This week is the start of a new beginning for the incoming members of Northern Kentucky University’s Greek Life, as they officially joined their chapters for both fraternities and sororities.
Both the Infraternity and Panhellenic Councils reported that the 2026 school year has seen the most sign-ups for NKU’s Greek Life in years, with the total member count being roughly 300.
While Sunday’s runoff itself did not start until later in the evening, existing members of sororities were on campus setting up their chapters’ themed bid rooms – a place where new members would hang out after the runoff event.
Other members of the sororities joined the existing fraternities in setting up the lawn outside for the runoff, while new members attended their welcome presentations.
After new members opened their bids, the various sororities began to make a walk out to the Griffin lawn where the newbies would ‘run home’ to the chapter to mark their official acceptance into Greek Life. New members were accompanied by their Panhellatic Council and Gamma Chi recruitment officers, chanting their chapter chant all the way down to the lawn, waiting to begin their run. The sororities kicked off the festivities, followed by their Gamma Chi’s, Panhellenic council and closed off with the fraternities running home.
Gabrielle Kreidler, Kappa Delta’s vice president of recruitment marketing, said sororities at NKU are not like those at the big SEC schools where things are competitive, but rather the community is “much more supportive.”
“My favorite part is the leadership opportunities, it really helps you grow into a better leader,” she said.
All the sororities share the notion of sisterhood and the idea of growth as they welcome new members into their chapter. For Delta Gamma’s president, Kendall Romito, that message is crucial.
“I am just hoping they know that they can thrive here and just grow into the best characters and just learn what Delta Gamma is all about–that they can just be authentically themselves,” Romito said.
The notion of community was not exclusive to the sorority side during the event. The Fraternity Brotherhood was also presented the event with their new members joining.
“ The personal bonds with everybody else is one of the biggest things,” said Ian Ransom, a new member of Theta Chi.
Alex Collins, the Interfraternity Council President shared his biggest hopes that by the time new members become seniors they will be able to pass down that community to future members.
“This big class has a lot of kids with good heads on their shoulders. I have talked to a lot of them–really building that culture of interfaternal trust” he said. “I think one thing we lack in right now is bonds between fraternities, I know that sororities are really good at it, but fraternities can be really clique-y sometimes, like you don’t want to go outside your own , so to kinda try to break that stigma and have these new guys be close with the other new guys.”
Despite the excited camaraderie of welcoming sisterhood and brotherhood alike, the event did not go without a few accidents. There were reportedly four ambulances called to the campus; responding to two Phi Kappa Alpha men hurt in a dog pile and a sorority woman who reportedly passed out.