worried
 

I'm worried about our Greek system. I'm afraid it won't last the decade. In the past 10 years, average chapter size is down more than 50%. The system has gone from 1800 to 800. Average pledge classes are below replacement size. Last spring, 5 houses had no pledges. Three houses folded last year- one mostly because the brothers were more interested in dealing coke than being a fraternity. There's very little social interaction between houses. The men's houses are wrecked. Greek Week was lame. And the opinion on campus is that Greeks are stupid alcoholics.

So....I dunno. I could use a ray of hope right about now. I know my house will last while I'm here, but that's not much comfort. Ugh. Anyone got anything that will cheer me up?

I read your post under the serenading thread and it sounds like you have a bad attitude about social greeks just like GDI's. I understand that you are in a ethnic sorority/fraternity(am i mistaken?), but it sounds like you're not in a social glo. Anyway you talked about the drunken sluts etc so I'd say if negative attitudes from people in GLOs no matter if they're social or not permeate then no, Greek life will not survive. Who wants to joins a group that doesn't get a positive perception.

Nope, we're a social fraternity, not ethnic. And my attitude is relatively upbeat- most of my brothers don't even expect our house to last. I have to keep a good face on around them- I'm the oldest brother, I've been there the longest, they just look to me when things go wrong. The youngest set I almost think of as my kids.

I don't like having to hide my letters in public because people take offense at them. I don't like having only two pledges because 90% of the guys looking to get recruited are unacceptable. I don't like dealing with sororities who are only interested in who's got the most beer in the back room. And I especially don't like having to the why's of all this to the other guys. I want to be at a school where people at least make a pretense of making their Greek system work properly.

I'm sorry to be venting, I'm just frustrated.

OnePlus- having a negative, pessimistic attitude isn't going to change anything. If you are sincerly worried, go out there and do something. I've always been a proponent of getting off your butt and doing something about whatever bothers you.
I also agree with AlphaSigLana that after reading your other posts, you really do seem to have a bad attitude. People with bad attitudes and that trash talk the greek system are part of the reason of it's downfall.
You don't like the stereotypes and attitudes towards greeks, get off the computer and go do something. Greek week is lame? Run for a chair. Reach out to freshman and other potential new members. Spend your time and energy doing positive instead of negative and it will change. My house had a bad attitude like yours at one point in time, then we got a few new people in and with a little help from advisors, we totally changed out attitude and presentation on campus--- we went from being at a little half over total to being over total.
Like Nike says, just do it!

and it's as it usually is.....people from other places don't understand. They act like I've blasphemed because I question the integrity of Greek Life. Do you have any idea what a Polyanna you sound like from my end? Run for a chair?!?! We had a house closed because its members were running a cocaine ring, and I'm supposed to run for a chair and hold a parade and make everything better?

:: sigh :: My house is a good house. But I am frustrated that every time I turn around, some other force seems to be gathering to ruin things. I wrote hoping that someone else would say, oh, we were in a tight spot like that, but we pulled out fine, don't worry. But I suppose admitting something like that would mean getting off the bandwagon.

I totally understand your need to vent, however, I completely agree with KDdani. If you want it to change then do something to change it. It only takes one person with a different attitude to change it. It's very easy to say something is broke, it's a lot more work to fix it.

Good luck...I'm sure you're not the only one who feels that way...so find those people and get to work!

Oneplus, i'm also from a northern school with a very northern greek system, style-wise i know what you're talking about. You have no right to call me a Polyanna, what the heck is that supposed to mean anyway????
I didn't tell you to hold a friggin' parade. Run for president of IFC or whatever the governing body there is...... stop your b!tching and start doing something about it. It's not going to magically make itself better. You sitting around b!tching about it sure as heck ain't gonna fix anything!
So many of your posts on here have been so negative and talking badly about everyone else but you and your house. You said some pretty nasty things about NPC sorority members in one of your posts. If that's your attitude, i sure don't blame them for not wanting to do anything with your group. If you read my post you'll see that I said there had been a negativity problem in my house and that with a few positive people we were able to overcome it. Sorry we can't snap our fingers and start making the cocaine rings disappear, but that's more a matter for the police to handle.
If you go around calling sorority girls sluts and people trying to give you advice Polyanna's, then you're in the position that you deserve to be in.
One word that Aretha said best: R-E-S-P-E-C-T
You're not going to get any if you don't give it.

As an adviser, I completely agree with KDDani. This experience you are having is happening across campuses all over the U.S. -well maybe with the exception of the coke ring (although, that happens more than you think as well).

While I hate to post long messages, let me just share with you a recent post to the Assoc. of Fraternity Advisers listserv. This message details what's on the minds of Greek Life Advisers across the nation.

Change is not something that is going to happen over night. It is not something that the Greek Advisers can do by themselves or dictate (unless you force us into that position). We rely on student leaders to step up to the plate and help make a difference. It's when apathy such as yours takes over that the system fails. Be a leader. Help make the difference. There are indeed people to help support you. Just reach out. Even if it is to GC.

Here's the post. I encourage all GC's to read this and take it to heart. Please keep in mind that these are just the opinion of two Greek Life Advisers. This is what in their opinions are trends facing our field. I am especially referring to the paragraph begging "Kellogg report"

____________________________________

Although not new, some of the issues about which our organizations and AFA
have to be more knowledgeable include student suicide and self-inflicted
injury, general mental health issues, and the on-going impact of changing
demographics. At the past NASPA conference, presenter Peter Lake indicated
that student suicide and self-inflicted injuries are on the rise, and he
further predicted that this issue will become more problematic for us than
alcohol. At the FEA summer meeting Charles Schroeder indicated that entering
students are more psychologically precarious than those of previous
generations.

