PLT's Dream Comes True
The Alumni had successfully built a spectacular house, especially for their own size, yet they didn't have the additional energy to build a cohesive sense of brotherhood. The lessons of previous Chapters successes and failures were not utilized simply because they were not told. All historical continuity was absent in the third Kress chapter. The old and new groups of the Chapter had difficulty communication with each other.
However, the fraternity was fortunate to elect Chris O'Brien as President in 1977. He stated that loyal hard working members were welcome. The rest were asked to leave. They did, and the previous year's Chapter of 35, which lost only five members to graduation, started the next year with only 13 members. The new attitude and drive proved to be the greatest resource as the Chapter pledged eight new members in formal rush and 10 during the rest of the year. Important also, Phi Lam finally had pledges with no conflicting group loyalties.
The leaders of the Chapter reached out to active Alumni leaders for help and suggestions. The past was becoming an important source for future direction. Actives and Alumni are now reaching out to each other to achieve the organizational cohesiveness, levels of membership, and pride in a rich tradition from which the future will be shaped.
During the 1981-1982 school year, there were 23 actives living on the first floor of the chapter house; Bucknell students occupied the upper floor. But the concerned alumni had cause to be optimistic about fall rush. There were approximately 10 seniors, many of them active in campus organizations and with fairly strong interpersonal skills. The alumni looked to their leadership to make a significant gain in membership and perhaps enable us to occupy the full house, a goal the Board of Directors had set in 1981.
The expected leadership of the seniors to organize an effective rush campaign did not materialize. Only three people were pledged. This compared poorly with other fraternities -- Sigma Chi, for example, had more than 60; again Phi Lambda Theta had come up as one of the "have nots". As a result, alumni president Tom Deans began a series of active meetings with fellow alumni Rick Arnold and Steve Shapiro of the Management/Maintenance Committee intended to demonstrate that this performance was unsatisfactory.
They attended a meeting of the active chapter in December at which officers for the second semester were elected. The active members treated this election in a most cavalier fashion, causing the alumni to seriously question whether the active chapter possessed the discipline and organization to remain viable. After the election the actives were told that they had to establish a definite plan for second semester rushing; if they could not demonstrate a successful membership program, then the alumni would have to reconsider our support of the current active chapter. The Chapter was asked to prepare an organized rushing plan that would be implemented during the second semester. January was to be the line for planning meetings to develop a second semester rush schedule and campaign. None was developed.
The PLT Board of Directors at their February board meeting went one step further. They said it was time for the fraternity to establish a specific timetable to achieve full house occupancy. The Alumni left the details of that timetable to the active chapter, but the time frame was not to exceed three years. Implementation within that general framework; was also up to the active chapter.
The active chapter response was no response. After continued pressure from the Presidents office, the actives did ask for a meeting to discuss their inaction. They said the absence of social cohesion among active chapter members had created serious problems. They felt that brotherhood had to come before rushing; however, they were willing to schedule some chapter activities to which potential rushees would be invited. They felt that social and charitable activities would best unify them. Over the next two months the membership did not achieve social cohesion much less conduct an organized rushing effort. The alumni, both collectively and individually, had repeated on numerous occasions the need for organization, structure and discipline in the rushing effort, but there was none to be had.
In the spring of 1983, due to lack of involvement by younger alumni, and a growing split between brothers in the House, Tom Deans realized that yet another alumni-run recolonization was not feasible and began to consider national affiliation. A national fraternity could provide discipline, organization, and management techniques. A search began for a national fraternity that was sensitive to the celebrated history of Phi Lambda Theta, and would allow its continued recognition and use of ritual and symbols. Twenty-two national fraternities were solicited. Eighteen responded favorably. After an alumni evaluation of additional literature, four fraternities were selected to make on site presentations; Chi Phi, Alpha Chi Rho, Pi Kappa Phi, and Tau Epsilon Phi.