Category Archives: University of Illinois

Van Lingle Mungo to Start the Baseball Season

Jazz pianist Dave Frishberg wrote one of my favorite baseball songs. Frishberg first wrote a melody, but was having a hard time coming up with lyrics. While looking though a baseball encyclopedia, he happened on the name of Van Lingle Mungo, a … Continue reading

Posted in Fran Favorite, Phi Sigma Kappa, University of Illinois, University of Michigan | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Van Lingle Mungo to Start the Baseball Season

Gamma Phi Beta’s Founders’ Day and Its Only Chapter Founded by a Founder

A church oyster supper was the first social event Frances Haven (Moss) attended after enrolling in Syracuse University in 1874. Her father, Dr. Erastus Otis Haven, had been recently elected Chancellor of the university. At that supper, she met the … Continue reading

Posted in Founders' Day, Fran Favorite, Gamma Phi Beta, GLO, Greek-letter Organization, Greek-letter Organization History, National Panhellenic Conference, Sorority History, Syracuse University, University of Illinois, Women's Fraternity History | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Gamma Phi Beta’s Founders’ Day and Its Only Chapter Founded by a Founder

Book Sale Trivia – Illini Style

This past weekend was spent working at the Friends of the Library book sale. Every now and then, while straightening up, I’d find an interesting book. The 2003 Illio, the University of Illinois yearbook, suddenly appeared and, of course, I … Continue reading

Posted in Fran Favorite, GLO, Greek-letter Organization, Greek-letter Organization History, Pi Beta Phi, The Arrow of Pi Beta Phi, Theta Xi, University of Illinois, Yale University | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Book Sale Trivia – Illini Style

A Bishop’s Role in NPC History – Theta Phi Alpha, 8/30/1912

A few men have had roles in the founding of National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) women’s fraternities/sororities. Dr. Wellesley P. Coddington, George Banta, and Dr. Charles Richardson are some that quickly come to mind. Of that small fraternity of men involved in … Continue reading

Posted in Fran Favorite, GLO, Greek-letter Organization, Greek-letter Organization History, National Panhellenic Conference, Sorority History, Theta Phi Alpha, University of Illinois, University of Michigan | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on A Bishop’s Role in NPC History – Theta Phi Alpha, 8/30/1912

“The Best Man/Woman in the Chapter” With Thoughts of Thomas Arkle Clark

One of my all-time favorite magazines is Banta’s Greek Exchange. Sadly, it has not been published since 1973. For 60 years Banta’s Greek Exchange printed information from fraternity and sorority magazines along with feature articles and other items of interest to … Continue reading

Posted in Alpha Phi, Alpha Phi Quarterly, Alpha Tau Omega, Fran Favorite, GLO, Greek-letter Organization, Greek-letter Organization History, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, University of Illinois, Women's Fraternity History | Tagged , , | Comments Off on “The Best Man/Woman in the Chapter” With Thoughts of Thomas Arkle Clark

“He Who Enters Selfishly Here – Endangers” Dean Maria Leonard on Fraternity Life, 1938

“He who enters selfishly here – endangers” is the quote from University of Illinois Dean of Women Maria Leonard which appears on a small card titled “A Code.” It was found in a 1938 scrapbook put together by a young … Continue reading

Posted in Butler University, Conventions, Fran Favorite, Fraternity meetings, GLO, Greek-letter Organization, Pi Beta Phi, Sorority History, Student Life and Culture Archival Program, University of Illinois, Women's Fraternity History | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on “He Who Enters Selfishly Here – Endangers” Dean Maria Leonard on Fraternity Life, 1938

Happy Founders’ Day to FarmHouse and Triangle Fraternities, 2 of the 3 NIC Organizations Without Greek Letters

Acacia, FarmHouse and Triangle Fraternities are the only members of the North-American Interfraternity Conference (NIC) that do not use Greek-letters. The latter two celebrate Founders’ Day on the same day. What’s also interesting to note is that both were formed … Continue reading

Posted in FarmHouse, Founders' Day, GLO, Greek-letter Organization, Greek-letter Organization History, NIC, North-American Interfraternity Conference, Triangle, University of Illinois, University of Missouri | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Happy Founders’ Day to FarmHouse and Triangle Fraternities, 2 of the 3 NIC Organizations Without Greek Letters

Champaign’s Virginia Theater – Home of Ebertfest

(This blog was posted a week or so before Roger Ebert’s death. I am so sorry to hear of his passing. I also discovered that a P.E.O. friend and Knox College alumna was Ebert’s childhood friend and neighbor. What a … Continue reading

Posted in Beta Theta Pi, GLO, Greek-letter Organization, Greek-letter Organization History, Kappa Kappa Gamma, Kappa Sigma, National Panhellenic Conference, Phi Beta Kappa, Phi Delta Theta, Pi Beta Phi, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, The Arrow of Pi Beta Phi, University of Illinois | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Champaign’s Virginia Theater – Home of Ebertfest

NPC Organizations That No Longer Exist; A Reflection on International Badge Day

The National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) celebrates International Badge Day on the first Monday in March. NPC asks its members to “Wear Your Letters on Your Heart.” Men’s fraternities and other Greek-letter organizations have joined in on the fun. The more the merrier, … Continue reading

Posted in Alpha Phi, Alpha Sigma Alpha, Association of Education Sororities, Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities, Delta Zeta, George Washington University, GLO, Greek-letter Organization, Greek-letter Organization History, Hunter College, Miami University, National Panhellenic Conference, Phi Mu, Sigma Kappa, Sorority History, Southern Illinois University Carbondale, The Phoenix of Alpha Sigma Alpha, Thiel College, University of California, University of California at Berkeley, University of Illinois, University of Missouri, Women's Fraternity History, Zeta Tau Alpha | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on NPC Organizations That No Longer Exist; A Reflection on International Badge Day

“My Sorority,” A Surprise Gift

A surprise gift from my Alpha Gamma Delta and P.E.O. friend, Nann Blaine Hilyard, set me on a quest to find out more about her delightful gift. It was wrapped in star paper and tied with a yellow ribbon, harkening, … Continue reading

Posted in American Association of University Women, GLO, Greek-letter Organization, Greek-letter Organization History, P.E.O., Pi Beta Phi, Sigma Chi, Sorority History, University of Illinois, Women's Fraternity History | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on “My Sorority,” A Surprise Gift