Delta Sigma Phi (ΔΣΦ, also known as Delta Sig or DSP) is a fraternity established at the City College of New York in 1899 and is a charter member of the North-American Interfraternity Conference. The Fraternity owns and is headquartered in Taggart Mansion located in Indianapolis, Indiana. The mansion was once the home of former Indianapolis mayor and congressman Thomas Taggart and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Delta Sigma Phi was one of the first fraternities at C.C.N.Y. (now C.U.N.Y).
There are 106 actively operating undergraduate chapters (both chartered and recognized "new chapters" in pursuit of a charter) of the Fraternity in 30 states within the Continental United States and the District of Columbia. The Fraternity has previously operated with undergraduate chapters in a number of Canadian provinces though none are active today. Over 115,000 men have initiated into Delta Sigma Phi since 1899. There are currently more than 5,000 undergraduate members and more than 80,000 living alumni members.
The Sphinx was the first symbol adopted by the fraternity at the time of inception. Chosen for its longevity and stability over centuries. Other symbols include a lamp, a lute (depicted as a lyre), a Gordian Knot, and the Egyptian Pyramids. The White Carnation was chosen as the fraternity's official flower because it contains the fraternity's colors; white and nile green as well as being a relatively common and sturdy flower which can grow in almost any climate. The publications of the fraternity are often named after its symbols:
The Carnation - a quarterly and open publication delivered to all members
The pledge emblem is a white circle with a green equilateral triangle set inside of it. Gold lines radiate from the center of the emblem to the three points of the triangle in addition to outlining the circle and triangle. The pledge emblem is very prevalent in the symbolism of the fraternity; not only is the emblem on the new member pin, but the emblem also graces the flag, the membership badge and the basic design is also the basis of the fraternity's seal.
At the end of the nineteenth century, most fraternities were exclusively Christian or Jewish, and barred membership to individuals on the basis of religion. When a group of friends at the City College of New York tried to join a fraternity, they were denied membership because their group was composed of Christians and Jews. In response, they organized the first chapter of Delta Sigma Phi on December 10, 1899. The chapter was called Insula due to the chapter's location in Manhattan. In late 1902, with five members from Insula signing incorporation papers, Delta Sigma Phi was incorporated with the purpose to spread "the principles of friendship and brotherhood among college men, without respect to race or creed." By 1903 the fraternity had established chapters at Columbia University and New York University. However even though they were a Jewish and Christian fraternity, there were a few chapters who did not mix. In 1909, eight Jewish men sought membership in the Columbia chapter of Delta Sigma Phi, and were denied it. These men then founded Phi Sigma Delta. [1]
Growth and World War I[]
In the two years after the 1914 Convention Delta Sigma Phi almost doubled in size with the addition of ten chapters. In 1915, the first West Coast chapter, Hilgard Chapter at UC Berkeley was installed. Hilgard Chapter was named after a Dean at the University and is the only chapter in the fraternity without a Greek letter designation, taking the place of Xi Chapter.
Also in 1914, the fraternity decided to admit only white men of the Christian faith, thus going against the founders vision. Many Jewish members and other minorities left the fraternity or joined others, including Meyer Boskey, who withdrew active participation in the fraternity for an extended period of time.
As a testament to the geographic shift of the fraternity, the 1916 Convention was held in Chicago, Illinois. By this time, the fraternity had expanded the number of staff and a national headquarters was created at the Riebold Building at Dayton, Ohio.
When the United States entered World War I in 1917 Delta Sigma Phi had over one thousand initiates and nineteen active chapters. During the course of the war over three quarters of the fraternity's membership served the government in some capacity with half of that number in combat duty overseas. The publication of The Carnation, the fraternity's magazine, and the 1917 and 1918 Conventions were suspended for the duration of the war.
Even though the colleges and universities remained open during the war many chapters suspended their operations when most of their members were called to service. Some chapters never recovered from the disruptions of World War I.
The Founders[]
Delta Sigma Phi recognizes Charles Tonsor (Christian) and Meyer Boskey (Jewish) as their two primary founding fathers. Although Boskey was one of the original members at the City College of New York and Tonsor was one of the charter members of the chapter at Columbia, it is believed that the fraternity was originally developed by a group of nearly a dozen men. During the short period where men of Jewish faith were barred membership, many of the Fraternity's founding documents were ruined. Given the circumstances, the national organization adopted both Boskey and Tonsor as the "founders" given their lifelong commitment to the fraternity and their service as visionaries for the development of the fraternity's ritual and national expansion.
