University of Central Florida: A Guide to Fraternities and Sororities

The University of Central Florida (UCF) has a rich history of fraternity and sorority life, dating back to the 1970s. These organizations offer students a sense of belonging and opportunities for growth during their college years. Today, the UCF Greek community is one of the largest in the nation, with approximately 5% of the undergraduate population participating in fraternities and sororities. Becoming a member of UCF’s fraternity and sorority life means joining a legacy of leadership, scholarship, and service.

Active Fraternities and Sororities at UCF

UCF's Greek community is comprised of 46 organizations. Here's a look at some of the active fraternities and sororities, highlighting their values, history, and contributions to the university and the wider community:

Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated

Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, the first Black Greek Letter organization established for collegiate black men, prides itself on manly deeds, scholarship, and love for all mankind. Since its inception, Alpha Kappa Alpha has been a channel through which select women improve socioeconomic conditions in their city, state, nation, and the world. Notable members include Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Cornell West, Hill Harper Frederick Douglas, Olympian Jesse Owens, and Duke Ellington.

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated

Founded on January 15, 1908, Alpha Kappa Alpha has been a channel through which select women improve socioeconomic conditions in their city, state, nation, and the world. The visionary women who organized the Sorority recognized their privileged position as college-trained women of color, one generation removed from slavery. They believed that by organizing their talents and strengths, they could use community service as a means of self-fulfillment and improve the social stature of African Americans.

Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Incorporated

The Lambda Omega Chapter is a powerhouse whose members have held various campus leadership roles, including founding the Men of Integrity. These outstanding men selected “Friendship is essential to the soul” as the fraternity motto, from which the name Omega Psi Phi was derived. This fraternal organization adopted Manhood, Scholarship, Perseverance, and Uplift as cardinal principles. Outstanding brothers of this fraternity include Langston Hughes, Steve Harvey, Rickey Smiley, Michael Jordan, Jesse Jackson, Dr. Charles Drew, and Dr. Ronald E.

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated

On January 13, 1974, a group of women met with representatives of Florida Technological University (UCF’s former name) to determine which National Black sorority to affiliate with. By a majority vote meeting attendees decided they would affiliate with Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated. Their first public act was the Women's Suffrage March in 1913.

Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Incorporated

Over the years of our chapter's existence, our brothers have effortlessly and continuously paved ways to exemplify the high ideals of Brotherhood, Scholarship, and Service. We work diligently every day to make our collegiate and Orlando community stronger by embodying our motto. For over 30 years, these lovely ladies have been leaving a lasting impression on the UCF Community. and John T. Washington Honor Society. Sigma Epsilon women have been instrumental in starting events at UCF such as the Black History Brain Bowl Competition. This chapter takes on many opportunities and endeavors with excellence in mind and the spirit of Sigma Gamma Rho at heart.

Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia

Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia (ΦΜΑ) is an American collegiate social fraternity for men with a special interest in music. The chapter is the basic unit of organization in Phi Mu Alpha. The designation of chapter has been given to at least three different kinds of organization over the history of the fraternity: collegiate, alumni, and professional. Alumni chapters existed between 1966 and 1976, after which they were designated as professional chapters by the 1976 National Assembly at the University of Evansville. Professional chapters, notable for being able to initiate brothers, lasted from the creation of an experimental chapter in Washington, D.C. Chapters are formed by the granting of charters to petitioning groups at qualified institutions of higher education. The only basic qualification for an institution to house a chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia is that it offers a four-year degree in music. Before receiving a charter, petitioning groups must seek recognition as a colony, which is the designation given to a developing chapter.

