Welcome to Greek Life at Duquesne

When you go Greek, it's not like joining a regular club or activity. It isn't a case of just showing up for a meeting once a month or getting together for one event each semester.

With daily interaction and constant opportunities for leadership within the chapter, fraternities and sororities lay the groundwork for engaged citizenship and developing networking skills.

Brotherhood and Sisterhood

There are many popular terms connected with Greek Life, two of which are brotherhood and sisterhood. When you share rituals, traditions, and unforgettable experiences with your brothers and sisters, you truly develop a sense of family that's unlike any other. These relationships will be lifelong friendships.

A fraternity brother or sorority sister is someone who will encourage you to succeed, support you when things are going well, and listen when you are having problems, offering unconditional support.

At the heart of these friendships and interactions are the traditions within each chapter. Although each fraternity and sorority has different founding values, you'll find some words come up again and again in all Greek organizations:

• Virtue
• Scholarship
• Ethics
• Justice
• Friendship

These strong basic beliefs have long been a part of college communities across the United States, and are key contributors to the bonds of brotherhood and sisterhood that over seven million members have enjoyed.

Recruitment: Rush

To get to know members in Greek chapters, and decide which one to join, students can take part in recruitment. Our recruitment period known as "Rush", is when all fraternities and sororities host their membership drives.

At Duquesne, fall recruitment is for upper class and transfer students only. First-year students participate in spring recruitment.

Serving Others

Every Greek chapter has a philanthropic event such as the

• 5K run/walk that benefits the DePaul School for Hearing and Speech
• A soccer tournament that benefits the American Heart Foundation
• A "White Rose Ball" that benefits the American Gold-Star Mothers Association

Greek Week

Greek Week, in spring semester, includes a series of weeklong competitions among the chapters, and concludes with the traditional Greek Sing. Greek Week has raised thousands of dollars to help charitable groups including a mission school in Ghana and several local foodbanks.

Community Involvement

Duquesne Greek students:

• Serve as academic tutors and literacy coaches at community centers
• Participate in several neighborhood clean-up initiatives
• Organize blood and food drives each semester

It is our belief that when when we help the underprivileged and needy, we gain understanding and compassion for those who are less fortunate than ourselves.

Greeks sponsor social events that support philanthropies that include:

• Carnival
• Greek Week
• Homecoming Week activities
• Big Man On Campus
• Water Wars
• Snagged for Jimmy V Tournament
• Pretty In Pink Brunch
• Breast Cancer Awareness Month
• Walk Miles for Smiles
• Ultraviolet Games
• Red Dress Gala
• White Rose Ball
• Valentine's Day Ball
• Miss Duquesne Pageant
• Monte Carlo Night

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated is the first Greek-lettered sorority established and incorporated by African-American college women. Founded on January 15, 1908, at Howard University by 20 young women, Alpha Kappa Alpha, Sorority Inc. is a Divine 9 chapter that has grown into an international organization with 200,000+ members. 

Alpha Kappa Alpha's mission is to cultivate and encourage high scholastic and ethical standards, to promote unity and friendship among college women, to study and help alleviate problems concerning girls and women in order to improve their social stature, to maintain a progressive interest in college life, and to be of "Service to All Mankind". 

Since the founding of the Beta Delta Chapter of Alpha Sigma Tau in 1971, the sisters of Alpha Sigma Tau strive to make their mark on Duquesne's campus. Their national philanthropy is Women's Wellness Initiative and the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Each year our chapter holds the Miss Duquesne Pageant where clubs, sororities, and fraternities are invited to send members to compete for the title of Miss Duquesne.  

The sisters work every day to not only have a great sisterhood, but to be leaders in the Duquesne community.  

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. is a not-for profit Greek-lettered organization of college-educated women. Their focus is on public service and more specifically, the positive upbringing of the African American community, and is a Divine 9 chapter

Delta Sigma Theta, Sorority Inc. was founded on January 13, 1913, by 22 collegiate women at Howard University. Our founders wanted to use their collective strength to promote scholarly excellence and provide assistance to all persons in need. 

