Alpha Fraternity Management and Delta Tau Delta Announce National Preferred Partnership

Delta Tau Delta Fraternity and Alpha Fraternity Management have formed a
partnership to support Delta Tau Delta fraternities across the United States with operational and housing support aimed at significantly improving Delta Tau Delta chapters’ ability to operate efficiently and successfully.

“Our service offerings take the burden off the shoulders of the national and local groups so they can focus on creating an enriching experience for their members,” said Alpha founder and president Allan Lutes. “We’re looking forward to assisting Delta Tau Delta by providing additional support and resources to help them achieve their goals.”

The partnership creates optional opportunities for Delta Tau Delta to streamline administrative functions, establish accounting processes to support stability and growth, offer discounted billing and collection services through AlPay, and provide experienced housing oversite to their chapter houses.

"When looking for a partner Delta Tau Delta puts an emphasis on a proven record and industry-leading expertise. We found both in our partnership with Alpha Fraternity Management." said Jack Kreman, Chief Executive Officer, Delta Tau Delta. 

House corporation officers interested in learning more should contact Andy Longo at the Central Office or Alan Lutes at Alpha Fraternity Management.

Our Time is Now

We seem to be living in a period of extremes. Distinctions between one view and its polar opposite dominate the headlines and there isn’t much attention paid to the wide swath of middle ground. This reflection pertains to Greek life, it seems, as well. 

A week ago, a highly anticipated study by prominent higher education researcher Dr. Gary Pike of Indiana University was made public. Dr. Pike’s study sought to define the impact of fraternity and sorority membership on student engagement in college.

Among the findings, Pike’s study concluded that “membership in a fraternity or sorority is associated with greater involvement in curricular and cocurricular activities, promotes student learning and development, and promotes satisfaction with the college experiences.” The North American Interfraternity Conference released a copy of the full study, which can be found here.

Shift forward to this week when an article on the Abolish Greek Life movement was published in The Washington Post, painting fraternities in particular with a brush dripping with racism and sexism. While it’s hard to deny fraternities and sororities have had their share of trouble, Pike’s study seems to be a reminder not to throw the baby out with the bathwater. As he points out, “…these are problems throughout higher education and are not unique to Greek-letter organizations.” 

The increase in vocal disenchantment with the fraternity/sorority experience, however, should be a call to attention for anyone who cares about the preservation of the nearly 200-year-old institution. For years, calls for a return to the ideals of fraternity and sorority that made membership advantageous, sought after, and respected rather than an opportunity to participate in the largest parties on campus have gone unheeded. 

Our time is now. Greek life is neither perfect nor critically flawed, rather it occupies that middle ground between the extremes. Those of us that care about preserving Greek life need to work to make the changes demanded for so long. One of the first ways to help make that happen is for alumnae/i to take an active role working with members and defining both what is acceptable and what is not acceptable as a member. Education and resources that enhance the Greek experience should support the values and culture desired by organizations and members should be required to live those values or face black-balling. 

The Washington Post article won’t be the last on the ills of fraternities and sororities, but together we can take steps to make the changes required of our organizations for so long and begin to quiet the voices of discontent. Over the past 6 months, Alpha Fraternity Management has offered webinars on a series of topics to improve the culture, sustainability, and advantages of Greek life. We’re committed to continuing to offer guidance, additional resources, and services to improve the experience of fraternity and sorority membership and the success of each chapter.

Not only will changes preserve the amazing experience of brotherhood and sisterhood for future generations, as Dr. Pike says, “Effectively addressing these issues will better allow fraternities and sororities to contribute to the academic and social life of American colleges and universities.”

Case Study: Phi Delta Theta, University of Michigan

Tom Buck, often called JT within the Greek community, has been the University of Michigan’s Phi Delta Theta chapter’s house corporation president for over two decades. In 2018, he faced the suspension of his chapter, a situation that has now become a common hurdle for house corporations. Facing the loss of rental income from the chapter for four years, JT and his alumni board needed help to avoid taking on additional debt and preventing the potential loss of the property.

In early 2018, two separate incidences in the same academic year resulted in the realization the chapter would not have a presence in the house that fall. Fortunately, Alpha Fraternity Management already represented another chapter that needed temporary housing while its chapter house was under construction. This was JT’s renewed introduction to Alpha Fraternity Management, who continued to manage the operations of the group that rented the Phi Delt house.

“This arrangement provided us with a great opportunity to watch Alpha’s work at arms-length,” JT explained. “They did a fine job of managing the group and I could see the respect their alumni leaders had for Alpha and what they brought to the table.”

In June of 2019, Alpha Fraternity Management was retained to manage the house under its Graduate House model, part of AFM’s ‘Save our Chapter House’ program. AFM instituted a plan to restore an income stream through rentals to individual students, manage the property as alcohol-free housing, and provide business management and resident services. Alpha got right to work to find tenants for the fall, ultimately leasing every room and all parking spaces, even with a late start. The plan was a success and the property was restored to positive cash flow.

“Alpha has been responsive and has helped us keep our house in good shape even when we haven’t been in it,” JT continues. “They’ve done a pretty darn good job and their ability to help us secure tenants and preserve our cash flow has validated our decision to use them and earned them the chance to manage the house when our own chapter returns in the fall of 2021.”

The Phi Delts appreciate the “hands-on” approach Alpha takes when managing tenants. Good systems and processes, plus monthly calls between the house corporation and the Alpha team keep the house in good shape and everyone informed. “Allan has a real presence in Greek life,” says JT. “I know he’s trying to make a difference on our campus, just as we are.”

“It takes an enormous amount of time to manage a fraternity house,” JT concludes. “Having Alpha in place gives me a lot of time back that I can use in other ways.”

Snapshot of Remedies

• Implemented ‘Save Our Chapter House’ program 

• Evaluated options that preserved the property’s zoning status

• Provided solutions to restore the chapter’s revenue stream

• Leased 100% of rooms and parking spaces within 90 days

• Achieved positive cash flow in the first year of the partnership

• Located a group tenant for rental the following year, increasing profits