I read two articles that were very contrasting on the ideas of Greek letter societies, better known as Greek Life. The first article was titled, “University Announces Ban on Fraternities and Sororities” from the Metropolitan Desk, and the second was titled, “For Some Women at Harvard, Greek Is a Scream” from the Style Desk. One was about banning Greek Life, and the other about how Greek Life can be a positive for social life at Harvard University.
In “University Announces Ban on Fraternities and Sororities,” Alfred University argued that deaths, drinking problems, and low grades all resulted from Greek housing. To better the learning environment at the school, trustees of the school voted to ban fraternities and sororities. They think that this change won’t have much affect on the campus since Greek interest has gone down 30% from the 1960’s. I think this decision to take away fraternities and sororities is not going to solve anything. People coming to college are forced into a new environment. They are learning about themselves, and sometimes they turn to alcohol to help them cope with the changes. With or without fraternities, they would party and get bad grades as a result of the drinking. Taking away fraternities doesn’t do any good, because the students will revolt by making secret clubs which will be much worst since the university has no control over these. So my questions are, now that they have banned Greek letter societies, has the school noticed a change? And is this change good or bad? And has there been any secret underground societies been made as a result of this change?
The argument to this side comes from “For Some Women at Harvard, Greek Is a Scream.” At Harvard University, they are finding that women are joining sororities more for social reasons. But the social agendas do not include going to bars or partying, instead, they consist of kickball tournaments, pajama parties, apple-picking trips, or outings to Finagle a Bagel and Au Bon Pain. And these sororities aren’t about leaving people out, but instead focus on welcoming women who want to join to be a part of them. The actual funny part is, that while the sororities are strive to be charitable and positive, there are groups that offer the party and exclusive side that normally comes to mind when describing sororities. These groups are the women-only private clubs.
I myself am from a very “awkward” dichotomy. The reason for that is that I grew up in Oak Cliff Texas, a low socioeconomic neighborhood with the a very criminal atmosphere. However, my father was able to obtain upward mobility through his construction business that he built, therefore I have always been financially well off. Since I grew up in Oak Cliff and attended an inner city public high school my classmates were mostly of low socioeconomic background and well, the nature of their behavior is very much like mine. Now when I attended A&M I decided to join a fraternity. There is “Latino” fraternities available for students to join on campus but I joined one that is recognized by the IFC (Intra Fraternity Council). This is one of the barriers amongst universities’ Greek life systems themselves. As described in the book, Greek life systems generate a barrier where students of low socioeconomic status find it harder to join. The fraternities and sororities that are recognized by the “IFC” are those that are categorized by the student body as “cool or better” organizations. Those that aren’t recognized by the IFC are seen as the “poor or gay” organizations. Those fraternities that are recognized by the IFC on campus as far as I know are all white. Latino or Black fraternities and sororities aren’t recognized by the IFC, at least at A&M. I am the only Minority in the fraternity that I am apart of, and I sometimes recognize that I am different in different aspects than most of the members and can feel the “isolation” that is described in the book. Once my fraternity was having an event and everyone was required to pitch in 30$ towards supplies for it, and the way that the money is gathered is through a mobile application where people can pay with their credit cards. I asked one of my fraternity brothers is I could just pay him cash and he
While reading Pledged: The Secret Life of Sororities, I learned more about the inner workings of Greek Life. I learned that the odds of me finding a sorority are so slim due to my independent and different personality. While I am not good at sticking up for myself, something this book has made me feel is crucial to blend in and conform to an ideal to fit into a sorority, I am too opinionated. There are not many sororities (at least shown in Pledged) that welcome girls who are different, preferring to stay similar. For example, each pledge class would soon like identical within a few months of pledging. Another thing I learned about is the careful planning and manipulation that occurs throughout sororities,
The Greek Life at Baylor University is a community of twelve fraternities and eight sororities. However, the communities within Baylor University are not treated equally. The University of Baylor favors the sororities over the fraternities at Baylor. There are multiple different things that Baylor allows the sororities to attain that the fraternities are prevented from pursuing or accomplishing. This bias between the Greek Life of Baylor and the university itself is one major reason for strain between the relationships of the groups. The sororities at Baylor are supplied a meeting place, allowed to have mixers before rushing on Baylor campus, and are allowed to return to Baylor early after breaks for events. The university must resolve these problems in order to become a more unbiased university and community.
