Did you know that since 1825, all but three presidents have been Greek? Not to mention that 85 percent of U.S. Supreme Court justices were fraternity men; and historically, 76 percent of US Senators were also Greek. These statistics just confirmed something we already knew: great people go Greek.
If you’re trying to capture the heart of a future politician, try citing some of your political alums listed below to show them what your chapter has to offer.Alpha Gamma Rho
Earl Butz (1909-2008). Secretary of Agriculture.
Not so fun fact: Butz had to resign from his position after
making an offensive comment.
Alpha Phi Alpha
Edward R. Dudley (1911-2005). U.S. Ambassador to Liberia.
Fun Fact: He was the first African American to serve as a U.S. ambassador.
Alpha Sigma Pi
Ross Swimmer (1943-present). Special Trustee for American Indians at the U.S. Department
of the Interior.
Fun Fact: He’s an Oklahoma native and a Principal Chief for
the Cherokee Nation.
Alpha Tau Omega
Robert Latham Owen (1856-1947). U.S. Senator for Oklahoma.
Fun Fact: He was one of the first two senators from
Oklahoma.
Beta Theta Pi
Don Nickels (1948-present). US Senator for Oklahoma.
Fun Fact: He graduated from
Oklahoma State in 1971.
Delta Kappa Epsilon
George W Bush (1946-present). 43rd U.S. President.
Fun Fact: DKE has been home to five U.S. presidents.
Delta Tau Delta
Brad Henry (1963-present). Governor of Oklahoma.
Fun Fact: He was born in Shawnee, Oklahoma.
FarmHouse
Clayton Yeutter (1930-present). Secretary of Agriculture.
Fun Fact: His last name is pronounced “yigh-ter,” like “fighter”.
Kappa Alpha Order
Carl Albert (1908-2000). 54th Speaker of the House.
Fun Fact: He was only five feet and four inches tall, so many affectionately titled him as the “Little Giant from Little Dixie."
Kappa Sigma
Paul Patton (1937-present). Governor of Kentucky.
Fun Fact: Over the span of nearly 200 years, Patton was the only Kentucky governor to serve two consecutive terms.
Lambda Chi Alpha
Harry S. Truman (1884-1972). 33rd U.S. President.
Fun Fact: His middle name is just the letter “S” because his parents couldn’t agree on whether to have the middle name Solomon, after his maternal grandfather, or Shippe after his paternal grandfather.
Phi Delta Theta
James Baker (1930-present). Secretary of State.
Fun Fact: He served as the Chief of Staff for President Ronald Reagan and President George. H. W. Bush.
Phi Gamma Delta
Calvin Coolidge (1872-1933). 30th U.S. President.
Fun Fact: He was born on July 4.
Phi Kappa Tau
Thomas C. Sawyer (1945-present). U.S. House of Representatives for Ohio.
Not so fun fact: He was expelled his senior year of high school for academic dishonesty.
Kappa Alpha Psi
Adrian Fenty (1970-present). Mayor of Washigton, D.C.
Fun fact: He’s an amateur triathlete and runner.
Pi Kappa Alpha
Strom Thurmond (1902-2003). U.S. Senator for South Carolina.
Fun Fact: He served as a senator for 48 years.
Sigma Alpha Epsilon
William McKinley (1841-1901). 25th U.S. President.
Fun Fact: After being shot, McKinley called off the mob attacking his assassinator, likely saving his murderer’s life.
Sigma Chi
Grover Cleveland (1837-1908). 22nd and 24th U.S. President.
Fun Fact: He is the only president to serve two, non-consecutive terms.
Sigma Nu
Lloyd Bentsen (1921-2006). U.S. Senator for Texas.
Fun Fact: He received the presidential Medal of Freedom.
Sigma Phi Epsilon
Ron Brown (1941-1996). U.S. Secretary of Commerce.
Not so fun fact: He died in a plane crash, along with 34 others.
Sigma Pi
Emory Swank (1922-2010). U.S. Ambassador to Cambodia.
Fun Fact: He survived an assassination attempt while in Cambodia.
Tau Kappa Epsilon
Ronald Reagan (1911-2004). 40th U.S. President.
Fun Fact: Reagan is the only U.S. president to get a divorce.
Theta Chi
Randall L. Tobias (1942-present). Administrator of the U.S. Agency of International Development.
Fun Fact: He became the first US Director of Foreign Assistance
To the ladies of Pi Beta Phi:
I am so sorry for leaving you out of last week's article! Let's just go with the fact that you're actually a Fraternity for Women and pretend it was intentional.
Pi Phi
Helen Eugenie Moore Anderson (1909-1997)
US Ambassador to Denmark
Fun Fact: She was the first female ambassador.