Chapter Naming Conventions

Like those of many other Greek-letter fraternities, chapters of Phi Mu Alpha have names consisting of either one or two Greek letters. The names are issued in alphabetical order according to the dates on which the chapters are chartered. For instance, Alpha is the name given to the founding chapter, followed by Beta for the second chapter, then Gamma, and so on. Names using the same two Greek letters, such as Alpha Alpha, Beta Beta, Gamma Gamma, etc., were not used. Also, in the first cycle of chapter naming, letters that came before the first letter of a chapter's name in the Greek alphabet were not used for the second letter. Thus, after Alpha Omega the next name issued was Beta Gamma, not Beta Alpha. Likewise, after Beta Omega, the next name issued was Gamma Delta; Gamma Alpha, and Gamma Beta were not used. Using this system, 300 names could be generated, but due to the fraternity's rapid expansion in the mid-20th century all of the possible names were exhausted in 1969. Beginning in that year (after the last name possible under the old system, Psi Omega, was issued), the fraternity began to issue unused two-letter names beginning with Beta Alpha. However, names with two identical Greek letters were still not used. Without using such repeated-letter names, there is a total of 576 possible one- and two-letter names, of which 444 have been issued to date. The only exception to the repeated-letter chapter name rule is Alpha Alpha.

Colony names take one of two forms. If a chapter was previously chartered at an institution, then a colony that is later recognized at that institution is given the name of the chapter that was originally there. Upon the colony's successful completion of the colony program, the original chapter is reactivated and the original charter document (if it still exists) is reissued along with a separate Certificate of Reactivation. If there has never been a chapter at an institution, then a colony there is issued a name consisting of the state where the institution is located followed by a single Greek letter to distinguish it from any other colonies in the state (e.g., Texas Gamma, Ohio Beta, etc.).

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Chapter Status

Chapter charters may be recalled by the Commission on Standards for operational or disciplinary reasons, either placing the chapter on inactive status or by expelling the chapter by revoking its charter, respectively. The fraternity has not always held to a strictly alphabetical naming scheme. Gamma and Zeta were reissued in the early days of the fraternity, while Mu Epsilon and Mu Kappa were never issued and will likely never be based on how far they are out of sequence. Naming anomalies also have occurred at the chapter level. Following a merger of the College of Music of Cincinnati and the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, their respective chapters Eta and Omicron combined to form Eta-Omicron; to date this is the only chapter that uses a hyphen in its name.

Organizational Rules of Conduct and Sanctions

The following information regarding chapter statuses is from or adapted from the UCF Golden Rule Student Handbook.

Educational Sanctions: In conjunction with any sanction listed below, a registered student organization found to have been in violation of any of the Organizational Rules of Conduct will be assigned educational sanctions that are proportional to the violation such as, but not limited to: reflective/research papers, classes/seminars, community service, restitution, interviews, etc.
Probation: A period of time during which any further violation of the Organizational Rules of Conduct puts the registered student organization’s status with the University in jeopardy. Restrictive conditions may also be imposed as part of disciplinary probation and will vary according to the severity of the offense. Restrictive conditions may include barring or limiting some or all of the organization’s activities and/or privileges (including, but not limited to: social activities; intramural competition; organizational competition; Homecoming; eligibility to receive any University award or honorary recognition; privilege to occupy a position of leadership or responsibility in any University registered student organization governing body, publication, or activity; or ability to represent the University in an official capacity or position).
Deferred Suspension: Organizational deferred suspension is used for offenses found serious enough to warrant organizational suspension, but where the specific circumstances of the case mitigate the offense or for repeated offenses of a less serious nature.
Suspension: While on organizational suspension, the registered student organization loses it University recognition and/or registration for a temporary period of time.
Interim Suspension: Where deemed necessary to protect the safety and well-being of others, of the university, or of property, the Director of the OSRR or designee, upon notifying the VP of SSWB or designee, may take immediate action to resolve the situation by placing the registered student organization on interim suspension. Interim organizational suspension is not a sanction. The Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities (OSRR) has received a report of an alleged violation of the UCF Rules of Conduct. OSRR is in the process of reviewing the alleged incident through the Organization Conduct Review Process.
Removal by Inter/National Organization: The Inter/National organization has selected to remove the organization from the university.

PLEASE NOTE: The organizations listed below are not currently recognized by the University. In some cases, this is due to their voluntary disaffiliation from the institution, and in some cases, it is due to the National office revoking their recognition.

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