The one piece of advice that upperclassman always give incoming freshman coming to Mason is to get involved quick on campus.
Some people choose one or two organizations to stick with during their time in college, but they don’t wish to get involved so much that they take any leadership positions. Last week, I had the pleasure of interviewing Carrie DeBlasis, a junior at GMU who has become so involved in the organizations she chose to join that she has held two executive board positions and received an award for all her hard work.
After joining Chi Omega, a Panhellenic sorority in Fall 2014, Carrie immediately became involved in the Panhellenic Council, the governing force behind greek life that promotes healthy relationships between the seven chapters that Mason offers. Carrie has been the Vice President of the Junior Panhellenic Council, and then was the Panhellenic delegate member for the Chi Kappa chapter of Chi Omega. Additionally, Carrie is Treasurer for an honor’s organization on campus that supports students with learning disabilities. Carrie herself has dyslexia and ADHD, and splits her involvement between the Greek community and the learning disability community at Mason!
Why is it Important for George Mason to have an active Panhellenic Council within the Greek Community?
I think it’s important to have a Panhellenic Council because it helps get more people in the Greek community involved. We’re [the Greek community] all working towards the same goal- to better the school and the local area through philanthropic events while striving to excel academically. The Panhellenic Council brings all of this together: we have mandatory academic roundtables to make sure that every sorority at Mason is on top of their grades and we promote the various philanthropic events that happen around campus. We also like to focus on the idea of spirit in the Greek community, actually I won the spirit award in 2015 which was voted on by all of the Panhellenic delegates!
What do you hope to accomplish in your last two years being involved in the Panhellenic Council?
I hope to be on the executive board of Panhellenic this year (the results come out on Tuesday). One of the positions that I applied for- vice president of membership recruiting- really spoke to me. I want young women coming to Mason to have the same experience that I did by joining a Greek organization. It has influenced my life so much and allowed me to always be involved on campus for all four years.
As someone with a learning disability, how has being in so many leadership positions within Greek life helped you grow as a person?
Up until the point when I started having leadership roles, I was used to assuming that those type of positions were reserved for people who didn’t have learning disabilities. I have learnt that although though my reading capabilities aren’t the best it doesn’t mean i can’t hold my own. Taking on leadership roles in Panhellenic challenged me to keep everything organized because it would take me longer to complete tasks. The learning disability benefited me because it gave me the creative ideas and motivations to get things done- I don’t use it as an excuse; I use it to learn how to do things my way.
What has been the most rewarding experience of your career in Panhellenic?
My first semester of my sophomore year, I was doing really poorly in my classes and literally trying everything to improve. I would wake up at 4 a.m to study for tests! I would try so hard and I still wasn’t doing as good as everyone else. When it came time to elect the Panhellenic delegate for Chi O, I didn’t think that I would ever get elected because I was not sure if my grades were good enough. I worked harder than I ever did before; one of the best things that helped me was that I registered with the office of disability services so I could take my tests in different rooms to help concentrate. By the time slating rolled around, I not only got the position of Panhellenic delegate, but I also got the highest semester GPA in my college career!