Heritage

Omicron Zeta is one of the oldest chapters of Lambda Chi Alpha, having held our charter continuously since our installation on October 11, 1913. The many generations of Cornellian Lambda Chi’s are linked through our common history, our shared traditions, and our timeless ideals.

What is ISWZA?

  • The Origins of “ISWZA”
    When Lambda Chi Alpha chartered its twelfth chapter at Cornell in 1913, it accepted a strong local society: Iswza. But what’s an ISWZA?

Local History

  • The Famous Freshman Melee (1905)
    How a group of six freshman found friendship— doing battle with a horde of sophomores.
  • From Mug and Jug to ISWZA (1907)
    Before there was Omicron Zeta, there was ISWZA. And before there was ISWZA, there was football, beer, and a rollicking club called Mug and Jug.
  • The Installation of Omicron Zeta (1913)
    An eyewitness account to the formal installation of ISWZA as Omicron of Lambda Chi Alpha, the main feature of the national magazine’s inaugural issue.
  • The Edgemoor Century
    Brothers from over the decades submitted accounts of life at Edgemoor through the 20th century.

Brothers Remembered

  • Notable Cornell Lambda Chis
    Many of our alumni have distinguished themselves in their professions and in their service to Cornell and to the chapter. We recognize a few of them here.
  • E.J.C. Fischer ’10 O-34
    The life and times of Ernst Fischer, the Mug and Jug member who rose to prominence as Lambda Chi Alpha’s groundbreaking second national president, and later the beloved elder stateman.
  • Claude E. Mitchell ’12 O-1
    E.J.C. Fischer pays tribute to our first initiated brother and how the brothers of Iswza, and then Lambda Chi Alpha, would change his life.
  • Joseph A. Carr ’13 O-3
    Bro. Carr's brother provides some background on the brother attached to Army intelligence killed at the Argonne.