After a six-year hiatus, the crest of Sigma Alpha Epsilon will reappear on campus-and for a network of 1,700 alums, the day cannot come soon enough.
"A lot of alums were coming back to campus and missing having their chapter there," said SAE Regional Alumni Volunteer John Stringfellow, who is facilitating the recolonization process. "Duke's always been a very strong campus for fraternities. It's a charismatic thing, saying you have a chapter at Duke, with all the prestige that Duke has."
SAE was present on campus from 1931 to 2002, when the chapter was expelled from the national fraternity and automatically disaffiliated from the University for violations of risk management, including hazing. The group of students then affiliated with Alpha Delta Phi nationals in 2006.
The fraternity will begin the recolonization process this semester by holding information sessions for sophomores, juniors and seniors with no current or prior Greek affiliation. SAE will not be permitted to distribute bids or contact freshmen until two weeks after the Interfraternity Council's formal recruitment period ends this Spring, per an agreement with the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life that will be finalized Wednesday, said IFC President Lee Hathaway, a senior.
SAE will be classified as a colony for two semesters, after which it will be recognized as an official chapter of the national fraternity. In the interim, students who join the fraternity will not be required to pledge, Stringfellow said.
The fraternity has begun to amass a list of prospective members by e-mailing 1,500 upperclassman males, many of whom participated in IFC rush but did not receive bids. About 55 students responded to the e-mail saying they would be interested in learning more about the fraternity, Stringfellow said.
"Considering the school year is only a few weeks old, we've been really delighted with the response we've seen," said SAE Student Coordinator Wey Ruetten, a senior. "We've seen interest from athletes and a lot of really impressive scholars, quite a representation of the student body."
Sophomore Ben Castellon said he plans to attend an information session and is giving serious thought to joining the fraternity.
"It seems like it could be a cool opportunity to start a fraternity here and make it what you want it to be," he said. "It could be a really cool way to leave a legacy at Duke."
Sophomore Zach Chapla said he would like to become acquainted with the fraternity, but he noted that the group's appeal to upperclassmen might be limited.
"With all the people that have already joined fraternities, who is possibly left to join SAE?" he said. "Freshmen will really build the group."
Stringfellow's e-mail to prospective members concludes by saying the group is not to be mistaken for Alpha Delta Phi, although some people call members of that fraternity "ex-SAEs."
"I hope that it's not confusing when rush comes and people are like, 'Wait, who's the real SAE here?'" Castellon said.
Although the chapters share an ancestor, Stringfellow predicted that SAE's minimum 3.0 GPA requirement and emphasis on service would attract a different pool of students than Alpha Delt.
Senior Michael Shaughnessy, former president of Alpha Delt, said he does not think freshmen will have trouble telling the fraternities apart.
"I think people know who we are as a group-we've been making strides with the Alpha Delt name," he said. "It's almost impossible to start a viable, well-known fraternity from scratch, which is what SAE is trying to do, so I don't foresee any rivalry."
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