Today, Delta Sigma Theta, Sorority Inc. is the largest African-American Greek-lettered organization in the world. 

Membership in Delta Sigma Theta, Sorority Inc. is open to any woman who meets the membership requirements, regardless of religion, race, or nationality. 

Since 1902, Delta Zeta has been enriching women’s lives at colleges and universities everywhere with nearly 270,000 members nationwide.  

Delta Zeta’s philanthropic focus is dedicated towards the speech & hearing impaired community, with our national partners including The Starkey Hearing Foundation, The American Society for Deaf Children, & The Painted Turtle Camp. In addition to this, the Kappa Xi chapter also supports the Speech and Hearing Clinic in Fisher Hall on Duquesne’s campus.  

Through their efforts to aid both the Greek Life community and Duquesne's campus communities, Delta Zeta helps each member live out the Duquesne mission statement daily by serving God through serving others.  

From seven young educators, Sigma Gamma Rho, Sorority Inc. has become an international service organization comprised of women from every profession. Sigma Gamma Rho, Sorority Inc. offers its members opportunities to develop their unique talents through leadership training and involvement in sorority activities. Sorority activities provide an atmosphere where friendships and professional contacts are developed which often lead to bonds that last a lifetime. Since its inception, the dynamic women of Sigma Gamma Rho, Sorority Inc. have built and sustained a well-known and well-respected reputation for leading positive change to help uplift the community through sisterhood, leadership, and service. Sigma Gamma Rho, Sorority Inc. is also a Divine 9 chapter.

Under the advisement of the Delta Phi Sigma Pittsburgh Alumnae Chapter, the Northeastern Regional Expansion Chapter at Duquesne has welcomed dynamic undergraduate women into the Sigma Sisterhood for many years. 

Zeta Tau Alpha membership provides a built-in support system to help members navigate college life and beyond. New members will learn about the elements of ZTA: greatness, understanding, purpose, sisterhood, nobility.  

In 1992, ΖΤΑ adopted breast cancer education and awareness as its national philanthropy. The ZTA Foundation supports scholarships, educational programming, leadership development and philanthropy. Think Pink® efforts by ZTA support the fight against breast cancer by recognizing survivors at American Cancer Society® Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walks, raising awareness through the distribution of pink ribbons at NFL A Crucial Catch® games, and educating through Bright Pink® Brighten Up® workshops.  The unique environment of ZTA housing provides positive opportunities and a welcoming home away from home. 

The Alpha Delta Fraternity is one of the oldest fraternities at Duquesne University. Formerly the Pi Chi Chapter of the Alpha Phi Omega National Service Fraternity, the fraternity was chartered May 15, 1966 at Duquesne University and has been continuously active for over 60 years.  Due to a split ideology between the Duquesne Chapter and Alpha Phi Omega, Pi Chi Chapter seceded joining more traditional chapters across the country forming the Alpha Delta National Fraternity. Alpha Delta subsequently retained all of its local traditions, history, and alumni and has initiated over 500 local alumni at Duquesne University alone.

Community service is very important to Alpha Delta and the fraternity and its members organizes and participates in a variety of local community service and volunteer events including but not limited to its annual bathtub pull for charity, various local clean up initiatives at local parks and in the South Side, and the annual Pittsburgh Polar Plunge for the Special Olympics of Pennsylvania, among many others.

The Alpha Phi Delta Fraternity is a national Italian Heritage Fraternity, established on November 5, 1914, at Syracuse University. According to Alpha Phi Delta's constitution, this organization has been formed to conduct an all-volunteer staffed fraternal organization. 

This organization seeks to unite in fraternal bond college men of good character, stimulate good scholarship and good fellowship, promote loyalty to one's alma mater, bind members to the commitment of their membership oath, and provide service to the community and humanity.