When we planned the spring 2020 issue of the Digital Deltan, we wanted to provide an overview of the state of college campuses today. We planned to tell you about the amazing work our chapters are doing when it comes to hate prevention and sexual assault awareness. We wanted you to learn more about housing struggles on campuses today and how ZBT National Housing is working to help brothers have a place to call home. And we thought it was important to share an overview of fraternity and sorority life in our country and what our government and institutions are doing to eradicate hazing.

Those topics are so important, and we are excited for you to dive deeper into them, but today, we have a different overall state of the college campus. We are faced with a circumstance that we’ve never faced before, COVID-19 (Coronavirus). Many of our undergraduate brothers have been sent home from school, with colleges and universities moving operations and coursework online to help stop the spread of the virus. Chapter events, educational workshops, alumni reunions and philanthropy events have been canceled or postponed indefinitely. Alumni and undergraduate brothers are in a holding period, unsure if they will be able to return to work or school this spring and feeling unsettled about the future.

On a national level, Supreme Council, Zeta Beta Foundation, ZBT Housing and respective staffs are working tirelessly to support our brothers and our community. Our staff liaisons are working daily to ensure chapter presidents feel prepared to lead their chapters during this challenging time. Staff members are in constant contact with chapter advisors and chapter leadership to help think of creative ways to continue cultivating brotherhood when it is needed most. Recruitment, the lifeblood of the fraternity, is still top of mind, with staff members leading remote recruitment workshops and helping undergraduate brothers navigate this new normal.

While this is undoubtedly a trying time for all of us in the United States and around the world, now more than ever, family, friends and fraternity brothers are important. Community, even if we may be unable to gather in groups, is more important than ever, and we see no stronger community than the brotherhood of Zeta Beta Tau. With that in mind, enjoy this look into the state of our Fraternity.