The History Of Zeta Beta Tau
Zeta Beta Tau Fraternity was inspired by Richard J. H. Gottheil, a professor of languages at Columbia University and a leader in the early American Zionist movement. On December 29, 1898, Professor Gottheil gathered together a group of Jewish students from several New York City universities to form a Zionist youth society. The society was called Z.B.T.
During this brief period, the society came to serve as a kind of fraternal body for college students who, as Jews, were excluded from joining existing fraternities because of the sectarian practices which prevailed at the end of the nineteenth century in the United States. The continuing need for a Greek-letter fraternity open to Jewish students prompted Z.B.T. to change its raison d'etre, structure and emphasis and to become Zeta Beta Tau in 1906.
Zeta Beta Tau expanded rapidly. By 1909, it had established 13 Chapters throughout the Northeast and a 14th at Tulane University at New Orleans, thereby taking on a truly national dimension. In 1913, it established its first Canadian Chapter at McGill University in Montreal. Five years later, it founded its first West Coast Chapter at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. At the 1954 National Convention, the delegates amended Zeta Beta Tau's Constitution, ritual and internal procedures both in theory and in practice to eliminate sectarianism as a qualification for membership. From 1945 to 1969, the number of ZBT chapters increased from 30 to 80 units.
The history of mergers in the Zeta Beta Tau Brotherhood followed a pattern of linking common traditions. In 1959, Phi Alpha merged into Phi Sigma Delta, and in 1961 Kappa Nu merged into Phi Epsilon Pi. In 1969-70, Phi Sigma Delta and Phi Epsilon Pi merged into Zeta Beta Tau.
During the 1980's, every Greek-letter group continued their efforts to stop hazing. Despite ZBT's best efforts, hazing continued and increased in frequency and severity. ZBT concluded that all efforts to reform the institution of pledging had failed; pledging was the problem. This was because pledges were considered second-class citizens, with no rights and no chance to refuse even the most outrageous demands of a Brother, unless he quit the Fraternity. In 1989, in a last-ditch effort to eliminate hazing, ZBT eliminated pledging and all second-class status from the Fraternity. In its place, ZBT established a Brotherhood Program, with minimum standards (Brotherhood Quality Standards), as well as programs of education, bonding, and earning one's Brotherhood status that applied to all Brothers of ZBT.
Today, the merged Zeta Beta Tau Brotherhood is some 110,000 Brothers strong, and ZBT Chapters and Colonies are established at over 80 campus locations. Through good times and bad, ZBT has been in the forefront in pioneering new concepts - as evidenced by its very founding, its elimination of sectarian membership practices, its acceptance of mergers, its elimination of pledging, and its ability to solve enormous problems when others abandoned the effort. ZBT continues to maintain a tradition of leadership and respect in the interfraternity world.
Zeta Beta Tau at Florida State
Zeta Beta Tau was first established at Florida State in 1988, and was part of the campus community until 1994. ZBT was re-established as the Zeta Alpha Colony by Darrell Henry in 1998. Through the years ZBT has maintained its independent status as “the different fraternity”. With year round rush, and no threat of pledging or hazing, the brothers of Zeta Alpha take pride in not only being different, but leading.