Alpha Chi Omega sorority will return to the UA this fall after leaving campus in 2009 due to a decline in membership.
Students expressed interest in the absent sorority through emails, questions to members visiting campus and an online interest form created by the Greek Life office. As a result, the Alpha Chi Omega headquarters decided to recolonize and form a new chapter on campus, according to Courtney Schmidt, assistant director of chapter growth for Alpha Chi Omega.
The colony will celebrate its new members on Sept. 8, after Alpha Chi Omega’s colonization week. After the colony is formed, an eight-week new member education process will teach the new members about Alpha Chi Omega’s history, founders and why they support domestic violence awareness. Following this process, the colony will attain the status of an official chapter.
Alpha Chi Omega’s former chapter house is located between Delta Chi and Phi Gamma Delta on First Street. The house is now an all-women dorm known as Parker House. The sorority will not take back the house until the fall of 2014 because future UA students have already requested to live there or are committed to living in the dorm next semester.
The university is leasing the Parker House from Alpha Chi Omega, according to Alex Blandeburgo, director of facilities for Residence Life.
The construction of the two newest residence halls on campus, Arbol de la Vida and Likins residence halls, have added enough housing for students that the university won’t suffer from the loss of 49 bed spaces, he added. Combined, the two campus dorms offer 1,088 bed spaces.
Alpha Chi Omega members will be living off campus in individual housing until they can move back into the official house. Chapter meetings will temporarily be held in the Student Union Memorial Center until the house is reacquired.
“Panhellenic has been really supportive. They’ve really done so much to make sure we’ve felt welcomed on campus — that’s not always the case for a new chapter joining,” Schmidt said. “We’ve had members of fraternities and members of sororities come up and introduce themselves and welcome us. It’s just really nice to get the feeling of welcome and I can’t wait for our new members to feel that when they join as well.”