Do people really understand the secrets behind the Greek community? There are many pressures girls face that the public is not familiar with that are specifically evident in sororities. Alexandra Robbins, the author of the book Pledged: The Secret Lives of Sororities, went undercover and followed four different girls during their experiences within the Greek system. Although there are many struggles girls can face in sororities, the five most prevalent type of pressures include: having a perfect body image, substance abuse, stress, silence, and hazing.
So what allows a campus fraternity to fall under the category of a social institution? Social institutions are commonly conceived as the necessary focuses of a social organization, which is common to most of society and usually deals with the problems and procedures of structured social life. General characteristics of a social institution involve regulated patterns of behavior that are specific, continuous, and organized. The patterns become the regulated norm, and are carried on from generation to generation, allowing the social institution to continue on through the years. Fraternities were first developed back in the late seventeen hundreds and continued to expand over the past couple of hundred years. Today there are about sixty different fraternities all over the United States, represented by different letters of the Greek Alphabet, with several chapters and various schools. Fraternities is a ‘member only’ social institution that is just for guys, (women have similar institution called sororities). Every fraternity has a board of members that they personally e...
Every year students at an accredited university have a decision to join groups/activities. In many cases a lot of students choose to join either a fraternity or a
Greek organizations, such as, fraternities and sororities have been a part of the college experience for centuries. We pride ourselves in brotherly and sisterly love, academic success, and helping others. There are countless stereotypes and myths that surround the “Greek life” name. Just some myths include: all Greeks haze their members, they only care about physical looks not personalities, and they go to college just to party and get drunk. Kappa Delta Sorority upholds none of these stereotypes. We have a strong no haze policy. Hazing is defined as an activity or situation that can cause emotional, mental, or physical discomfort. If a member is caught hazing or if a new member is caught allowing herself to be hazed, there will be major consequences, such as, national probation or deferral of initiation. Kappa Delta also does not look at physical appearance as the only quality for possible new members. We look at personality and qualifications that can benefit our sorority; instead of having a group of women that are pretty and popular, we like to have women with strong morals, work ethic, and have the willingness to love each and every member of Kappa Delta. Kappa Delta Sorority is like no other fraternity or sorority on campus; we do not waste our time with partying and drinking. We pride ourselves in our historical background, philanthropies, and our values. I know Kappa Delta is the best sorority not only on MTSU campus but in the whole country.
"Some have argued that fraternities are places where rape is likely to occur on college campuses and that the students most likely to accept rape mouths and be more sexually aggressive are more likely to live in fraternities and sororities, consume higher doses of alcohol and drugs, and place higher value on social life at college." according to the article "Fraternities and Collegiate Rape Culture: Why Are Some Fraternities More Dangerous places for Women?" written by A. Ayres Boswell and Joan Z. Spade. The article ...
Greek organizations are debatably the most undervalued and misconceived aspect of college campuses. Most people don’t see the benefits that fraternities and sororities bring to college campuses and their communities. Some see these organizations as large beneficial clubs and others see them as potential problems. Many of the allegations put forth by individuals that discredit the benefits and good deeds done by Greek organizations are weak justifications for their removal from college campuses. Greek organizations provide campus communities with academically responsible students, philanthropic activities and increase community involvement.
