A new colony was born on Thursday, Feb. 7, when a group of 52 University of Oregon college students pledged themselves to the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity as founding fathers of its reinstitution.

Most commonly referred to as Fiji at the UO, the fraternity will not become an official chapter for at least another year, but the colonization marks the first presence of the fraternity on campus since 1998.

Fiji started up again when President Ryan Donlon and two of his friends from high school caught wind that the fraternity’s international headquarters was looking to reinvigorate the UO chapter. He was able to gather 26 founding fathers before headquarters sent a representative to campus. In winter term 2013, he and his core group were officially recognized by the UO’s Interfraternity Council as a part of Fraternity and Sorority Life and are now free to start the recruitment process.

The local chapter uses a three-tier interview system for extending bids to potential recruits that includes filling out a candidate profile sheet, answering various questions about their priorities and feelings about the brotherhood.

“We’re a group of guys who didn’t join an established fraternity for a reason,” Donlon said. “For our group, we like to make it a very personal experience, and one that will hopefully kind of change the recruitment landscape in general.”

Fiji used the same three-tier interview system with each recruit — 52 bids — since the term started.

When it comes to starting a fraternity, Donlon is most looking forward to “having that legacy that lasts, hopefully a heck of a lot longer than it did before. Having something where I can come back in 20 or 30 years, and our chapter still has our house, and I can see my name on that charter.”

When the founding father class becomes initiated into the fraternity, they will each sign their name on the charter, officially recognizing them as a chapter of Phi Gamma Delta.

Fiji alumni own the house Alpha Epsilon Pi is currently living in. Phi Gamma Delta will eventually move into the house once they become chartered, but they are required to give AEPi a one year notice before doing so.

University of Oregon’s Sigma Chi fraternity announced Friday, March 1, that it raised $60,000 for the Make a Wish Foundation last week with their annual Derby Days philanthropy fundraiser.

Derby Days is Sigma Chi’s national philanthropy cause that was created in 1933. Sigma Chi chapters across the nation hold the annual fundraiser for various charities.

Though the philanthropy is national, each Sigma Chi chapter is responsible for finding their own ways to raise funds. At UO, sororities donated money in order to participate in Derby Days, which included events held by Sigma Chi throughout the week on campus. Events included a coin drive, dance competition, skit auction, as well as Twitter and Instagram competitions.

Sigma Chi also raised money by sending links asking for donations to sororities and relatives, selling brothers to clean different sororities’ houses and bidding brothers off as designated drivers. Sororities receive points for Derby Days by buying things and participating in events. The winner for the second year in a row was Delta Gamma.

“We’re lucky that these sororities set aside money for our philanthropy,” said Ryan Kroon, president of Sigma Chi.

Fraternities and sororities donate money for each other’s philanthropy events with a philanthropy budget that comes out of each member’s dues.

Derby Days events ended on Thursday, Feb. 28. Funds raised were the product of each sorority’s philanthropy fund, as well as outside donors.

The original goal of Derby Days this year was to best last year’s total of $35,000 donated to the Make a Wish Foundation. At $6,000 a wish, the fraternity will grant roughly ten wishes, plus whatever money they receive within the next week before donations close.

“We’re really just the median,” Kroon said of Sigma Chi’s Derby Days philanthropy fundraiser. “It’s really just the Greek community that helps us put this on.”

During the past three weeks, fraternity men of their respective houses nominated to be on Gamma Phi Beta’s Crescent Court have been advertising themselves to the sorority to try and become Gamma Phi’s Crescent Man. 

Three men from each fraternity are nominated by their fellow brothers and then later interviewed by Gamma Phi to see if they should represent their fraternity in Crescent Court. Once in Crescent Court, each man is assigned a liaison that is responsible for keeping him involved in the sorority and introducing him to Gamma Phi sisters.

This one man participates in events such as hiking, laser tag and community service with the ladies of Gamma Phi in order to get to know them and their sorority’s core values: love, labor, learning and loyalty. The person who best demonstrates these core values will be crowned the Crescent Man on Friday, March 8 at Gamma Phi’s formal Crescent Ball.

“It’s just a way to get to know different guys from other fraternities and get them involved in the philanthropy,” said Monica Alvestad, coordinator for Crescent Court.

Fraternities on campus have been pulling out all the stops to impress the ladies of Gamma Phi and make their fraternity’s letters known. Eric Cuevas of Phi Kappa Psi brought his fraternity’s house puppy to the Gamma Phi house to play with, Spencer Orofino of Lambda Chi Alpha wrote a rap and recited it to the sorority and Max Lehman of Sigma Chi brought the ladies some morning coffee.

“He took her all over the house, so everyone got to see her,” said Crescent Classic committee member, Bayley Azevedo, of Phi Kappa Psi’s puppy. “When he left, everyone was still talking about it. It was so endearing.”

Besides showering them with puppies and treats, Crescent Court allows the women of Gamma Phi to spread awareness of their Crescent Classic throughout fraternity life.

Crescent Court and Crescent Ball are separate from Gamma Phi’s philanthropic event, Annual Crescent Classic, but still a vital part of their philanthropy.

Annual Crescent Classic is an all-you-can-eat pancake feed sponsored by Dutch Bros., with all proceeds going to benefit girls from Camp Fire USA. The event also includes a raffle, a performance by On the Rocks and a game that involves eating a donut on a string.

The fourteenth annual Crescent Classic will be open to the public on Thursday, March 7 from 6-9 p.m. at Gamma Phi Beta Sorority. Tickets are $4 in advance and $5 at the door.