Phi Mu - University of Arkansas

Alpha Beta Chapter of P hi Mu Our Needs W hile the Phi Mu experience is certainly more than the physical structure of a chapter house, a home for our chapter will undoubtedly play a significant role in the development of our sisters and serve as a proud symbol of our shared values and goals. With the significant growth of the University, outlined below, many sororities have renovated or rebuilt. Phi Mu has been among the top chapters at Arkansas, and we must acknowledge and address the changing housing trends to remain competitive. In order to remain a top-tier sorority at Arkansas, we must make an investment in our growing membership and provide a quality living-learning environment for our Phi Mu sisterhood to grow. University Expansion and the Growing Demand for Greek Life The University of Arkansas has grown substantially in recent years. In 2015, the University saw a record enrollment of 26,754 students. Greek life at Arkansas is also at an all-time high as 1 in every 4 Razorbacks is Greek, and the total Greek population has grown by 75% since 2011. For the past few years, sorority recruitment (rush) numbers have been among the highest in the nation, and our new member classes have increased significantly over the past five years. As the University of Arkansas continues to attract top students who excel in and out of the classroom, the pool of women wanting the leadership, service, and social opportunities sororities offer is expanding exponentially. Alpha Beta has more than 440 active members today, and we anticipate that number to steadily increase over the next several years. We know that connecting in the chapter house is critical to establishing a lifelong commitment to Phi Mu. Our home needs enough meeting, dining, and community space to accommodate both our live-in and live-out members. A Traditional Home with a Competitive Edge The University of Arkansas is as academically challenging as ever and the need for enhanced, quiet, well-lit, and comfortable study spaces is necessary for our members to achieve high academic success. Infrastructure, efficiency, and amenity upgrades must also be made to accommodate our ever-growing membership and their use of technology. In order to remain a scholastic leader at Arkansas and within the Greek community, we must ensure that Alpha Beta can compete with new on-campus residence halls and other updated sororities. There has never been a more perfect time for Alpha Beta to blaze a new trail and set ourselves apart from other chapters at Arkansas. The growing demand for Greek life and the needs of today's student converge to create an urgent need to build a new home. For Phi Mu to remain the premier sorority at the University of Arkansas, we must construct a facility to attract the quality of women we have called our sisters since 1923.

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