The Latino Fraternity Lambda Theta Phi has returned after nearly a decade of dormancy, now facing the hurdle of reestablishing the chapter from ground zero.

The Lambda Theta talent show on April 16, 2026, was filled to the brim with little to no space left, drawing 40 to 50 attendees. Weeks of outreach to different campus organizations sparked the turnout. Tapping of piano keys echoed throughout the room all night as participants displayed their talents, setting the tone for an entertaining evening. Applause followed each performance, and the crowd was lifted from their chairs after the final act.

The revival of Lambda Theta Phi Inc. is more than just bringing this student organization back to life. It showcases the real situation it has found itself in today, nearing the brink of falling to the ground. This fraternity’s story becomes an adversity story for the campus because they are climbing back up, working to build their presence all over again.

As of now, the organization has four active brothers, junior treasurer Colin Soto, sophomore president

Michael Mihalitsianos, sophomore vice president Mario Pontidis, sophomore secretary Aiden Angel, and an alumnus from 1996, Eriberto Del Valle, working together to bring this fraternity back to life. This fraternity has had significant work to accomplish throughout the school year, so the stakes are high, they are trying to increase numbers while still making a positive impact on the campus community, where a large percentage of the student body is Latino.

Soto, one of the fraternity’s newest members, joined in fall 2025 when the organization just began rebuilding, so he wasn’t present to experience the challenges of the long dormancy, but quickly learned of the inactivity from Eddie and his fellow brothers. However, since Soto joined, he has been exposed to the new hurdles of rebuilding the chapter. In an interview in the David and Lorraine Cheng Library, Soto said the chapter’s recent progress has grown with the increase in membership and engagement within the organization.

“I think it’s growing pretty smoothly. For us, we doubled in size from two to four from the fall to spring semester.”

Soto said that the organization’s growth is evident and they’re trending in the right direction with this early momentum. Still, he understands that the fraternity is still very much in the beginning of the rebuilding process.

Pontidis joined the fraternity during the spring 2025 semester. Unlike Soto, he was welcomed while the defunct period was still occurring. Pontidis got a little glimpse of what it was like to not hold any impactful events during a semester, something Lambda Theta Phi Inc. is known for, leadership and community service. Pontidis said it’s been very challenging to rebuild the fraternity chapter, with only four members, one person has to undertake multiple leadership roles.

“It’s not easy rebuilding a chapter from the ground up. It forces you to think outside the box and plan for everything way in advance. Having to attend meetings, throwing events, and showing up to other people’s events with just two people in your organization isn’t easy. We also had to split all E board positions between just the two of us.”

Pontidis’s experiences to this point highlight the reality of how difficult it is to generate recognition with only four members. Since Lambda Theta Phi Inc. is small, the responsibilities for each person are greater. The fraternity has had to delegate the leadership responsibilities, which means all hands must be on deck to keep the organization moving forward.

During the defunct period, when Lambda Theta Phi disappeared, Del Valle never let it fade. Del Valle pledged Lambda Theta Phi in 1996. Del Valle holds a position as the alumni adviser and the president of the organization’s alumni chapter, Lambda Gamma, where he oversees all the alumni in Northern New Jersey. Del Valle, 52, is also a sergeant for the Paterson Police Department. Del Valle has kept significant ties to Lambda Theta Phi Inc. as a proud active member. “I’ve never left,” said Del Valle. Throughout the dark period, Del Valle has run the fraternity independently to try to expand engagement and involvement. Del Valle said why the chapter went inactive for nearly a decade, and how he had to take charge to reestablish the chapter.

“We did go inactive because brothers graduated, and then we had no members on campus for a little bit. I took it upon myself as an alumnus and a brother of the chapter to come back and reestablish the chapter.”

Del Valle also said the struggles of independently running the chapter throughout the defunct period were an immense challenge.

“I was running from work straight to William Paterson to go to Greek Senate meetings, to support other organizations on campus so that I could have support. And at that point in time, I was creating events on campus.”

Another interesting piece to this story with Lambda Theta Phi, since the fraternity has been back on campus throughout this academic year, there’s one looming question, why is this specific Latino fraternity on campus still so small, given William Paterson’s large demographic of Latino students present on campus? Del Valle shared what he believes is the reasoning behind why William Paterson students may look toward other fraternities on campus.

“We do focus a lot on community service, so a lot of them start to hear the full blown gist of what being a brother of Lambda Theta Phi Inc. is. It sounds like a job.”

A lot of college students today think of fraternities as fun and all parties. So when they see a fraternity such as Lambda Theta Phi Inc., they see all the community service work that they will have to undertake, so they don’t want to put in the work. Lambda Theta Phi Inc. still has fun as an organization, just in a different way impacting the community, as Del Valle said.

Lambda Theta Phi’s challenge of rebuilding its chapter and organization is far from over. However, with a few committed brothers working tirelessly to hold events that leave a lasting impact on the campus community, they are confident their efforts can bring the fraternity back to have a sustainable future.