University of Missouri Since Zeta Phi’s founding in 1890, the alumni have historically built a new chapter house about every 50 years. This time, the house corporation asked the selected architect to “build us the finest fraternity house in North America.” On September 7, 2012, 700 Betas and guests gathered in Columbia for the dedication of the newly constructed chapter house. It was quite obvious to all in attendance that Zeta Phi achieved its goal.
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THE BETA THETA PI WINTER 2013
“As university housing upgraded during the past 10 years, it became apparent we needed to look to a new house,” said House Corporation President John Hofman, Missouri ’82. “If we’re going to compete for the best and brightest students, we have to have a competitive facility.”
different expectations Plans for the new house began to take shape in 2005, when chapter members raised issues about the condition of the house. A small group of alumni formed a steering committee to explore options. Like many other campuses, housing was becoming increasingly competitive at Mizzou. With upgraded residence halls on campus, and luxury apartments off-campus, housing competition was becoming heated, placing many fraternity houses at a disadvantage. Students were arriving at Mizzou with different expectations for housing than previous generations. “It wasn’t long ago when a typical student coming from St. Louis grew up in a 2,000-square-foot house, sharing his bedroom with a brother or sister and a bathroom with his entire family. Today, their homes are double the size, and they’ve never shared a room, much less a bathroom,” said House Corporation Board Member John Hillhouse, Missouri ’69.
Hillhouse added, “When the university stepped up their [housing] game, we wanted to provide a facility the chapter deserved. We wanted a great facility that projected an image that Betas were no slouchers.”
a Committee with a Vision A handful of alumni, including Hillhouse, Hofman, Bill Toalson ’70, and David Spence ’80, formed the steering committee and began conversations with other Betas about the need to either renovate or rebuild. Early on, the house corporation board retained the services of Pennington & Company, a firm that specializes in fraternal fundraising. Pennington conducted the feasibility study and met with alumni to assess their interest and commitment. Recognizing the need to provide a living and learning experience with appropriate technology capability, sufficient individual and group study space, and sleeping facilities that were up to safety codes and met student desires, alumni overwhelmingly concluded a new house was needed. When the financial crisis hit in 2008, construction was deferred. Planning remained and Zeta Phi alumni leaders continued to seek support from other alumni for this important initiative. Not everyone