What do you truly know about Greek life

Taylor Ross

1/23/12

                So I am not a person who would consider myself a “blogger” I have done many blogs for miscellaneous things but, I have never been one to express my thoughts well into words unless it is about something that truly gets me all kinds of hyped up. With this in mind; the topics I plan to write about are going to be of things that are most prevalent and important in my day to day life. For my first blog the only thing I could think about was my fraternity. I do not want to speak solely about my fraternity but, my experiences through my fraternity will be seen. Feel free to disagree with what I have to say but at least read my words with an open mind.

                As with many large groups of people those of us who choose to go Geek face some serious stereotypes.  The media portrays the Fraternity/ Sorority lifestyle nearly always in a bad light. Movies like Animal House, Old School, and T.V shows such as Greek show poorly upon what it means to be a member of the Greek community. The medias portrayal is one in which all members are tasked as troublemaking, constant partying, and hazing. Sure these attitudes can be seen in members of Greek communities but, it is unfair of people to assume that all members are the same without knowing them. Personally I hate stereo types. They are a stupid thing that the human brain once developed to better ensure our survival. Now we have long since lost the need for it anymore but the use of these stereo types has been engrained in us for so long it can be difficult. All stereotyping is really is a simplified and standardized conception about the characteristics or expected behaviors of an identifiable group. The problem with this is that stereotyping can lead to prejudice and that can lead to discrimination.  It may sound whiney and pretentious for me to complain about prejudice against those who identify as greek. It would only sound pretentious to those who view the Greek community of low importance and those people who think that there are different levels of prejudice. Those are the people who are the most in need to learn more. Personally I view all prejudice as the same. Some people face more prejudice but it is all the same in its vileness.

                When people head off to college with preconceived notions based on the media and its portrayal of different kinds of groups I feel as if they miss out on many opportunities. I feel as if joining a fraternity was one of my best decisions so far in my life. I cannot imagine where I would be if I had invested more into the medias portrayal of Greek life.

1.       You'll make real friends: some of the best friends I have ever had I have met through the Greek system. When we call each other brother it is not in the same way most people. We don’t just say brother we mean it. It is amazing how close to being a family a group of people can be.

2.       You'll learn responsibility: Without my participation in the Greek system life would be a lot more difficult. Currently I am new member educator for my chapter, member of our Greek council plus all year round we are organizing philanthropy events, fundraisers, and socials.

3.       You'll make connections: Networking, networking, networking possibly the biggest pitch given in order to gain new members for any organization.  The people you will meet through the Greek community can at some point help get you a job. You can make great friends through these connections and even better memories. It’s amazing the situations in which we can run into a member of the Greek community.

4.       You'll gain a good dose of self-esteem: There is no better feeling than truly accomplishing something big. My chapter set up a huge haunted house for St. Jude Childrens hospital we did not make a lot of money for them in the end only donating 500 dollars but we all got to be proud of what we had done.

5.       You'll earn points on your resume: In the Greek community you will put on hour after hour of community service on your resume. Teambuilding workshops you will more than likely attend. Plus all the real business skills you learn by setting up all of these different events.

Some fun statistics from greekadvisor.com to help clear away some ideas you may have about  Greeks still.

There are over 9 million Greek members nationally

Of the nation’s 50 largest corporations, 43 are headed by fraternity men.

85% of the Fortune 500 executives belong to a fraternity.

40 of 47 U.S. Supreme Court Justices since 1910 were fraternity men.

76% of all Congressmen and Senators belong to a fraternity.

Every U.S. President and Vice President, except two in each office, born since the first social fraternity was founded in 1825 have been members of a fraternity.

63% of the U.S. President’s Cabinet members since 1900 have been Greek.

A National Conference report shows a high percentage of the 4,000 NIC fraternity chapters are above the All-Men’s scholastic average on their respective campuses.

A U.S. Government study shows that over 70% of all those who join a fraternity/sororitiy graduate, while under 50% of all non-fraternity/sorority persons graduate.

Less than 2% of an average college student’s expenses go toward fraternity dues. (U.S. Office of Education)

Over 85% of the student leaders on some 730 campuses are involved in the Greek community.

1 st Female Senator was Greek

1 st Female Astronaut was Greek

All of the Apollo 11 Astronauts are Greek

Over $7 million is raised each year by Greeks nationally

The Greek system is the largest network of volunteers in the US, with members donating over 10 million hours of volunteer service each year

71% of those listed in “Who’s Who in America” belong to a fraternity

As Alumni, Greeks give approximately 75% of all money donated to universities

There are 123 fraternities and sororities with 9 million members total

There are 750,000 undergraduate members in 12,000 chapters on more than 800 campuses in the USA and Canada