Greek Growth

Post Author: turne4al

The numbers don’t lie, Greek Organizations on campus were growing rapidly in the 1970s. The first Madison College fraternity was Sigma Delta Rho, established in 1947 with only 13 members. The lack of fraternities at the college prior to the 1970s was not surprising, as male admittance to the college was limited to day students before WWII and stayed limited until 1966, when co-education began. But with the open push for male enrollment under President Carrier, more fraternities arrived on the campus.

A notable contributing factor to the increase in male involvement in Greek Life were sororities. These female organizations had a multiple decade head start, and therefore were more organized and substantial. The sorority parties and sporting events not only made attending Madison College more appealing to males, but it also introduced many of the newly admitted men to Greek Life. “The growth of a Greek system for men, inspired by the spirit of the Sororities, was just a matter of time.” (Follini)

1940-1980
This graph utilizes information from Madison Yearbooks at the beginning of each decade. It shows a bold increase in fraternity membership in the 1970s.
70-79
This chart shows the escalating membership numbers of the 1970s. (data collected from The Bluestones of each respective year.)

Works Cited:

Follini, Terri, “Sigma Delta Rho Begins Frat Tradition Here”, The Breeze, Sept 11, 1975 Page 5