Hi Kaitlyn! I am involved in Greek life as well, so I can relate to this! I agree that a huge strength within a sorority are those members who are truly dedicated to their chapter, especially the board members, they are the ones who keep the organization running smoothly (most of the time). A major weakness for a sorority could also be those members who are not as dedicate. I feel like every sorority and fraternity have those members who only care about the social status, and it seems like those are the ones that constantly break the rules and ruin their reputation and put the entire chapter in danger of being put on probation or even kicked off campus. An obvious opportunity for any sorority is kicking out those members who do break the rules
I came to college with a negative look on sororities. All my knowledge of greek life came from the media. Sororities are portrayed in a dismissive
So I typed into Google just that, “what are the negative aspects of fraternities and sororities”. I came across numerous sources that did not really give me a solid base of research. Instead, I decided to use the first source I researched which was Positive and Negative Effects of Greek Life in College and use information on the negative section of the article. For those that are not aware, there are two major reasons as to why people do not want to part take in Greek Life. The first reason is the financial obligations are not a joke when it comes to these social groups. Many people would love to join Greek Life however money issues are preventing them to join. If colleges want their students to succeed and feel as if they are in control of their college life, prices should be lowered. Greek Life should be accessible to anybody that believes it will enhance their college success. The other reason people are hesitant to join a fraternity or sorority is that students do not want to be hazed. Hazing is humiliation during activities in which fraternities and sororities put you through to become a member. It is their way of seeing how prepared you are to be initiated into the group. Although this does not happen at FIU because it is forbidden, many schools throughout the United States haze associate members. This
Greek Life, or the presence of fraternities and sororities, exists in many colleges and universities. According to Michael Grandillo in an Encyclopedia article, “there are more than 5,500 chapters on 800 campuses throughout the United States and Canada.” Although Greek Life is so common, participation in such organizations can be a controversial topic, particularly when critics suggest that hazing can be detrimental to students' health and college careers. For those who do not know much about Greek Life, or the process that one goes through to become affiliated with this system, there is first a week called “rush week,” where fraternities and sororities host parties in attempt to cajole students into joining their organizations. If members of a fraternity or sorority like a particular student, they will vote to give that student a “bid,” which gives that student the opportunity to pledge their organization. If the student accepts the bid, his pledge process will begin, which generally lasts between six to ten weeks. Assuming the student sticks it through, he will be admitted into organization and will be rewarded with the benefits of membership for the remainder of his life. Despite the fact that some Greek organizations engage in intense hazing practices that may result in reduced grades for pledges, it is beneficial for students to participate in Greek Life because organizations force students to create strong bonds among one another while learning important lessons, they prepare students for their future careers, and they provide students with great networking opportunities.
A major part of every college campus is the Greek system. Although, many times it goes unnoticed there is major segregation among the fraternities and sororities in the south. Why is such an important issue often overlooked? We need to be more aware of segregation because in many cases it causes conflict. What if an African American wanted to join a traditionally white fraternity or sorority or vise versa? The chances of him/her getting in are pretty slim. In fact, it would be most likely that they would not. The walls of race and the barriers from so-called ?traditions? in the Greek system should be broken in order to diversify the organizations and lead to the changes necessary to end segregation and discrimination for good.
Day in and day out we hear about high school and college students wanting to pursue a sorority and/or a fraternity based on the stereotypes these organizations uphold, well I chose to differ. I told myself if I ever decided to become a member of a sorority it would be based solely on their ethical standards, history, and values they are founded upon. Alpha Kappa Alpha, Incorporated consists of ladies of distinction and exemplary character who excel in scholarship, leadership, and service, which are qualities I have chosen to uphold. From my perspective, I encourage myself to maintain a respectable appearance and reputation which doing so inspires me to embrace my self-concept; which helps me confidently excel academically and professionally as a “lady of distinction” and “exemplary character.” Most importantly, I continuously remain involved in community service, being involved allows me the opportunity to learn and understand the lives and circumstances of others by opening my mind, heart, and soul. Overall these qualities strengthen my passion to be a member of the prestigious Alp...