Founding Date

Apr 11th, 1970

Frank C. Ball and his brothers purchased the land of the failed private teaching college in Muncie, Indiana and gifted the land to the state. This gift became the Indiana State Normal School Eastern Division, which opened in 1918 to meet Indiana’s need for more and better teachers. In recognition of the Ball family’s generosity, the Indiana General Assembly changed the school's name to Ball Teachers College in 1922 and then Ball State Teachers College in 1929. In 1965, the Indiana General Assembly renamed the college Ball State University, acknowledging its phenomenal growth in enrollment and facilities, the variety and quality of its educational programs and services, and the anticipation of the broader role it would play in the state’s future. The local sorority Sigma Beta Chi formed on January 17, 1966. They were officially recognized by the University in May of 1967 and were given approval in the spring of 1969 from the Panhellenic Council to seek national affiliation. After considering other groups, the women of Sigma Beta Chi voted to petition Delta Gamma for a charter and were notified on October 16, 1969 that the Fraternity had accepted their petition. The Delta Xi chapter of Delta Gamma was established on November 9, 1969 with 45 collegiate and alumnae women of Sigma Beta Chi forming the founding member class. The Installation festivities were held on the weekend of April 10-12, 1970. Friday night featured an informal get together for Fraternity guests and the women of the Delta Xi colony. Initiation was held late Saturday afternoon at the Teachers College and was conducted by women of Alpha Tau-Butler. The Installation banquet was held that evening at Van-Orman Roberts Hotel. A reception was held Sunday afternoon at the Terrace Lounge of the Student Union. Fraternity guests, University officials, parents, and students alike were invited to welcome Delta Gamma to campus and to introduce the Delta Xi chapter to the University. Due to an on-campus environment not suitable for Delta Gamma Fraternity, the Delta Xi chapter voted to relinquish their charter and Council accepted this decision, effective after the end of the spring semester of 1985. In the spring of 1973, the Delta Xi chapter occupied a suite in the Dehority Complex on campus. The suite was renovated in the fall of 1979. The chapter held a ribbon cutting ceremony in the fall of 1981 for the newly renovated suite, which featured a stained-glass window with an anchor in the middle.