Anchor Down! After Six Decades, Theta Chi Begins its Return to Vanderbilt
By: Greg Rush
After a 66-year absence, Theta Chi Fraternity is proud to announce its return to Vanderbilt University following the Gamma Omega Recolonization Ceremony held Sunday, April 19, 2026, at 12 p.m. in the Oliver C. Carmichael College, Room 1406 on campus.
The new pledges of Gamma Omega Colony include: Chris Brooks (2028), Jack Bugbee (2028), Brian Chung (2028), Tate Cunningham (2028), Will Duncan (2028), Will Gawronski (2028), Noah Grossberg (2028), Deven Gupta (2028), Austin Klein (2028), Christopher Lee (2028), Ryan Liu (2028), Harrison Maute (2028), Evan Ostrander (2028), Rocco Otto (2028), Alex Oxenuk (2028), Ashwin Patri (2028), Derek Power (2028), Hunter Schneck (2028), Jacob Segal (2028), Cody Williamson (2028), Cooper Witt (2028), and Adam Wright (2028).
Gamma Omega’s return began when Growth Specialists Angel Rodriguez and Ethan Schultz journeyed to Nashville on February 12, 2026. Starting from scratch, the Growth Team generated most of their leads from a list of men interested in fraternities provided by the Vanderbilt IFC and through social media outreach. While Vanderbilt provided no shortage of interest, the biggest hurdle for our team was finding men to best exemplify the ideals of Theta Chi.
The expansion began an upswing when the team extended an invitation to join Theta Chi to the now-Recruitment Chairman, Will Gawronski (2028). Gawronski had been very energetic and passionate about the opportunity to bring Theta Chi back to campus, and after accepting his bid, Gawronski brought in six of his classmates, one of whom was the now-Colony President, Tate Cunningham (2028).
To foster brotherhood and build affinity among the growing interest group, staff hosted lunches and dinners at the San Antonio Taco Company, and plentiful outings to Five Iron Golf with the original interest group.
International Marshal Steve Gonzalez served as the Presiding Officer and was assisted by Chief Communications Officer Dalton Fischer and Growth Specialist Angel Rodriguez. These brothers were joined by Alex Nicholson (Alpha Epsilon/Stanford 1970), Craig Simpson (Delta Pi/Indiana State 1981), Samuel Sheeley (Beta Rho/Illinois Wesleyan 2003), and Kappa Omicron/Tennessee’s Bennett Duncan (2028), Henry McDougall (2028), and Aiden Johnson (2028) who made the trip from Knoxville to extend a Helping Hand and show their support. Additional guests included Vanderbilt’s Director of Greek Life, Kristin Torrey and Coordinator of Greek Life, Cam Alden.
“Recolonizing Theta Chi at Vanderbilt has been an awesome opportunity thus far, and I can already see a strong and successful future ahead. One of the most rewarding parts has been filling a niche by bringing together transfer students who each had smaller, separate groups and building them into one organization. Watching that come together has been really cool, and we are only getting started. Having more than 20 men involved within essentially half of a semester has been a greater success than I initially expected and speaks to the momentum we are building. It is an honor to take on a leadership role as Colony President, and it has been incredibly valuable not only for my professional and leadership development, but also in giving me the ability to help drive the group toward the vision I have for what Theta Chi can become on campus. By the time I graduate, I hope we are fully operational and established as a strong presence at Vanderbilt. Looking further ahead, I think it would be really special to come back in 10 or 20 years and see the lasting impact of what we built.” –Colony President Tate Cunningham
“Gamma Omega Colony has the potential to be one of our best chapters. The support of their Alma Mater and the spirit and tenacity of the members of this group will take Theta Chi at Vanderbilt further than they can probably imagine. I can’t wait to see them succeed.” –Growth Specialist Ethan Schultz
“It was a pleasure seeing this group come together, and I can’t wait to see what all they’ll accomplish for Theta Chi and their Alma Mater.” –Growth Specialist Angel Rodriguez
The Colony Advisory Board (CAB) includes Charles Furman (Alpha Phi/Alabama 1996) and Craig Tappel (Eta Omicron/Northwestern State 1993). Alumni interested in supporting Gamma Omega’s growth and development are encouraged to contact Director of Engagement Erik VanDenBerghe at erikv@thetachi.org. Congratulations to Gamma Omega Colony at Vanderbilt University! You can follow their journey and support their progress on Instagram here.