The Lambda chapter house is a short five-minute walk to the RPI campus. The building that houses the chapter was acquired by the alumni in 2017. Previously an elementary school known as The St. Francis Academy, Lambda alumni invested over $2.6 Million to completely renovate the interior of the 1917 building and build out and furnish the new facility. Two years later, our undergraduate brothers moved into the new house, now known as The Academy. The chapter house is directly across the street from Prospect Park, an 84-acre city park that offers our brothers easy access to picnic areas, hiking trails, tennis and pickleball courts.
Inside, the house consists of three occupied floors and a basement. The alumni also purchased the property directly across the chapter house on 13th Street for additional parking.
The main level houses the common areas. It has a large central dining and meeting room and a state-of-the-art commercial kitchen.
The central room is designed to allow larger gatherings, events and presentations from guests or brothers, and to host functions open to the wider RPI or public community. It also houses our 1904 Grandfather Clock. The dining tables are each emblazoned with the Delta Phi Maltese Cross badge, designed and engraved by our brothers.
The main level also includes a media room, where brothers gather for entertainment and gaming; a billiard room that houses our recently refurbished 1908 Brunswick billiard table; and an outdoor deck and gathering area. On the walls of the billiard room, you will find a collection of over 300 pewter Delta Phi tankards, dating back over 150 years, to 1870. These unique glass-bottomed mugs are each engraved with the brother’s name and his initiation date. The tradition is that when a brother passes away, his tankard can be returned to the chapter house, to be sealed and the glass bottom broken before being added to the collection on display.
The two main floors of the Chapter house are provided wireless gigabyte-speed fiber internet service and commercial wireless guest access.
The basement of the house includes a laundry facility, a woodworking shop and the mechanical systems for the facility.
There is a library and communications center, where brothers can study, conduct research and experiments, hold video interviews and attend virtual group meetings and webinars. Also on the main level is an ADA-certified double bedroom.
The next level up is the living area. Here you’ll find six single and eight double brothers’ rooms and a central bathroom and shower facility. The chapter house has the capacity for up to 22 live-in brothers.
The top level of the house has four apartments that are typically rented to graduate brothers or Rensselaer faculty members.
The chapter house was purposefully designed to be a home for our undergraduate brothers while they are at RPI. Lambda chapter has a strong and active alumni association. We know that a Rensselaer education is demanding, and our alumni are dedicated to ensuring that our undergraduate brothers have the best possible college experience and a comfortable living environment right on the edge of campus.
In 2025, we embarked on a project to enhance the exterior of the Chapter house. First, the entire exterior, brick and limestone, was professionally cleaned, removing years of grit and dirt.
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With the cleaning completed, the next step is to install new bronze plaques and flags at the 13th Street and Congress Street entrances. The plaques will feature the Delta Phi badge and will commemorate the 1864 founding of Lambda chapter. An American flag and a Delta Phi flag will be located above the plaques at each entrance and will be illuminated at night. Installation should be complete in January 2026. The final step, expected to be completed in 2026, will be to add exterior building lighting to highlight the entire Chapter house and provide enhanced security to the area around the house.