The Roaring Twenties[]
Delta Sigma Phi went through continued expansion during the 1920s, at this time many local fraternities and other social clubs petitioned for fraternity membership. Among these local fraternities was Phi Nu fraternity at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada when Phi Nu was chartered as the Alpha Omicron Chapter, Delta Sigma Phi became an international fraternity. Two of these chapters, the Alpha Theta Chapter at The University of Michigan and the Alpha Chi Chapter at Stetson University, were originally local organizations older than Delta Sigma Phi itself.
It was also during this time the fraternity published its first pledge manual, the Gordian Knot, it was based upon a manual previously published by the Epsilon Chapter at Penn State. The Gordian Knot is considered to be one of the first pledge manuals to be published on a fraternity-wide basis. Another tradition started at this time was the Sailors' Ball, first held at the Alpha Chi Chapter at Stetson University. Today the Sailor's Ball is an annual event that is a semi-formal counterpart to the Carnation Ball, the fraternity's formal banquet.
Depression and World War II[]
A scant two months after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 the yearly convention was held in Richmond, Virginia. Despite the financial uncertainties of the time, a traveling secretary was added to the fraternity payroll. During the Great Depression the growth of the fraternity had ground to a halt; college enrollments declined and those who attended college were less likely to be able to afford joining a fraternity. Several chapters became dormant and lost their equity in chapter properties. Among them were Alpha and Gamma; the remaining chapters in New York City.
The only chapters that were founded during the years of the Great Depression were Beta Kappa at the University of Alabama and Beta Lambda at Wake Forest. It was also during this time that the Executive Director, A.W. Defenderfer, moved the headquarters of the fraternity to his insurance offices in Washington, DC. Delta Sigma Phi was re-incorporated in Washington, DC in 1929.
Although the fraternity was rebounding by the late 1930s, World War II caused a disruption within the fraternity. Many members had joined in on the war effort leaving the chapters weak. It was during this time that the fraternity's only Canadian chapter at McGill University became dormant, with many of its members joining to Commonwealth Forces. By 1944 only twelve of the fraternity's forty-three chapters were actively operating.
Return to the Founders' Vision[]
After the war, the GI Bill gave many veterans the chance to attend college. With an influx of new students, many of the dormant chapters of the fraternity were quickly re-activated. Another consequence of the GI Bill was the establishment of many new public universities. With more institutions that were open to fraternities, Delta Sigma Phi, along with many other Greek organizations, experienced their greatest period of growth in the Post-World War II era.
In the late 1940s college administrators across the country began to refuse expansion to fraternities which restrictive rules on membership. In response to the new rules the fraternity leadership amended the constitution of the national fraternity to remove all references to race or religion. However, the line "the belief in God is essential to our welfare" in the preamble was untouched and remains so to this day.
In a compromise to several southern chapters in the 1949 Convention, the amendments to the constitution were approved while language which barred the initiation of non-white and non-Christians were inserted into the fraternity ritual. Since the ritual was a private document and the constitution was a public one, this compromise appeased those who resisted integration of the fraternity while allowing it to expand to new universities.
The 1950s were a turbulent time for fraternities and sororities in general. While most of the national Greek-letter organizations still had rules restricting membership, a few chapters bucked the rules and initiated Jews and African Americans. Some of those chapters were suspended by their national organization while others disaffiliated from their national organizations and "went local." In 1957 the California Legislature threatened to pass Assembly Bill 758 which prohibited state universities and colleges from recognizing any student organization that "restricts its membership on the basis of either race, color, religion or national origin." Two years later the regents of the University of California passed a regulation that required all fraternities and sororities to sign a certificate stating that the organization does not have any discriminatory policies or face the loss of recognition.
The Fraternity faced these issues in the 1959 Convention. While the organization was interested in maintaining its California chapters, there was opposition to any plan to integrate the entire fraternity. Several southern chapters passed resolutions against any relaxation of racial and religious restrictions and threatened to withdraw from the Fraternity. A compromise was again reached where the current rules were not to be changed but exemptions were granted to chapters in danger to losing their recognition due to Fraternity policies. The California chapters were immediately given exemptions.
