Lambda Theta Alpha

Members of the Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority give a presentation during its first Spring Informational meeting of 2019.

East Carolina University’s Lambda Theta Alpha (LTA) Latin Sorority hosted its first Spring Informational meeting Wednesday evening to give potential members insight on the organization.

Students were invited to attend the informational meeting, held in room 320 of the Main Campus Student Center, where the sorority’s leaders gave a powerpoint presentation to the attendees on the history and goals of the organization.

The LTA sorority presented by the Epsilon Theta Chapter at ECU was founded in March 2010 by seven women and has continued to thrive since it was officially recognized, according to the presentation given during the meeting.

“We take pride with being involved in our community as well as on our campus while maintaining high academics,” Chapter Recruitment and Retention Advisor Carolina Cela said during the presentation. “LTA has a 90 percent graduation rate nationwide.”

LTA supports the national philanthropy St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and became an official collegiate partner in 2010, according to the powerpoint. Locally, LTA supports Hope Lodge, an American Cancer Society program.

According to the presentation, LTA sisters volunteer their time and abilities at Hope Lodge by making and preparing meals for the patients currently residing there.

Along with volunteering, LTA has a strong commitment to diversity. They follow the phrase “Latin by Tradition, Not by Definition” and are not exclusively a Latina sorority, Cela said.

“We accept women of all backgrounds, all races, creeds, political beliefs and religions,” Cela said. “Our sisters represent over 109 different cultures and we are proud to have chapters at the alumna level that are comprised of women of all ages.”

Cela and Nellie Flores, the sorority’s chapter orientation advisor, both leaders agreed being a part of LTA has been an eye-opening experience which allowed them to become more culturally educated and diverse.

On a college campus, it is important for there to be ethnically specific organizations so students can find their home away from home and broaden their comfort zones, Flores said. Being in a culture-oriented organization gives a comforting feeling of being around people you can identify with, she said.

“It’s important to educate the community,” Cela said. “There are smaller communities out there, so I definitely challenge everybody to go and step out of their comfort zone, go support the smaller organizations just to expand your knowledge and build relationships that you might have not thought that you could cultivate here at ECU.”

Flores said her favorite part of being a sister of LTA is creating bonds with her fellow sisters during the intake process and meeting people she may have not met before. To elaborate, she said she is grateful for whom she has met and it is now a lot easier to make bonds and connections with others.

LTA is a smaller sorority than most on campus, consisting of 10 active sisters, Cela said. As a member of LTA, you have the opportunity to meet every sister who becomes a part of the chapter leading you to create a tight-knit bond with everyone there, she said.

Based on the presentation, LTA is actively looking for more members to join their sisterhood. Cela said she encourages female students to “take the challenge.”

“Not everybody is for sorority but I feel if you get to go to a bunch of the programs and actually experience the sisterhood through that, I think it’s definitely worth it,” Cela said. “I think it’s really beneficial to those pursuing the experience.”

Sierra Lindo, LTA’s community service chair, said her favorite part of being a member of her sorority is the sisterhood. In addition, being a part of LTA has taught her how to be more confident in herself.

“I am more outspoken now than when I first was interested in LTA,” Lindo said. “It’s helped me develop more friendships, and I feel like I’m better at maintaining relationships.”

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