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. Often, when one hears about fraternities or sororities on the news, the program has to do with hazing and a death or injury that it has caused an innoce... ... middle of paper ... ... at times in the past, it has not, and will not prevent students from wanting to join, due to the meaningful friendships that can be made, and opportunities for networking. Works Cited Gordon, Julie. “Should You Join a Fraternity”? BusinessWeek. 24 May 2006. Web. 6 Dec. 2011. 980726.htm>. Grandillo, Michael. "Social Fraternities and Sororities." Encyclopedia of Education. 2002. Web. 7 Dec. 2011. . Korry, Elaine. “A Fraternity Hazing Gone Wrong.” National Public Radio. 14 Nov. 2005. Web. 6 Dec. 2011. . Skorton, David. "A Pledge to End Fraternity Hazing." The New York Times. 23 Aug. 2011. Web. 6 Dec. 2011. hazing.html>.
Walking around a university’s campus any day of the week, one sees an array of Greek letters worn proudly by young men and women in the Greek system. Fraternities and sororities play a big part in a university. The Greek system can also be an easy target to direct criticism. There are those who oppose the Greek system and those who embrace it. Evan Wright opposes the Greek system in his article “Sister Act” that was featured in Rolling Stone Magazine. He uses examples from students at Ohio State University in Columbus to show his disapproval of the way sororities are now days. He portrays sorority girls as catty conformists who are obsessed with partying with fraternity guys. Evan Wright’s insubstantial claim is full of half-truths in reference to alcohol consumption, conformity, and the purpose of sororities; therefore, his critical position that sororities are corrupt is not credible.
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.
If fraternities and sororities are as positive as their members present them to be, why are fraternities and sororities mandating horrible things to innocent students? The truth is that many students know that fraternities and sororities are the wrong choice for the college and university atmosphere; however, they decline to reveal the truth in order to cover up this escape route from academics to civil disobedience. Among the many non-respectable rituals and ceremonies performed by these organizations, hazing is the number one reason why a number of students have turned their backs the other way.... ... middle of paper ... ...
CRITICS OF THE VALUE OF FRATERNITIES and sororities have considerable evidence to support detrimental aspects of membership. Advocates counter that findings represent isolated cases comparable to the same rate of incidents by nonmember students or students in other campus organizations. The continued recurrence of the argument highlights a per- sistent difficulty confronting those interested in research and practice related to fraternal involvement. North-American Interfraternity Conference (NIC) President and CEO Pete Smithhisler recently stated, “often, arguments both for and against the fraternity experience focus on personal experience and anecdotal information” (Pendry, 2010, para. 2). The persistence of these ar- guments was most recently affirmed in a New York Times column (2011) asking experts to comment on the question, “Should Colleges Ban Frater- nities?” Further, research about the legal risks associated with fraternities on campus has done little to convince the public of the value of such organi- zations (e.g., Elkins, Helms, & Pierson, 2003; Hennessy & Huson, 1998), neither have popular books (e.g., DeSantis, 2007; Nuwer, 2001; Robbins, 2005), nor highly trafficked websites (e.g., http://totalfratmove.com/) that showcase the detrimental aspects of membership. Yet, students continue to join.
Hazing is an issue that has attracted much attention over the last few decades. College fraternities, high school programs, professional sports, and the military have all had their fair share of attention. The military is frequently held to a higher standard than these other organizations and has developed a bit of a black eye since the 1991 “Tailhook” scandal. Motion picture portrayals like that in the 1992 film “A Few Good Men” showed the public, not inaccurately, the dark side of command sponsored hazing. Hazing is not in keeping with the high standards of conduct that the U.S. Military aims to uphold and the ethical implications of these behaviors are diverse.
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...
Mathiasen, Robert E. "Moral Development In Fraternity Members: A Case Study." College Student Journal 39.2 (2005): 242-252.SPORTDiscus with Full Text. Web. 20 Nov. 2013.
The purpose of hazing for Black fraternities aligns with the reasons every other Greek organization claims to haze: to stress the importance of membership in the organization and to help the new members form a new self-perception because their old lives are considered to be “flawed” (Jones 2000). “In 1990, the nine members of the NPHC suggested a ban on pledging (in addition to hazing) largely due to hazing deaths associated with Black fraternities” (Parks 2015). However, the suggestion from NPHC was not effective because hazing over the years has seemed to have continued to progress along with the physical harm associated with it. As mentioned above, there were hazing deaths associated with Black fraternities, way more than associated with any other type of Greek organization. At North Carolina Central University, a member of Omega Psi Phi, Nathan Swinson, died after “being forced to run several miles and complete a battery of grueling exercises” (Parks and Spencer 2013). Swinson is only one of many men who have died due to the injuries of hazing but that does not seem to stop the organizations from participating in the hazing
I was deeply disturbed as I read through some of the court cases provided by the NIAAA (“National”, 2011, p. 10-15). I never experienced or witnessed hazing during high school or college. Recently, it was revealed that the football team at Lake Zurich High School, IL had a major hazing scandal that lasted decades (Keilman, 2017). The sexual acts and violence that coaches allowed to happen is unbelievable. I remember when the story broke on the radio I was shocked to the point where I didn’t feel comfortable describing what occurred to my female teaching partners.
"Hazing Awareness and Education." Welcome. University of Michigan Student Life, n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2014.
This reasoning is a logical fallacy for many reasons. My question to the pledges who put themselves through the hazing would be one such as, "What makes you think that this sorority/fraternity is s...
Colleges and Universities play a major role in developing the behavioral patterns of young adults. In addition to developing young minds, colleges help to cultivate character, responsibility, and social acceptable behavior. Students who attend Carlford have expressed their dissent with the current environment of the university. Because of these underling issues, Carlford’s retention rates amongst minorities have suffered. If Kirsten is unable to handle the situation, there will be a trickledown effect to all areas of the university. Being a new professional in the field of Higher Education can be challenge. There are times where an incident directly affects your position and there are other times where there issues that affect the entire institution. Because the issue directly pertains to Greek Life, the Coordinator of Fraternities and Sororities has the responsibility of identifying the concerns and implementing initiatives that will allow the college to be proactive in future situations of this nature.
O'Donnell, Ben. "What's Right With Fraternities." Chronicle Of Higher Education 56.16 (2009): A76. Academic Search Elite. Web. 16 Nov. 2013.
...n, hazing education should not be limited to members of Greek and other university organizations. All members of the university community should be educated on the topic since according to the Theory of Reasoned action and the research by Richardson et al. (2012), “relevant others”, such as close friends outside of the organization, can influence the observer’s decision to report. Furthermore, because the severity of the situation influences the likelihood that an observer would report, emphasizing not only the physical but the psychological consequences of hazing would increase awareness on how detrimental even hazing situations that may seem mild can be (Richardson et al., 2012). Integrating these findings into educational anti-hazing initiatives has the potential to increase effectiveness in efforts combat hazing within student organizations on college campuses.
In today’s modern time, college and universities are competitive and impacted; a lot of students work hard and compete to attend the best. Nowadays, high GPA and grades are not the only important factor that college and universities look for, but being an all-around student who is involved with volunteer work, campus clubs, and sports. Many students take the easy route and turn to clubs or bigger social organizations such as the Greek life. Unlike the average clubs or student organizations participating in a fraternity and sorority is a lifetime affiliation and students are only allowed to be committed to one. These social/cultural groups are filled with members who share similar values and interests that can also offer a college life experience, good or bad.