In the summer of 1935 Schleyer accused his fraternity of lacking "national socialist spirit". He left the fraternity when the "Kösener SC", an umbrella organization, refused to exclude Jewish members. Schleyer became a leader in the national socialist student movement and in 1937 joined the Nazi party. At first he was the president of the student body of the University of Heidelberg. Later, "Reichsstudentenführer" Scheel sent him to post-Anschluss Austria where he occupied the same position at the University of Innsbruck. In 1939 Schleyer married Waltrude Ketterer (1916–2008), daughter of the physician, city councillor of Munich and SA-Obergruppenführer Emil Ketterer. They had four sons.