Latina sorority gives sisterly support
By Genevieve Schlosser
schlosse@mscd.edu

      Lambda Theta Nu is a largely Latina sorority that focuses on academic excellence, community service and sisterhood.

      Although the sorority is traditionally aimed at Latina students, the organization doesn’t discriminate.

      President Natalie Ritter says she is not from one particular race. “I’m a big mixture, and that’s what a lot of our girls are.”

      One of Ritter’s jobs as president is to monitor the academics of the group. All of the members are required to keep at least a 2.5 GPA, but last semester the cumulative average of all the girls was 3.5. Ritter attributes this to the academic support fostered in the sorority.

      “We have study hours that we do by group and with buddies,” Ritter said. “Having that network really helps.”

      The Lambdas also like to be active in the community. Each year, they host the Latina Youth Leadership Conference on campus during which they spend the day with a large group of eighth grade girls, eating breakfast and lunch with them and hosting workshops about high school, college and future careers.

      At the end of April, the group volunteered at the La Raza Youth Conference, registering students, handing out T-shirts and helping with seating. Once a month, they serve food at the Denver Rescue Mission.

      Fostering sisterhood between members is fairly easy, according to Ritter. She said the key is making an effort to spend time together. They have lunch on campus when possible, and once or twice a month the girls get together for a night out. “One thing that sets us apart from other sororities is that we step and dance with machetes,”

      Ritter said. This is a tradition of the national group meant to symbolize the culture and strength of Latina women.
      In the beginning, Ritter was a little unsure of joining a sorority. She thought she would only be allowed to hang out with her sorority sisters and not her other friends.       Ritter said she thinks other girls might have this same misconception and wants to let them know that’s not the case.
      The sorority members have many friends and varied lives, but also get to enjoy the extra support system. “I feel like they know me like a sister,” Ritter said.