The University opened the Greek Assembly Hall on Aug. 29, a new home location for the National Pan-Hellenic Council and United Greek Council organizations.
“Being able to have a dedicated event space for open-houses and convocations that has all our organizations’ history all over the walls will benefit everyone involved in countless ways,” UA United Greek Council Secretary Daniel Tsark said.
According to the University, the 12,671-gross-square-foot building, located on 45 Campus Drive East, serves a dual purpose as a meeting space and safe shelter location that can hold 1,000 people during severe weather events.
The NPHC encompasses nine historically Black Greek organizations, eight of which have UA chapters. UA NPHC President Car’Liz Mims, a senior majoring in management information systems, said she was looking forward to her organization’s future in the new building.
“‘Excited’ is the first word that comes to mind when thinking about Greek Assembly Hall,” Mims said. “Excited for the new journeys that we are able to embark on now that we have this space to share with the United Greek Council.”
Mims said her perspective on the building is informed by the wider context of University history.
“When I think about the significance of the building, I just think about the history of the University as a whole, how it started off as a place dominated for white men, then it became a space for women, and then it became a space for African Americans as a whole,” Mims said.
Thomas Rodgers, a senior majoring in news media and the vice president of the UA NPHC, discussed what it means for the organization to have its own space.
“It’s really nice to have this place as a home, and we want to treat it with love and treat it with care,” Rodgers said. “It’s a new day at The University of Alabama.”
One of the most prominent features of Greek Assembly Hall is the NPHC Plaza. Plaques for all nine NPHC organizations are prominently displayed at the entrance of the building.
“The NPHC Plaza is a true testament of what NPHC is,” Mims said. “One entity collective in itself, but we’re still each nine different organizations.”
NPHC Plaza also allows for current members and alumni to purchase pavers on the grounds in NPHC Plaza to showcase their pride and involvement on campus.
“Although only eight organizations are active on campus, we still wanted to have that ninth organization prominently displayed in case they found the space to come on campus,” Mims said
One of the pillars in the plaza honors the NPHC with pavers recognizing the current and previous NPHC presidents who had a role in bringing the building to fruition.
Also sharing the space is the UGC, which governs seven sororities and fraternities that support various special interests including business, women in STEM, music and engineering. The UGC was established at the University in the spring of 2009.
Devon Siford is the current president of Phi Sigma Pi, a co-ed UGC organization focused on social service.
Siford said they recently held their first chapter meeting in the hall.
“We are so grateful for this space on campus, as we do not have a house to hold our events and chapter,” Siford said. “This makes our organization feel seen by UA and we are excited to keep using it to help our organization thrive.”
Siford said the organization hopes to use the new building for its events as much as possible.
Tsark also highlighted his excitement over the new building.
“For our member chapters, all of which are off campus, it’s a place to call home on UA’s campus,” Tsark said. “It also shows that the University cares about UGC and NPHC, two organizations that are often overlooked by other universities around the nation.”
Both the NPHC and the UGC have held general body meetings in the space, with plans to hold events independently in the coming months. The space is also available to members who would like to study and hang out there.
“We would like to use the space to the full capacity available,” Rodgers said. “Upcoming events will include our Black Power Hours on Sept. 22, Sept. 29 and Oct. 6.”
Mims mentioned the address given by former UA NPHC President LeeCora Rodgers at the opening of the building.
“As we cut the ribbon on this plaza, we also symbolically cut through the years that separate us, reuniting us with the memories and friendships that were forged during our time together,” Rodgers said. “This plaza will serve as a place of gathering, a place to reminisce about shared experiences, and a place to create new memories for generations to come.”
