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West 114th Street:
From Broadway to Amsterdam (and Back Again)


Press play to hear sounds of the street →
Columbia students stroll by, backpacks on shoulders. A green borough taxi speeds past. Birds chirp.

Like most Manhattan streets, the block beneath Columbia University is a busy one. Greek life is present, but like most cultures in New York City, is surrounded by many other forms of life.

Greek Brownstones

In a stronghold of fraternities and sororities, many of the buildings on the stretch of 114th Street between Amsterdam and Broadway make up a Greek alphabet. Some of these extend to 113th Street, however the grand majority are here.

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Beginning off Broadway, these first three buildings reveal a Greek life in Columbia that is unique and similar. While they are different in history and goals, from the buildings at least, they appear in similar forms.

Lambda Phi Epsilon
Kappa Delta Rho
Beta Theta Pi

Lamdbda Phi Epsilon

人中王 is the first and only internationally recognized Asian American-interest fraternity. Formed in UCLA in the early 80's, the founders aimed to create a frat that bridged ethnicities and national origins.

Kappa Delta Rho

KDR was fonded in 1905 at Middlebury College and is the sole fraternity to have a co-ed chapter in the North-American Interfraternity Conference. The mascot is a peregrine falcon.

Beta Theta Pi

ΒΘΠ was founded at Miami University, and is, according to its mission statemetn, "dedicated to developing men of principle for a principled life."

Kappa Alpha Theta
Alpha Chi Omega
Beta Theta Pi

Kappa Alpha Theta

Also known simply as Theta, ΚΑΘ is an international frat for women founded in 1870 at DePauw University. ΚΑΘ is the first Greek-letter women's college fraternity and has over 13 chapters.

Alpha Chi Omega

Another women's fraternity, ΑΧΩ was founded in 1885 and has over 200,000 members. Notable alumnae include Emmy award-winning documentarian Eleanor Coppola and Lieutenant Governor of Oklahoma Jari Askins.

Sigma Delta Tau

Another women's fraternity, ΣΔΤ was founded in Cornell University. The orginal name, Sigma Delta Phi, was changed once the members discovered a sorority with the same name already existed. It was founded by seven Jewish women.

Wildlife, Moviestars and the City

While Columbia University's greek life is concentrated, life around these fraternities and sororities continues.

Bird

With Spring beginning to show through, birds and other wildlife meander through the block like the rest of NYC.

Van

As folks walked passed, the person behind this van emptied cans from white garbage bags. While still cold out, he turned to me and said, "Tomorrow's going to be good! 43 or 47," laughing as he went on his way.

Prop

Television show Black Box is filmed at Columbia every few months, and trailers, equipment and props (shown) are usually parked on 114th.

There are of course many other elements to the block between Broadway and Amsterdam. Directly opposite the frats is Columbia University itself, where many students, members of the public, faculty and staff go to and fro.

A hospital, St. Luke's, lays at Amsterdam and 114th. Strokos, a high-end deli, services both students and frequenters of the hospital.

Still other buildings are on the block, including several dorms, Columbia-owned apartment buildings and the Intercultural Resource Center, center devoted to promoting diversity and creating a just society.

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