Nearly 50 years after being founded on the UTM campus, four sororities participated in a groundbreaking ceremony Oct. 5 for new lodges on campus.
Hundreds of members and alumni of Alpha Delta Pi, Alpha Omicron Pi, Chi Omega and Zeta Tau Alpha, all sororities in the National Panhellenic Council, came out to celebrate the groundbreaking ceremony.
Panhellenic President Secily Scott spoke about the history of the sorority lodging at UTM.
Each of the four sororities was given one room in Grove Apartments in the 1960s to use for a lodge. In the 1980s, the sororities were allowed to expand to two apartments.
Sorority recruitment was held in Grove Apartments until 2004, when recruitment was too large and it had to be held in the UC.
The new lodges will be built on the southern edge of campus near University Courts.
“We will have a place to call our own,” Scott said.
Each of the four sororities has committed to pay about $500,000 for their new lodge, which will be two stories and about 3,800 square feet.
The Alpha Omicron Pi lodge and Chi Omega lodge are expected to have similar building designs, while the Alpha Delta Pi and Zeta Tau Alpha lodges are similar.
Each lodge will feature a meeting room, guest room and other amenities for the sorority to utilize.
“I think it gives the kids a great oppostunity to develop a better, longer, deeper relationship,” said Betty Ann Tanner, a Board of Trustees member. “It’s an exciting element to Greek Life.”
Other UTM alumni showed their excitement at the groundbreaking, including Chi Omega alumnae Linda Neese Beringer.
“As an alumnae who lives out of state, I think it will be wonderful to have a spot to congregate, to come to visit, to meet, like a nest for our owls,” Beringer said.
“I must give most of the credit for us being here to the alumni members of these sororities who have worked diligently to raise funds to ensure these lodges would become a reality,” UTM Chancellor Tom Rakes said. “Our sorority members are leaders on this campus and become loyal alumni as evident at the groundbreaking.”
The presidents of each sorority are already making plans for the new lodges.
“The main thing is that we have a place to call our own,” said Kelsey Breland, current UTM Zeta Tau Alpha president. “We’ll be able to have chapter there, and sisterhoods. It’ll be our house and we’ll be able to do what we want there instead of being limited in the UC.
Administration expects that the L building of University Courts will be demolished to make room for the lodges.
Construction is expected to start in January 2014 and be completed in the 2014-15 academic year.
