Omega Tau Zeta recently became the first Asian sorority to be chartered at Ohio State, as well as being the first Asian sorority in Ohio.In 1999, a group of women became interested in bringing an Asian sorority to the OSU campus, said Omega Tau Zeta’s president Jenny Ho, a senior pre-med major. Rough scheduling and conflicting beliefs, however, became the key factors that turned the girls away.”Initially we were interested in chartering an already established Asian sorority but there were some difficulties,” said Ho. “After much dilemma we concluded that we wanted to start our own sorority.” The sorority became official in June. From there, the sorority began building the organization without any knowledge of greek life. Ho said they worked with coordinators of greek life and other fraternities and sororities.The organization, composed of women from various Asian backgrounds, is still in the beginning stages. “We are experiencing the sisterhood of greek life and hope to unite and educate its members,” said Ho. Omega Tau Zeta treasurer, Shuk Lee, a junior in marketing, noted a lot of Asian-Americans have been “westernized.” Therefore, it is important to understand where their parents came from. “A lot of our parents are first-generation and they grew up in a culture that we don’t understand,” said Lee. The sorority educates members on Asian culture so they will know about their Asian heritage, she said.The organization currently has eight active members. Ho said they are rushing but they are not concerned about numbers, but rather potential members with the same goal and beliefs as they have.”We founded this organization together so we know what our mission is,” said Lee. “We want someone who is willing to do everything she can do to fulfill that mission.”Ho said one of the difficulties of being a new sorority is combating all of the stereotypes of greek life. “We want to bring a positive view to greek life and get people interested,” said Ho. “We’re not about partying and drinking. We’re about the sisterhood, philanthropy, and academics.”Through constitutional adjustments and seeking members, the founders of Omega Tau Zeta are continuing to build a strong foundation for their organization. After establishing stability at OSU they hope to venture out to other campuses and make the organization national.