Zeta Psi fraternity will officially participate in men's rush on Oct. 9 and 10 for the first time in eight years, after having fulfilled the College's requirements to begin the re-recognition process. Due to its colony status, the organization will remain officially dry until it is fully recognized by the College, according to Dean of Residential Life Martin Redman.
Zete's alumni association reached an official agreement with the College concerning re-recognition in Winter term 2007. The agreement required the fraternity to cease its operations which had been continuing unofficially since it was de-recognized by the College in 2001 for two years and make extensive repairs to the physical plant.
Zeta Psi was originally de-recognized after two issues of "The Zetemouth," an internal newsletter describing the sexual exploits of several brothers and other Dartmouth students, were made public.
The Zete colony is now required to complete a process mandated by the College to gain recognition as a Dartmouth Greek organization.
Most colonies complete this procedure in about two years, Redman said. Groups must prove that they can function as a stable organization before being granted additional privileges, including hosting social events with alcohol, Redman said.
"This is a brand new organization for all intents and purposes," Redman said. "The group needs to get organized, figure out how they do things, make sure they have a constitution and bylaws and a treasurer, make sure they have money in the account."
T. Clark Weymouth '79, president of Zeta Psi's alumni association, said that his organization expects to follow the same path as other re-recognized houses, such as Beta Alpha Omega fraternity. Beta was founded as a local fraternity in fall 2008 by a group of alumni of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity. The Dartmouth chapter of Beta Theta Pi was permanently de-recognized by the College in 1996 for violating the terms of its previous probation.
Beta spent two terms as a dry organization, and was granted the opportunity to hold social events in Spring 2008, Redman said.
"We're going through the same thing right now," Beta President Tony Pastoors '10 said. "We know what it's like to be new."
Alumni from Dartmouth's Zete chapter began planning to bring the organization back four or five years ago, Weymouth said. These alumni, with representatives from the national organization, will run rush for the house this fall, Weymouth said.
In preparation for rush, the group held information sessions last winter and spring. This fall's open house, held Saturday in the newly renovated plant on Webster Avenue, was attended by 78 students, the majority of whom were sophomore men, according to Zete alumnus Marco Luciano '09.
The group in charge of rush hopes to have an initial pledge class of about 20 upperclassmen, Luciano said.
"We want them to be strong leaders and take control," he said. "We're letting them take a lot of leadership and let them build it the way they want to."
New pledges will go through an orientation period and become brothers before holding elections some time in the winter or spring to choose officers, Weymouth said.
"At that point, they'll begin to govern themselves in terms of the day-to-day," Weymouth said. "We will remain involved at least from a supervisory and consultative standpoint going forward."
Weymouth said that the organization hopes to draw a diverse membership.
"I'm hoping we're not going to be viewed as affiliated with any one particular organization and rather we're going to get the best and brightest from as many organizations as possible," Weymouth said. "That's how we approached it in the old days, as it were, and that's what we're hoping to bring back."
Mike Gillis '12 said he is interested in joining Zete because the new members will able to define the legacy of the house.
"I'd enjoy starting a more ecologically sustainable [fraternity] or something like that," Gillis said. Gillis said he has not decided whether to pursue membership at other fraternities.
Zete's fall pledges will be able to move into the newly renovated house shortly after they have accepted bids, Zete alumnus and chair of the building committee Sean Regan '91 said.
New members who move into the house from College housing will be eligible for a partial refund of their housing fee, Redman said, depending on how long they remain in College housing.
The alumni group hopes to fill all the beds in the house as early as mid-October, Regan said.
Renovations to Zeta Psi's physical plant will be fully complete within the next month, Regan said.
During the major construction, completed this summer, the interior of the existing house was completely gutted and rebuilt, and additions were added to the side and back of the house.
The furniture was installed on Saturday, and workers will spend the remaining month completing minor interior work, Regan said.
The renovations to the house, which is owned by the Zeta Psi alumni association, were funded by $1 million in alumni donations and a $1.7 million loan from the College.
"The house has a very different feel from the way Zeta Psi did and even from the way most of the fraternities look today," Regan said. "[Zete members] have a lot of natural light, nice furnishings. It's not dark and dank. It's just going to be a really comfortable space for people to live and socialize."
Regan added that the organization hopes to provide a different fraternity experience for new members.
"It's nice to see the construction made it a practical, desirable space, while keeping the character of the original house," alumni association member John Baker '82 said.
Representatives from several fraternities said that Zete will be a positive addition to the fraternity scene.
"I think Zeta Psi coming back is great because it shows that the Greek community has come a long way as a positive force on campus," Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity President Eric Schwager '10 said in an e-mail to The Dartmouth.
Zete will also provide an opportunity for sophomore men who have not found a fraternity that suits them to create a new social space on campus, Chi Gamma Epsilon fraternity social chair Ryan Smith '11 said in an e-mail to The Dartmouth.
"I think by this point in their college experience, the 12s have a good sense of what each fraternity is all about," Smith said. "In terms of rush, it can either create alternatives or just complicate the minds of the undecided," Smith said.
