University of Georgia - Student Life - Greek Life

Greek Life

Main article: Greek life at the University of Georgia

The first Greek letter fraternity to charter at the university was Sigma Alpha Epsilon in 1865, and the first sorority was Phi Mu in 1921. There are 17 sororities from the Panhellenic Council and 26 IFC fraternities, as well as 8 NPHC fraternities and sororites. Students with Greek affiliation made up 23 percent of the undergraduate student body as of 2007, including 21% of the males and 24% of the females. Perhaps the most prominent features of Greek Life at the University are the large, mostly Greek Revival, mansions maintained by the national fraternities and sororities as chapter houses lining South Milledge Avenue and South Lumpkin Street and the ubiquitous t-shirts worn by students on campus commemorating Greek social events.

In 2005 the University announced that five of the fraternities on Lumpkin Street would need to be relocated by June 2008. The school plans to build academic buildings on the house sites, which the University owns and the fraternities lease. UGA offered to relocate the Lumpkin fraternities and two others to River Road (a former site of several fraternities who were moved out in the 90's), located on East Campus. Kappa Alpha Order and Chi Phi did not take up the offer and decided to move off campus. Kappa Alpha Order moved to Hancock Street while Chi Phi is currently building a house on Milledge Avenue. Sigma Chi, having signed a renewable 40-year land lease with the University in 1996, continues to maintain their house next to the Student Learning Center (now the Zell B. Miller Learning Center). In October 2008, Pi Kappa Alpha, Phi Delta Theta, Tau Epsilon Phi and Sigma Nu broke ground for the new Greek Park located on River Road. The four new houses were completed in August 2009 for fall rush.