’s first female students,” according to the sorority’s website. Thye created an all-female fraternal organization after being denied admission to the pre-existing male fraternities. Their purpose is to empower women and create opportunities that go beyond the classroom. They have a community of about 270,000 members and 172 collegiate Chapters across the US and Canada.

Alpha Psi Lambda is a Co-Ed Latinx oriented fraternity with a mixed group of Latinx students throughout the country. They have about 3,700 members with about 39 chapters in total in different states. The group revolves around the word ‘familia,’ meaning ‘family’ in English. They say it is to help create a support network among their members. They try to emphasize the importance of being involved in the community, being diverse, and focusing on academics. They also emphasize being inclusive and accepting to all kinds of people if they choose to become members.

Delta Lambda Phi is a men’s fraternity for gay, bisexual, and progressive men. The organization was founded in 1986 “by gay men, for all men.” The group has members all over the nation and states that each chapter has their own systems and traditions based on where they’re located. Their mission is to create a space and experience like other all-male fraternities—not to be limited by their sexual orientation.

Lastly, Lambda Sigma Upsilon is a Latino men’s fraternity. The group was established in 1979 after a long struggle with lack of representation. The have about 75 chapters all over the state. Their mission is “to uplift and unite underrepresented communities by empowering tomorrow’s leaders.” The group also values academic excellence, cultural awareness and becoming role models.

As for how these groups select CU Denver members, students must go to the SFL office or website to see if they qualify to be able to join a group. These organizations also have several different informational events and introduction events to let recruits get to know the people there.