Thank you for taking the time to check out our website and learn more about what your son is either considering joining or has already joined. The Parents page is a little bit different for us and we are trying to see what exactly works as well as what all of you would like to know. I am going to try and answer as many common questions and concerns as possible, as well as add some information about things you may be confused about (i.e. fraternity lingo, common events you may have heard of, etc..). I encourage all of you to send me e-mails with questions or comments to irwin.128@osu.edu because I plan on adjusting this website to better fit the needs of our newly added family members. I plan on continuing to update this page as new questions arrive so please try and check back frequently. I will do my best to make note of any updates on the front page to make your surfing experience more enjoyable.

Below you will see the information separated into two different areas, please check out the area that applies to you.

First off, thank you for taking the time to look into the fraternity and learn more about Greek life! The first steps in college are both exciting and scary, for both you and your son. There are numerous opportunities that are now presented to your son and a lot of learning is to come. The Greek community has several positive and negative stereotypes that follow it. I hope to address several of those stereotypes, including the ones commonly presented in the movies as well as television.

Often, fraternity or 'frat' guys are connected with trends of alcohol abuse, womanizing, and hazing. Some of these issues are certainly present in different aspects of the Greek community, as well as the collegiate community, but these are things that, as Lambda Chi men, we do not condone. The fraternity attends seminars teaching the problems and risks involved with alcohol abuse. We also hold seminars in our Chapter house to teach our members table manners and how to act socially around women. Hazing has always been a term associated with the Greek community and in some cases is still an on-going problem with other Chapters. Lambda Chi Alpha, however, has disowned hazing since 1928 and has banned it in all of our Chapters (known as Zetas). In addition, we have removed the pledging process and replaced it with an Associate Member process. You may ask yourself how the Associate Member (AM) process differs from that of the pledging process and may believe that this is just a name change that really brings with it little or no improvement. I assure you that this is not the case. As Associate Members*, your son has all of the rights of active Brother, including the righ to hold an office, vote, live in the Chapter house, and attend all Chapter functions. The only difference between Associate Member and active Brothers is that Brothers are those who have seen our Initiation Ritual.

There are many benefits associated with those college men that decide to go Greek. The Greek system offers your son leadership opportunities and community service opportunities to not only help the community but also raise money for charity. Within the Chapter, they are given the opportunity to hold a wide variety of offices, all the way from Risk Manager and Secretary to Vice President or President.
Often there are concerns with the financial aspect, as well as daily life of being a part of a fraternity. I encourage you to check out the 'Why should I be a Lambda Chi?' page which addresses those issues. If you have any concerns or questions about Lambda Chi Alpha, or the Greek system in general, please feel free to contact me at irwin.128@osu.edu.

* denotes term in glossary at the bottom of this page

Welcome to the family! I am glad to call you a part of Lambda Chi Alpha. I realize that as a newly initiated member, and even more so as a parent of a new member, there are a laundry list of questions that accompany this new and exciting life path. Often we find that terms involved with the greek system are confusing and overwhelming to people at first, which is why we have tried to address the common terms at the bottom of this page.

Although your son has recently joined Lambda Chi Alpha, I encourage you to keep pushing him to pursue all of the opportunities we have to offer, such as becoming an officer. There are several leadership positions available and are changing year to year. The fraternity experience is dependent on how much effort is applied; you will get out only what you put in. Several Brothers have received job offers due to the excellent service they put into their fraternity experience. Please feel free to e-mail me with any questions you have and I hope you realize that you are always welcome to come to the house and see all of the updates that we are pursuing. Please take a look at the glossary of terms and take enjoyment in the fact that your son has joined the 3rd largest national fraternity, with over 250,000 initiated brothers to assist him throughout life.

I am going to try and put the terms in order that they may appear in your son's journey through Lambda Chi Alpha. This means that the newer you are to Lambda Chi, the earlier in the list you will be able to find the answers you are looking for.

Lambda Chi Alpha - Lambda Chi Alpha is an international general fraternity for men. A general, or social, fraternity means there are no restrictions to academic major, race, religion, or background, although the ideals of Lambda Chi Alpha are based on Christian ideals. The mission of Lambda Chi Alpha is to offer the best fraternal experience, focusing on personal character development through leadership, scholarship, community service, and positive social experiences. In essence, Lambda Chi offers a lifelong bond of brotherhood that gives its members the opportunity to become a better leader, better citizen, and better man. For a complete and concise synopsis of Lambda Chi, visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lambda_Chi_Alpha

Rush Week - This is a formal week of recruitment where we try and meet the highest quality of men at Ohio State who are looking to join a fraternity.

Bid - Formal invite to Associate (see below) and possibly become full Brothers of Lambda Chi Alpha.
Chapter - Weekly meeting to discuss fraternity affairs, held every Monday with dinner at 5:30 pm and business meeting at 6:00pm.

Associate Member Ceremony - Formal ceremony (open to everyone, including parents) to make a potential member an Associate Member.

Associate Member - Member with all rights of a Brother. An Associate Member is allowed to hold office, vote in chapter affairs, and attend all meetings of an active Brother.

Big Brother - Chosen member of the fraternity to guide the new member through the fraternity process. They teach the new member information about the fraternity and answer all questions that they may have.

Initiation Week - The final step in becoming a Brother. Initiation begins with a brotherhood dinner on a Sunday evening, followed by a week of activities designed to educate the Associate more about the ideals of the Fraternity. Associates are required to live in the house during Initiation Week, but are allowed to go back to their residence during the day if they choose. Initiation Week is not a “Hell Week.” There is zero tolerance for hazing by University and Fraternity standards; therefore, we absolutely do not allow hazing. Every Brother and Associate is required to attend and participate in the activities of Initiation Week, so there is no divide between what Associates do and what Brothers do. Initiation Week, or “I-Week,” is a week of equality, learning, respect, and Brotherhood. Initiation Week is also a substance free week, especially alcohol. It is widely regarded by both Brothers and Associates as the best week of the quarter.

Initiation or Ritual - Ceremony for initiating Associate Members into Lambda Chi Alpha.

Gamma Tau Zeta - Our chapter at Ohio State University. It is the 62nd Chapter of Lambda Chi Alpha nationwide. Each Lambda Chi Alpha chapter is called a Zeta, which is a way of distinguishing between brothers.

Officers

(also known as the High Zeta)

Below is the listing of officers in order of rank, the top officer present at the house is in charge.

High Alpha - President

High Beta - Vice President Internal (in charge of brotherhood, retreats, etc..)

High Theta - Vice President External (in charge of philanthropy, community service, Watermelon Bust)

High Gamma - Secretary

High Tau - Treasurer

High Iota - Risk Manager

High Kappa - Fraternity Educator (in charge of Big / Little brothers and the Associate Member process)

High Delta - Recruitment Chairman (in charge of rush week)

High Phi - Ritualist (in charge of Ritual, Associate Member ceremony, and Initiation Week)

High Sigma - Educational Chairman (in charge of study tables)

High Epsilon - Social Chairman (in charge of Greek Week and Formal)

High Rho - Alumni Secretary (in charge of Founder's Day and Worm Bowl)

High Pi - Alumni Adviser