Kappa Sigma is the preferred fraternity in the nation
Since its founding at the University of Virginia on December 10, 1869, Kappa Sigma has initiated more than 245,000 men on college campuses throughout the United States and Canada. Today, the Fraternity has over 175,000 living alumni and more than 13,500 undergraduate members.Our proud history of producing campus leaders who go on to succeed in business, government, the armed services, sports, entertainment and the arts has led to Kappa Sigma’s continuous and unparalleled growth across the continent.
Today, more men join Kappa Sigma each year than any other fraternity in north America. Kappa Sigma works to provide a brotherhood of fellowship, develop leadership, encourage scholarship, and has a deep commitment to community service. As a values-based men's fraternity, Kappa Sigma strictly forbids hazing and fosters meaningful college experiences by offering progressive membership development and pledge education.
Kappa Sigma has a rich history dating back to 1400 in Italy and 1869 in the United States
Kappa Sigma Fraternity was originally founded as a secret society of students at the University of Bologna in Italy in the year 1400. The group was founded by Manuel Chrysoloras, a Greek scholar, who taught at the university. In that day of city-states, the groups initial purpose was mutual protection of its members against physical attack and robbery by the unscrupulous governor of the city, Baldassare Cossa. In 1400, mutual protection which inspired the Ritual and beliefs of modern day Kappa Sigma.
Kappa Sigma in America was founded one chilly evening in the fall of 1869. Five students attending the University of Virginia in Charlottesville gathered in William Grigsby McCormick's room at 46 East Lawn and planted the seed of Brotherhood. For many weeks the bonds of friendship had drawn these five together. Now the need became clear for a formal structure to contain their feelings became prevalent. Thus, not only did the Founders formalize their friendship, but they also created a fraternity steeped in the traditions of the past and dedicated to the Pursuit of Learning. The new brothers recorded their bond in a Constitution and in an Oath which set forth the ideals and principles to all Kappa Sigmas today. The "Fve Fouding Friends and Brothers" of Kappa Sigma were: William Grigsby McCormick, George Miles Arnold, John Covert Boyd, Frank Courtney Nicodemus, and Edmund Law Rogers.
Stephen Alonzo Jackson (while attending the University of Virginia) is regarded as possibly the most important man in Kappa Sigma's history. Through his efforts a struggling local fraternity became a strong national organization. He was the architect of our Ritual, writer of our Constitution, and was our first Worthy Grand Master. The following is an excerpt from the Bononia Docet, our pledge manual: Stephen Alonzo Jackson was born September 22, 1851. He was left motherless in his infancy and was raised by his grandmother. A close associate and brother, Francis Nelson Barksdale, recalled him with these words, "{A} perfect bundle of nervous energy. His love of the Fraternity knew no bounds, and his enthusiasm was so contagious that it influenced everybody who came within his reach. His one ambition was to make Kappa Sigma the leading college fraternity of the world, and to that end he thought and worked by day and night, until the end of his busy life."
Jackson died on March 4, 1892. His
legacy to the Fraternity included its Ritual, a revised Constitution, a
precedent-setting Grand Conclave, the first southern Fraternity to
extend a chapter to the north, and above all else, a spirit for
expansion.
Theta Zeta History
The Theta-Zeta Chapter of the Kappa Sigma Fraternity has been a dominant organization at Eastern New Mexico University for forty-seven years. Long ago, the brothers of the Theta-Zeta Chapter set forth a standard of excellence to become the best fraternity on campus. Here is how their hard work and dedication to the order made their dream a reality.
Thirty campus leaders of Eastern New Mexico University were officially accepted as a Kappa Sigma colony on April 28, 1962. This became the first national fraternity at ENMU. The charter members were a diverse group of students, which included varsity athletes, faculty, and students from every major field of academics, and even ENMU President, Dr. Donald C. Moyer.
On Friday, November 16, 1962, ceremonial teams from the Delta-Zeta Chapter (University of New Mexico), Epsilon-Xi Chapter (Texas Western, now UTEP), and Epsilon-Phi Chapter (Texas Tech) arrived in Portales, NM. They worked all night initiating three faculty members and 22 of the 25 charter members still on campus.
One of the charter members was Bob Lindy Slone. Brother Slone first served as Theta-Zeta’s Grand Master of Ceremonies and then Grand Master. He was a dedicated Kappa Sigma and an excellent student. Brother Slone died in an automobile accident early in the chapter’s existence. At the funeral, the brothers and pledges sang, “Brightly Gleams the Star and Crescent.” His mother, Thelma “Mom” Slone, was the House Mother and was very dedicated as well. Slowly but surely the chapter recovered through the strength of Mom Slone, who continued her service as house mom for twelve years.
Today, the Theta-Zeta Chapter is one of the finest chapters in the fraternal world. The chapter has won sixteen consecutive Founder’s Award for Chapter Excellence (FACE award), sixteen consecutive George Miles Arnold awards for ritual proficiency, ten Founder’s Circle Awards, the highest honor awarded in Kappa Sigma, and our tenth Silver Bowl for academic excellence. Kappa Sigma is one of the largest and single most powerful organizations on campus. Members of this fraternity consistently hold campus leadership positions including student government, ENMU Board of Regents, varsity athletes, interfraternal council, student publications, as well as many other organizations on campus.
What started out as a dream has become a reality; alumni and undergraduate brothers alike joined together to achieve the most ambitious privately funded building project in the history of Eastern New Mexico University. Culminating at the chapter’s 35th Anniversary and the 1997 ENMU Homecoming, the new chapter house was dedicated as the result of many years of teamwork by the brothers of the chapter. Now the Theta-Zeta Chapter is looking forward to its 50th Anniversary in October 2012, and as the Theta-Zeta Chapter continues to surpass goals and set a standard that some may equal but none excel, it is self-evident that this organization has gone far and beyond to bring light not only to themselves but to Eastern New Mexico University.