Philadelphia may be home to a few more founding fathers this year as a new fraternity arrives on campus.
Phi Gamma Delta, also nicknamed FIJI or Phi Gam, was recently approved to restart its Beta chapter at Penn.
The fraternity was initially colonized at Penn on Feb. 26, 1881, according to Phi Gamma Delta director of Expansion Justin Burns. At the time it was the second chapter in existence.
Fraternity members surrendered the chapter in 1999 following the death of an alumnus who fell several stories at the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity house, where he had been drinking heavily. At the time, the fraternity was on probation for a previous offense.
Phi Gamma Delta's international fraternity and its alums wanted to return to Penn eventually, but had to wait a few years until "conditions were right," said director of the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs Scott Reikofski.
He explained that OFSA prefers that only one fraternity colonize each year to prevent "saturation of the market." Last year Sigma Chi colonized, and Zeta Beta Tau the year before that.
Officials have high hopes for the fraternity's future.
"Within a year, we are expecting Phi Gamma Delta to be one of the top-tier fraternities on campus," said Burns.
In the meantime however, like any other fraternity that wants to colonize or reopen on Penn's campus, Phi Gamma Delta must go through an official process before it can obtain a charter and become a full fraternity.
An expansion team from the international fraternity will be at Penn for the next six weeks getting to know the campus and forming a strong relationship with OFSA. They will also recruit and train the fraternity's "Founding Fathers," members of its first pledge class.
Burns explained that the team has already sent out e-mails to existing student groups advertising the fraternity and soliciting recommendations for upperclassmen who might fit the bill of Phi Gamma Delta members.
Phi Gamma Delta is looking to recruit upperclassmen that have a minimum GPA of 3.0, are leaders on campus and are, above all, "gentlemen." Burns hopes that the fraternity will attract men who are "well-rounded and well-behaved - the type of men that you would want to represent the University."
They plan to hold information sessions to "spread the word" of the fraternity's existence on campus throughout the next couple of weeks.
Once the fraternity has recruited its first pledge class, the brothers will attend a pledging ceremony on Oct. 22. Afterward, there will be a reception dubbed "Evening with the Fijis," in which the Founding Fathers' pledge class will be unveiled to the entire community.
For roughly the next 12 to 18 months, there will be an ongoing conversation between OFSA and the international fraternity about the group's development from a colony - a chapter is in the process of obtaining a charter - into a full-fledged chapter.
They will closely oversee the colony's recruitment and retention, financial development, philanthropic ventures, community involvement and academic performance.
Meanwhile, the colony will operate as a full fraternity at Penn. Although they do not officially have a charter, they are treated like a chapter, and are still expected to participate in the community.
Once OFSA and the international fraternity deems the colony ready to become a full chapter, the brothers will put together a petition and submit it to Phi Gamma Delta international.
In spite of its rocky past, officials do not foresee that Phi Gamma Delta will have a problem recruiting new members.
On the contrary, Burns said that the circumstances may even be attractive. It gives new recruits "the opportunity to rebuild the fraternity from the ground up."
"There are always obstacles that [new fraternities] need to overcome," said Reikofski. He added that Phi Gamma Delta already has "rabidly loyal" alumni, "a place in Penn's history" and a "well-set plan on how they are going to approach the campus," all of which will play a large role in a successful recruitment.
"We have a very strong history of new fraternities doing really well because their founding fathers are so passionate," said College and Wharton senior and President of the Interfraternity Council David Ashkenazi. "Three years down the road, they could have 60 members."
"When the group returns to campus, it's a brand new opportunity," Burns said. "We can't ignore the past, but we can create a brand new future."
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