Ball State University has started to bend the rules on sorority housing.
Since the 1950s, a pact of sisterhood kept sororities from building houses until every chapter on campus could afford it.
However, when five sororities' suites were torn down during the DeHority Complex redesign, accommodations for sorority housing had to be made.
Assistant Director of Student Life Cara Luyster said formal conversations between sorority members, advisors and alumni began in 2007.
"In the midst of this bigger project, finding a place for them took a lot of our time," she said.
Luyster said the university's strategic plan addresses a potential need for sorority housing and the idea for housing first came from administrators.
Sigma Kappa president Maureen Leyden believes sorority housing will help the Greek population grow.
"Because we don't have a Greek village, people from other colleges don't think we have a true representation," she said.
Sigma Kappa is one of four sororities that have houses paid for by the university. The fifth sorority, Alpha Phi, moved to an empty suite in Woodworth Complex.
Luyster said the Sorority Village Planning Team is working with an architecture student to determine what amenities the girls would be interested in.
"We want a design that adds to the sorority experience," she said.
The four sororities with houses on Riverside Ave. are Kappa Delta, Phi Mu, Alpha Gamma Delta and Sigma Kappa.
The planning team isn't sure how to address the issue of funding, said Leyden, and the university is not involved in financial operations.
Phi Mu president Jenny Johnson said the houses are small, and their chapter meetings are still held on campus.
"When real sorority housing becomes possible, we'll support it," she said. "We have money from the national chapter set aside if housing ever becomes an option."
Leyden said new members of Sigma Kappa have to pay a housing and furnishing fee for whenever housing becomes available.
"Our house is so small, I don't consider it an actual sorority house," she said. "But it's a nice meeting place."
President of Alpha Omicron Pi Meagan Tuttle said she prefers Ball State's sorority life because they don't have housing.
"I think the chapter has mixed feelings," she said. "In fraternities, leaders and advisors can become like landlords, having to deal with maintenance stuff. But suites are very low key."
Luyster believes enough information has been gathered, and the next step is to compare cost to on-campus housing.
"From what I can see, there appears to be interest and excitement," she said.
Kappa Delta and Panhellenic Council president Amanda Hendrix said looking into sorority houses is a step in the right direction.
"It's an opportunity for us to better ourselves, but there's still a lot of things that are undecided."
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