Cross & Crescent

In November 1910, a group of 10 undergraduates met at the home of Florence (F. W.) Anderson. In the first written minutes they stated they “were interested in the formation of a new secret society.” Anderson became No. 1 on the roles of the new fraternity, Phi Alpha Sigma, and William Melcher became its first president.

These men, joined by two others later in the month, set their standard as high academic success, expanded campus involvement, and diversity of collegiate interests that would be a hallmark for the descendants of this fraternity. This standard was accomplished as Melcher was editor-in-chief of the Drury Mirror, the campus newspaper; another member was president of the Drury Scientific Association; another the business manager of the Sou’wester, the school yearbook; still another the sophomore class president; and others were varsity athletes.

By 1924, after several failed attempts to affiliate with a national fraternity, Phi Alpha Sigma joined with other local fraternities to form Theta Kappa Nu. The meeting took place on the Drury campus with Otho McAtee being one of the primary organizers of these efforts. McAtee is credited as one of the founders of Theta Kappa Nu and became its first Grand Scribe.

The chapter house in 1924 was located at 848 N. Benton. The Drury University newspaper introduced the new chapter of Theta Kappa Nu by detailing its history: “Phi Alpha Sigma has long been prominent in the campus life at Drury, being well represented in scholastic honors, athletics and class offices. It was formed in 1910 by a small group of college men with high ideals and ambitions, and during the fourteen years ensuing has continuously raised its standards.”

In 1932 the TKN chapter absorbed the local Delta Gamma Chi. This had two immediate impacts; 19 new men were initiated into TKN and the former Delta Gamma Chi house at 1360 N. Benton became the new chapter house.

One of the 19 new members was Willard Graves who became a selfless volunteer for the fraternity, working as chapter adviser and who would later (1958) be awarded Lambda Chi Alpha’s Order of Merit.

Of course the 1930s also saw the merger with Lambda Chi Alpha in 1939. Two members of TKN at Drury played significant roles in this event. Dr. George Van Feist was initiated into Phi Alpha Sigma in 1917 and would become the Grand Archon of Theta Kappa Nu in 1935, then serve as Grand High Pi from 1942 to 1946. Ben A. Parnell, Jr. would become the third traveling secretary of Lambda Chi Alpha following the merger.

Today the president of Drury University is Ben A. ‘Todd’ Parnell III (1966) and he states, “The Greek system produces leaders – leaders in philanthropy, in education, in business, and in every other field. As I look at the vast majority of volunteers who contribute so much to Drury with their talent and financial resources, I see their Greek affiliations as a common thread. Fraternity and sorority involvement instills in all of us a rich sense of history and a commitment to giving back, and a large part of Drury’s success is owed to the current and former Greeks who continue to be so deeply engaged with our University.”

Brother Parnell’s words are very accurate in describing Lambda Chi Alpha’s outstanding and unmatched commitment to Drury University over the past 100 years. Twenty-four brothers have been recognized as recipients of the Drury University Alumni Achievement Award and three others have been inducted into the Drury University Athletic Hall of Fame.

Lambda Chi Alpha has been represented continuously on the Drury University Board of Trustees since 1942 with the election of Frederick Shelton (1916), followed by 33 additional brothers. Clyde Kennedy (1923) was elected the Student Body President and he has been followed by 24 others, including the last three.

Christopher Swan (1997) is the current president of the Alumni Association and he has joined 21 other brothers who have served in that position. One brother, Aaron D. Jones (1995), has served in each of these capacities as well as High Alpha. Aaron has also authored a book, Naught Without Labor, published in 2003, which captures the history of this outstanding chapter from 1910 to 1950. It is a must read for all brothers!

Jordan Fry is the chapter president of our Drury chapter. “Presently we are the largest fraternity chapter on campus with 55 men, 18 of whom are associate members. We aren’t about numbers, we are about ‘doing.’”

That is apparent when we see that the chapter’s cumulative GPA is 3.45, which has been accomplished without requiring study hours for the brothers. Eighty percent of the chapter is involved in an organization outside of the chapter led by Evan Campbell, Zebulon Smith, and Blake Bodendorfer who serve as SGA Senators; Zach Cinkosky and Chris Richards who serve on the Student Union Board; and Fry who is on the Executive Committee of the Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE), one of six Lambda Chi’s participating in this entity. Over the past three years the brothers have collected over 150,000 pounds for the Ozarks Food Harvest as part of their participation in the North American Food Drive.

Consistency of quality of member should be every chapter’s goal. Fry referenced the chapter’s focus on their strategic plan:

“For us the quest for the ‘best of the best’ incoming freshmen begins in May when the university provides us with a list of incoming freshmen. Using this list we send a note and scholarship availability notice to each of the men and a letter introducing the fraternity to the parents. Over the past seven years the chapter has awarded over $35,000 in Patrick Barrett Scholarships (named after a former chapter president who was killed by a drunk driver) to freshmen regardless of whether or not they join Lambda Chi. We then travel throughout the state visiting these men and their parents. The top men we meet are invited to visit the chapter house during their campus orientation tour. In addition, they are invited to attend a weekend leadership retreat. The facilitator of this retreat is Dr. Shawn Usery, an IMPACT trainer and former member of the Grand High Zeta, as well as Drury professors and the University president. We use team building exercises; have simulations of leadership challenges for both inside and outside the chapter; emphasize our very strong mentoring programs; and the attendees also learn Lambda Chi Alpha’s Core Values. At the end of the weekend we have identified the men who will continue our tradition of leadership on the Drury campus.”

Jordan then addressed the challenge of building a top performing team year after year. “The chapter views fraternity education as an opportunity at team building. Everyone, actives and associate members, go through everything together. It takes place once a week and the education is written by chapter brothers. This transitioning of associate members re-invigorates the entire chapter. We want to recreate the freshman experience. During this process we have deep conversations and the symbolism is never lost. I personally feel the pressure to sustain our leadership position because I remember the brothers who gave this great experience to me.

“The University views Lambda Chi Alpha as an asset. We maintain high performance with open communication with the administrators. We are open-minded to their input and we view them as a resource. They are vital to our sustainability.”

In 2006, Ron Neville, chapter adviser, received Lambda Chi Alpha’s Order of Merit. As a result of his exceptional efforts to promote the Greek system on the Drury campus, the university has established the Ronald A. Neville Outstanding Greek Service Scholarship that is awarded annually. Fry comments, “Lambda Chi Alpha is blessed to have so many outstanding alumni who contribute their time and talents to our chapter, but none is more outstanding that Ron Neville. He is the most supportive, genuine, down-to-earth, selfless, volunteer and consistent father figure who makes an effort to know each brother.”

One statement made by Fry represents the spirit and confidence this chapter has in continued excellence: “We are constantly seeking new ways to attain a perfect Brotherhood – Brotherly Love. In 2008, the chapter received the Grand High Alpha Award, which was very fulfilling. We gave it our best effort and whether we had won it or not, we had cultivated great men. I played a role and it was a very humbling experience and there is always more we can do.”