Kappa Delta Chi was the first Latina sorority on Wichita State’s campus in 2000 until membership dwindled six years later and the sorority later became dormant in 2007.

Last October, the Latina Interest Association (LATINA) formed. One of their main goals was to charter and become a Latina-focused sorority. Its mission is to give back to the community through service and provide a safe place for women while increasing awareness of Hispanic culture.

“[KDC] is important because a lot of the Latinas from this generation are first generation college students,” said junior Erika Canchola, a spokeswoman for LATINA. “If girls join us we will be able to pass that experience and wisdom onto them.”

With the help of WSU and the original women from LATINA, KDC will again be an official WSU sorority starting later this fall or early in the spring semester.

“Getting permission from the school was the biggest factor for establishing a new sorority,” said sophomore Erendira Jimenez, president of LATINA. “The school needed to make sure that the new sorority would enhance Greek Life and benefit students.”

The new sorority had to be chosen from the National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations (NALFO) because the sorority had to have the right credentials, Jimenez said. The university submitted documents to NALFO concerning LATINA and its activities so the NALFO sororities could respond if it was interested in being accepted into the WSU sorority system.

The interested NALFO sororities then sent delegates to WSU to explain the benefits of each individual sorority and requirements for joining.

“Ultimately, everyone agreed with KDC,” Jimenez said. “From there, recruitment resembled a more traditional rush week since anyone who met the KDC requirements was given the option to charter.”

The women from LATINA are not officially part of KDC yet. They submitted their 17 applications Monday and have to wait for them to be accepted. Afterward, there is an eight- week colony process, which involves education on the history and bylaws of KDC, studying, tests and a designated amount of community service, Canchola said.

“It’s kind of a tough process, and it will take good time management,” Canchola said. “Afterwards, we will be an official chapter.”

Mireya Serna was one of the members who chartered for KDC in 2000. She is now an off-campus adviser for LATINA.

“One of the main difficulties was time,” Serna said. “It takes an extra amount of commitment and time to charter a sorority. We had to prioritize, manage our time and encourage each other through the tough times.”