On Sept. 19, the sisters of Kappa Alpha Theta sorority will be welcome to move into the first official Theta house at the University of Oregon since the sorority chartered in January 2012. So far, 50 sisters are scheduled to live in the house that holds up to 57 residents.
The house was spotted by Theta’s national headquarters last September after Phi Delta Theta fraternity moved out. From there, the executive board of Theta at the UO decided to move forward with the acquisition.
Theta CEO Candice Harbour believes that the home will bring Theta sisters closer together.
“Right now we’re all separated in terms of spatial composition. Being able to see everyone every day regularly, I think that will help me build a strong relationship with the chapter as a whole,” Harbour said.
The house is located just off campus on 15th Avenue and Kincaid Street, which provides easy campus access for sisters of Theta as well as their visitors.
“I think for me, just being able to have a place where I can go and be with my sisters and hang out with them, just have movie nights and eat together — it will be just kind of a fun little escape to go hang out,” Theta sister Courtney King said.
In addition to providing a home for the members to reside, fraternity and sorority houses offer a landmark for the rest of campus and a place to conduct chapter meetings. But for members such as Harbour, living in is a once-in-a-lifetime bonding experience.
“I’m really looking forward to meeting new women and becoming closer with them, just because I have 150 sisters, so it was hard to create those strong bonds,” Harbour said. “I think by living in, it will be a lot easier just because I can walk down the hallway and just have like an impromptu dance party or something like that.”
Before spontaneous dance parties are realized for the sisters of Theta, the house must be prepared over the course of the summer.
Renovations have already commenced as the front porch is currently being re-poured with concrete to be smoothed and shined so that it resembles slate. In addition to the porch, new carpets will be laid, the walls will be freshened with paint and the bathrooms will be transformed. Harbour hopes that the steps taken with the house right now will create a lasting effect for Theta at the UO.
“I hope that by having this facility we’ll be able to create a longer and stronger legacy on this campus, so that’s what I’m looking forward to the most is just being able to come back 15 years from now and see Theta’s house, wherever it may be, and just see how that’s impacted our image and our sisterhood,” Harbour said.