There are over nine million college students involved in Greek life all across the nation. Many of the worlds most influential CEO’s, Fortune 500 executives, and politicians were once members of Greek organizations. Over recent years, there has been much controversy among regular college students and their Greek counterparts about the ethics of Greek practices. The purpose of Greek life is for students to be a part of a group where their social and academic goals can be met. Life in a Greek society can be very beneficial for college students as it incorporates both social and academic aspects. Students involved in Greek life have the freedom to express their academic desires while being a part of a group of other students who share similar …show more content…
A freemason, William Morgan, vanished after threatening to reveal the secrets of the society. After much consideration, the Harvard chapter decided to reveal the secrets at that time in order to prevent misunderstanding. (San Jose State University) The Phi Beta Kappa chapters inspired students from other schools and they began forming other groups all over the United States. At Union College in New York, students formed the Kappa Alpha society on November 26, 1825. Not long after Sigma Phi came to be on March 7, 1827 and Delta Phi on November 17, 1827. Together, these three fraternities formed the “Union Triad” and they became the foundation of the American fraternity system. (San Jose State University) As Greek organizations grew, members became very close and they began organizing social events and spending a great deal of time together. For many years, members would live together in dorms or boarding houses but they were often separated and spread out across campus. Closer to the 1890’s, several groups graduated enough successful members to collect significant donations which allowed for the renting and buying of chapter houses. The rise of the chapter house meant a great improvement to the fraternity system. Members began living together and they became much closer as a brotherhood. The houses also gave members much more responsibility …show more content…
The Greek alphabet first appears in archeological records during the 8th century BCE. The Greek alphabet, however, was not the first writing system used to write Greek as the linear B script was used during Mycenaean times. The linear B script was lost in 1100 BCE, along with all knowledge of writing until the Greek alphabet was developed. The Greek alphabet was originally adopted from the Phoenician writing system to represent the Greek language. Even though the Greek alphabet is only used for the Greek language today, it is the root of many modern day scripts. (Violatti) Greek societies are also known as Greek letter societies because of the Greek letters they use to represent their fraternities and sororities. Greek societies use Greek letters to symbolize their fraternity because of the overall connection they feel with the ancient Greeks. Their traditions, rituals, and beliefs are often inspired by the ancient Greeks and what they stood for. (Appalachian State
Once I am a fully initiated member of the Fraternity I will attend chapter weekly. The entire pledge class bonds and learns about the Fraternity, ideals, and history together. Chi Omega also plans activities that helps us bond together as sisters, such a flag football against the other sororities, or even something as simple as ice cream out together. These activities bring us together as a discourse community very frequently. This year we had the largest pledge class in the history of the Sigma Zeta chapter at 24 girls. Every year there are two recruitment periods, one in the fall and the other in the spring. It is during these periods that the fraternity replenishes the members that went alumna with new
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.
The sororities of Baylor are looked upon like they can do no wrong and are given a large amount of resources to them that fraternities are not given. The construction of fraternity houses or a building resembling the Panhellenic building helps a plethora of many different problems.
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.
The Greek system in the north proves to be different than the south. There is no such thing as a ?black? or ?white? fraternity in the north. In the north you will find many African Americans and other minor...
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...
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...
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
That standard of academic excellence pushes you to become a great student, “if students want to become affiliated with academic discourse communities, or even if they want to succeed in school, they have to make considerable sacrifices,” (Johns 326). Johns’ outline of success academic discourse communities is on point. Fraternities are academic communities along with social. Much sacrificed time has to be taken to be apart and contribute to fraternity, for example a leadership role. A fraternity offers many opportunities of leadership opportunities.
In this paper I am going to write about Greek Americans. My paper will include detail about Greek Americans such as residence and housing, date and place of origin, economic activities, education, kinship, traditions and religion as well as their future in the United States.
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.
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
It is always important to look to the past in order to move towards the future. This was done in the formation of Western Society, and more specifically the formation of American society. The Greek culture served as a frame of reference for many aspects of Western life including government, architecture, math and the arts. Ancient Greek culture served as a very broad base for our society to be built upon.
For the ones who aspire to greatness, being in any Greek organization is better than being in none. Non-Greeks are often referred to as “the GDIs”, an abbreviation that stands for “Goddamn Independents” - a term that is meant to express a feeling of superiority on the part of Greeks and that is meant to be, in the best case, unflattering. What DeSantis notes with curiosity, however, is the fact that a stratification within the stratification exists – namely, that Greeks classify themselves not only as better than non-Greeks, but also better than all others in the Greek-Letter system. (ibid.) In any case, all Greeks are of the opinion that while competition remains between fraternities, mutual respect exists and it is “far better to have membership in a different fraternity than none at all” (Groff 2009:6).
Severtis, Jr., Ronald E., and C. AndrÉ Christie-Mizell. "Greek-Letter Membership And College Graduation: Does Race Matter?." Journal Of Sociology & Social Welfare 34.3 (2007): 95-117. Academic Search Elite. Web. 14 Nov. 2013.