Greek life is growing at UW-Eau Claire.
Delta Tau Delta, an international fraternity, is in the final stages of bringing a colony to campus, finishing recruiting students this week.
Angie Bong, coordinator of student leadership and organizations at the university, said the process of bringing Delta Tau Delta to campus has been nearly two years in the making, starting with the university reaching out to organizations around the country.
“We issued letters to national and international men’s organizations, and asked for proposals from those organizations who were interested in potentially starting a chapter at UWEC,” Bong said. “We reviewed the proposals and decided to invite Delta Tau Delta to start a new chapter here, because we really thought they had a lot to add to both the Greek community, as well as the campus community.”
Kyle Yarawsky, a chapter leadership consultant with the fraternity, has been working closely with university leaders, including Bong, to build relationships for the new organization.
After spending the last few weeks recruiting on campus, Yarawsky said he has a clear focus when interviewing students interested in joining the fraternity.
“Our main focus is to bring a strong group, focusing on academics and bringing in the brightest people on campus,” Yarawsky said. “We also want well-rounded people, who are leaders on campus.”
Yarawsky said he found recruiting in Eau Claire to be different than other campuses he’s worked at in the past, given the small Greek community.
“This campus is different, people are usually interested, or they’re not, but here, most have no idea what a fraternity is all about,” he said. “We’ve had to do a lot of education, making the Greek community more well-known on campus.”
Bong said she hopes Delta Tau Delta will help to grow Greek life, and is looking forward to the new opportunities the colony will bring to men on campus.
“They have a really strong commitment to leadership development, as well as service and philanthropy,” Bong said. “I would like to see them grow, become a healthy and vibrant organization on campus.”
Tony Kuchta, a sophomore pre-pharmacy major, is considered to be one of the Founding Fathers of the fraternity. He said he chose to join Delta Tau Delta because of their academic focus and commitment to community service.
“I think that with this fraternity, I will get to be a part of many great activities that I might not otherwise be involved in,” Kuchta said. “These activities may involve leadership and community service opportunities.”
One benefit to joining a fraternity, Kuchta said, is the fact that it’s located at schools around the nation. Kuchta plans on going to pharmacy school after graduating, and said he hopes to link up with another Delta Tau Delta chapter.
Once the fraternity’s consultants leave, Yarawsky said the decisions are really left up to the fraternity members.
“It’s really up to the guys to keep the focus,” Yarawsky said. “We just provide them with the framework and values – they can make it whatever they want it to be.”
Kuchta said he is ready for the responsibility.
“In the coming months, we will be getting to know each other better, creating plans for next year and hopefully start some community service projects.”
An official welcome ceremony, introducing Delta Tau Delta to the university, will be held tonight at 7 p.m. in the Tamarack Room of Davies Center and is open to the public.
