Leaving behind a positive legacy is one of the greatest accomplishments a college student can achieve. Chris Flannery is the president and a founding father of Delta Tau Delta (DTD), The College of New Jersey’s newest fraternity. Flannery and his brothers are taking strides to build their reputation on campus and generate more opportunities for those who wish to get involved in Greek life.
With increasing class sizes each year at TCNJ, Flannery believes in the greater need for Greek organizations on campus. “We hope to offer our members superior leadership training as well as social opportunities that you just won’t find outside of Greek life.”
Flannery, a junior, interactive multimedia major from Kinnelon, N.J. was one of the last men in DTD to be formally recruited. His final decision to join was influenced by the caliber of men he would be surrounded by. “There is not a single man in Delta Tau Delta who is not worthy of carrying the letters.”
Membership boasts over 90 men with a cumulative GPA of 3.3. Members are also highly involved on campus and are looking to continue this tradition through philanthropic endeavors and collaborations.
Although DTD is not currently funded, the organization has big plans to contribute to their national philanthropy, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Members of DTD stay involved with other organizations’ philanthropy projects on campus, including Phi Kappa Tau’s donation collection for the Wounded Warrior Project and Sigma Kappa’s B+ for Cancer Research.
Flannery dedicates a lot of time to making sure DTD becomes a fully-fledged chapter and is working to fulfill requirements so that the fraternity will be chartered by next year. “In the meantime, we’re networking like crazy, setting goals for academics, philanthropy, service and social events and creating a positive name for ourselves both on and off campus.”
Flannery has a wide array of interests, juggling involvement as a member of the College Union Board’s executive board, holding an executive board position on the Association for Music Production & Discussion, participating as a member of Pi Sigma Epsilon Business Fraternity, TCNJ Mobile Applications Development Club, playing in a punk band and doing freelance graphic design work on the side. Simultaneously, Flannery finds time to kick start the new fraternity. There are weekdays where Flannery will attend 7 or 8 meetings in a row; however, he already finds the work extremely rewarding.
“I honestly like work – I like having a full plate. I’m looking forward to the business and leadership opportunities. It’s a really exciting prospect to be able to essentially build an organization from scratch. I think one of the best things about being a founding father is the idea that I’m going to have an opportunity to be involved at TCNJ for the rest of my life if I so choose.”
Flannery emphasizes that DTD’s goal is to add to Greek life on campus. He also expresses the organization’s focus on “integrity, accountability, opportunity, growth, leadership and academics.” Flannery stresses that DTD does not place importance on “drugs, alcohol or hazing.”
On the topic of Greek life, Flannery “would encourage anybody who considers himself or herself a social person to explore Greek life.”