This piece is from 2021-2022 Annual Report, to read the issue and subscribe to The Laurel click here.
By Dalton Lee, Baldwin Wallace ’11, and Charlie Ball, Miami ’82
Beta chapter house at Ohio University.
One of the most significant ways the Phi Kappa Tau Foundation supports local chapters is through educational housing grants. While the Foundation cannot fund chapter house projects entirely, donors may support portions of chapter houses which are considered educational. Sometimes, this can account for forty percent or more of a house’s construction, renovation and ongoing operating expenses.
For chapters that are housed, having a safe, comfortable facility that is conducive to the living-learning experience of study and chapter activities is a key component to an outstanding Phi Tau experience. First-quality housing also assures the competitiveness of our chapters in recruiting future Men of Distinction. Chapter housing must be competitive with other Greek housing and the increasing variety of college and university housing and dining options.
Gamma chapter house at The Ohio State University.
In recent years, the Foundation has played important roles in providing a tax-deductible conduit for contributions to critical housing upgrades and construction projects. The Foundation partnered with two of our oldest chapters, Beta at Ohio University and Gamma at Ohio State to complete significant modernizations and improvements to iconic houses that were showing signs of age and are now providing a competitive edge to those chapters.
Upsilon-Nebraska Wesleyan University
At the Upsilon Chapter at Nebraska Wesleyan University, renovation of their National Register of Historic Places-listed home was spurred by a tragedy. Warren Mattox, Nebraska Wesleyan ’69, recounts the story of the November 17, 2006, fire that broke out in the Upsilon Chapter house, resulting in the death of Ryan Stewart, Nebraska Wesleyan ‘06 and the critical injury of three others. Mattox (now Vice Chairman of the Phi Kappa Tau Foundation board) assumed a leadership role in reviving the chapter and rebuilding and improving the historic chapter house. Joined by John Green, Nebraska Wesleyan’60, Bill Bowmaster, Nebraska Wesleyan’53, and many other alumni volunteers, the group set out to raise the funds to rebuild. With the help of capital campaign consultants, Pennington and Company, the group was able to raise an additional $380,000 for their project through the Foundation. Now, as they near their centennial celebration, the men of the Upsilon are also celebrating ten years of a fresh start and new home with significant educational and safety improvements.
Kappa-University of Kentucky
Kappa chapter house at the University of Kentucky.
At the University of Kentucky, the campaign to build a brand-new Kappa Chapter house began with an unexpected and dramatic challenge from the parents of a new member. Following the chapter’s closure in 1990, the university demolished the distinctive house that had been Kappa’s home since 1966 in order to build a new library. When the chapter was rechartered, they purchased a much smaller house, far away from the prominent location they had enjoyed. Though the chapter prospered, winning the Maxwell Award in 2008, their housing remained uncompetitive with the top UK fraternities.
In 2018, Darryl and Theresa Isaacs, parents of Lee Isaacs, Kentucky ‘18, approached the chapter with a challenge to make a major gift toward a new house if it could be completed by their son’s senior year. With the support of the Foundation, the local house corporation, led by Rob Lyons, Kentucky ‘96, and Patrick Keal Kentucky ‘04, jumped headlong into architectural design, fundraising and financing to meet the challenge. Construction of the impressive 55-man house was completed on-time and under budget, despite the constraints of building and occupying a new chapter house in a global pandemic. So far, gifts and pledges from Kappa alumni, parents, and the Isaacs family, which now includes a second Kappa member, Nathaniel, have allowed the Foundation to support about one-third of the $6 million project cost.
Alpha Chi-Mississippi State University
Barry Toney, Mississippi State ’85, has been the driving force behind the housing project at his chapter. Soon after he graduated, Toney donated to a campaign for a new house in the early 90’s. Eventually, a house was built on sorority row, but the celebration was short lived. The Alpha Chi Chapter closed in 1997, and the housing corporation was forced to sell the new house. In 2014, the chapter began anew, and Toney got involved with the Board of Governors and the journey to build a new house began.
The re-chartered chapter was able to lease an existing fraternity house in Fall 2017, but with an eye to the long-term security of the chapter, the house corporation began a major fund-raising campaign. Campaign chairman, Bill Jones, Mississippi State ‘60, has personally made a series of challenge gifts to match the contributions of Alpha Chi members which have resulted in total gifts and pledges of $1.53 million to date. These funds are ready when the house corporation decides to purchase and renovate an existing house or to build new.
Foundation staff are working in partnership with dedicated alumni volunteers from several other chapters who are in the planning stages of housing projects to assure the comfort, safety, and competitiveness of their chapters. To learn more about ways to support your chapter or how chapters can benefit from housing funds at the Foundation, contact Foundation director Charlie Ball at cball@phikappatau.org.