I recently had a conversation with a friend about Greek life. For context, my friend is not affiliated with any Greek organization, and all they know about Greek life is the classic negative stereotypes. That leads me to why I’m here today. Instead of adding more negativity to this conversation, I wanted to shine a light on Greek life and talk about the positives I’ve found within my sorority. Let me preface this by saying this is what I’ve taken away from my personal experience in my own sorority.
Philanthropy
I think it’s often forgotten that all Greek organizations have a national philanthropy. All of those events you see sororities doing on campus, most likely the money is going towards a good cause. At Rollins, our sororities give back to philanthropies such as Make-A-Wish, The Ronald McDonald House, and The Arthritis Foundation. That’s just to name a few. We aren’t just pie-ing each other in the face or splashing each other in dunk tanks on campus to raise money. We also do hands-on experiences with our philanthropy. I can only speak from my experience, but the girls in my sorority go and cook meals for the families at the Central Florida Ronald McDonald House multiple times throughout the semester. I have my sorority to thank for these rewarding experiences.
Community
Everyone always says, “Oh you’re joining a sorority? So you’re basically paying for friends”. Incorrect. That money actually goes somewhere. Every sororities’ dues are different so I can only speak about my own. With that being said, for us, that money pays for all of our events. This includes formals and sisterhood events. Our formals are at nice venues, with food, and I get to bring a date. That’s all included in our semester fees. We have also had events like pool parties or moms weekend brunches. Again, it is all included in dues. Plus the money is also used to organize those wonderful philanthropy events. So in summary, no, I’m not paying for friends, I’m paying to do fun things with my friends. Isn’t that what you do when you go to dinner, or theme parks, or anywhere else with your friends?
Academics
Each sorority’s academic requirements vary by chapter. In my chapter, we have a high GPA requirement, and it is evident that I often find myself surrounded by academically driven women. Aside from this, my chapter also has sister study sessions. The whole point of these is to work with your sisters in an effort to motivate and help one another. Sisters are also recognized for their academic achievements, as one of our core values is knowledge.