In 1962, the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education joined the University of California by requiring the integration of its fraternities and sororities. Exemptions were given to the chapters in Pennsylvania. While exemptions were originally granted to chapters in danger of losing recognition with their universities, the Beta Iota Chapter at Wittenberg University received a special exemption. The chapter intended to initiate an African American who was an All-American athlete and an outstanding scholar and the Fraternity responded by offering an exemption, likely to avoid bad publicity.
The process of full integration was slow and awkward for the Fraternity. As a result of a number of compromises the Fraternity remained intact on a national level. When Civil Rights legislation was enacted, Delta Sigma Phi was once more a universal brotherhood of man as the founders had intended.
The Fraternity in the 21st Century[]
Today Delta Sigma Phi consists of 106 chapters and colonies across the United States. At the 2005 convention, the Fraternity adopted "Vision 2025," a plan to transform Delta Sigma Phi into "America's Leading Fraternity" by the year 2025 with aggressive goals for leadership training, alumni involvement, and new chapter development. The end-goal is for Delta Sigma Phi to rank within the top 3-5 of any quantitative measurement of national fraternities in the NIC.
The Fraternity also adopted the American Red Cross as its national philanthropy, and members are urged to support the endeavors of the non-profit and raise funds. Since the adoption of the American Red Cross and "Vision 2025," Delta Sigma Phi aims to be recognized as "Men of Action" in their recruitment and development philosophy. These are highlighted in the 2009 call to action video titled "All In."
Among the initiatives laid out in Vision 2025, the Fraternity will provide leadership education to 100% of their undergraduates by 2015, developed "The Summit" to train all presidents and recruitment chairmen with professional recruitment techniques, and opens between 8-12 chapters annually with a goal of reaching 200 undergraduate chapters by 2025. Rather than closing chapters that are struggling due to the size of their membership, the Fraternity has actively redeveloped them as they would develop a brand new chapter.
The Fraternity became the first to create a partnership with Phired Up Productions, a fraternity & sorority recruitment consulting company, to coach its New Chapter Development team. Since the partnership began in 2009, Delta Sigma Phi has broken its record for number of men recruited for a new chapter three times, most recently in 2012 when a group at Arizona State University launched with 120 founding fathers.
Delta Sig in the 2010s: The Better Man[]
During the second decade of the 21st Century the Fraternity began to see the fruits of its new partnerships and vision. 22 New Chapter Developments or redevelopments took place between 2009 and 2013 with an average new chapter size of 52 men, one of the highest among NIC mens fraternities. The organization-wide GPA surpassed the 3.0 mark and $100,000 dollars was made available for academic scholarships through the McKee Scholarship. The Fraternity's staff has grown by more than 50% from 2011 to 2014 and risk violations decreased by 70%.
In 2013 Delta Sigma Phi became the first national organization to build a partnership with the Fraternal Values Society. As part of the agreement, Delta Sigma Phi will sponsor new chapters of FVS at 10 institutions each year for 5 years and will incorporate FVS programming into its own. The Fraternity also reinvigorated its partnership with the American Red Cross to incorporate the two initiative months of the organization and incorporate the Red Cross into the day-to-day functions of the chapters.
New programs were announced in 2013 to launch in 2014 including the Presidents' Academy, a service immersion trip (The Journey) and an online education platform titled "The Lamp" to provide membership and leadership development and training to 100% of the undergraduate membership by 2015.
Delta Sigma Phi will (re)develop new chapters at Oglethorpe University, Indiana University, San Diego State University, University of Washington, Iowa State University & Bradley University during the 2013-2014 academic year.[1]
The Better Man[]
Though the Fraternity has always had a solid and straightforward mission, a process to define what type of man the organization wished to recruit and build went underway in 2013. The Fraternity reached out to a number of students, alumni, and volunteers to better understand the key character qualities of an ideal member.
At the 2013 Convention in Phoenix, the Fraternity revealed the three character qualities of "The Better Man" as mentioned in the Fraternity's motto "Better Men. Better Lives." From the founding of the organization until the present day, it is believed that the best Delta Sigs lead as Men of Courage, Men of Action and Men of Excellence. The new campaign aims to encourage both undergraduate and alumni members to exemplify those principles in all aspects of life.