Others have predicted that membership selection will continue to come
under scrutiny from external sources. Meanwhile the shift in whom is
matriculating should create conversations within national organizations on
how those shifts impact not only recruitment but also the retention of
members. State budget cuts, students desire/need to work, accessibility of
student credit, the increase in student debt, and a sense of increased
academic disengagement will continue to challenge our organizations.

As parental involvement continues to rise and legal responsibilities
governing student life shift, not only is a new university-national
organization relationship required, we also need a new relationship with
parents. Organizations and campuses need to create opportunities to
encourage, rather than resist, parental involvement. We need to redefine our
relationship with parents while continuing to focus on the developmental
needs of our students.

The Kellogg Commission Report, “Returning to Our Roots: The Student
Experience,” stated: “The biggest educational challenge we face revolves
around developing character, conscience, citizenship, tolerance, civility,
and individual and social responsibility in our students. We dare not ignore
this obligation in a society that sometimes gives the impression that values
such as these are discretionary.” Personally, I can think of no other
organization better positioned to fulfill these challenges than fraternities
and sororities.

All of these scenarios indicate a need for leadership. It will take courage
and clarity, risk and resolve. As we continue on this challenging journey, I
stop and notice the depth of heart in our profession, and I am renewed with
hope and energy that we will succeed.
---------------------------------------------------
Rick Barnes Response:

Unfortunately I anticipate we will continue to deal with many of the same
issues. I do think, however, that the typical topics (alcohol misuse,
hazing, etc) will continue to bring a negative focus on fraternities and
sororities. We will need to get even more strict with rules and
regulations, etc. However, whether it is considered fortunate or not, I
also think we will continue to recognize that these issues aren't just a
topic for fraternity and sorority affairs. These issues are becoming more
and more campuswide, both in reality as well as in recognition.Personally,
I think people are becoming more and more educated about hazing so more is
being reported,
and less is being tolerated, at the high school and college level. So,
while some of the
"same old issues" may appear to be out there, I do think we will have to
respond to them in different ways as we progress into the future.

Likewise, I think fraternities and sororities can expect to receive even
greater expectations from all directions. Host institutions will become
less and less tolerable with regard to bad behavior. General liability
will become an even greater concern as the cost of insurance continues to
rise
and the old days of "boys will be boys" will finally be forgotten. A new
generation of university administrators will reach decision-making levels
and their decisions concerning behavior will be more strict than we have
experienced in the past. Parents are expecting more and more
protection of their children. The general public is expecting that
colleges and universities are "safe havens." All of this will have an
impact on
higher education and the various groups that relate to them, including
fraternities and sororities.

A new generation will begin to be elected to fraternity and sorority
national boards and within the paid leadership of the organizations. This
new generation of leaders will no longer be satisfied with issues of time
and a slow reaction to problems within the organization. This is the
technology generation -- everything is fast and they are quick to respond.
Their expectations for chapters will also increase. This generation of
leaders
will have a new expectation for the fraternity/sorority experience.

Higher education will continue to experience a changed demographic on
college campuses, particularly with regard to race. If fraternities and
sororities want
to survive this change, they too will have to open their doors a little
wider with regard
to acceptance of those who do not look exactly like the "traditional"
member reflected in
the composites of yesteryear.

The current economic issues within our society will have an eventual
effect on fraternity and sorority affairs. Tighter university budgets with
regard to programming, travel, and professional development will have an
effect
on those in administrative levels.Tighter family budgets will result in
mom's and dad's who are no longer able to pay for "extra" things such as
fraternity and sorority dues and therefore more and more students will
have to work to continue to pay for these added expenses. Higher education
and
fraternities and sororities will have to provide this flexibility to their
students/members. Federal and state support for higher education will
certainly take a
hit as more and more requests for funding are being brought to the table
and politicians
have to make hard decisions about taxpayer money.

Finally, a growing trend on college campuses relates to mental health
issues with regard to students. These issues include all aspects of mental
health and while higher education struggles with our best response to these
issues, so will fraternities and sororities.

Higher Education and Fraternity/Sorority Affairs have an opporutunity to
work
cooperatively in order to survive the necessary changes into the
future. Fortunately, the two have had an opportunity throughout the years
to work for the betterment of the students we all serve. Our continued
cooperation will certainly assist this process as we all move with further
progress and development into the future.

Cheer up!
 

I know what you mean, One Plus. Sometimes, when things don't look good for a chapter, everyone wants to bail. And an attitude of "this chapter is going to fold" makes the chapter MUCH more likely to fold. However, the best way to combat all the anti greek sh** on your campus is to be the best chapter on the inside; which means your entire chapter needs a positive attitude and needs to think you will make it. I mean, if you've made it this far, there must be something good about your chapter that will keep it going.

My advice in helping the campus think that greeks are good: Visible community service. No one can on campus can deny that community service helps the University. And the more people see you involved with that, the less people will have against you.

Food for thought.

My posts are usually either negative, or silly- but in real life, unless I have a problem or I'm making a joke, I'm very quiet, so it's all consistent. Tonight they're negative, because a number of things happened at school that have me angry and frustrated. And it's worse because now I need to put a smile on my face and a song in my heart and tell my brothers it's all gonna be OK.

Tonight is just bad. You want constructive? I helped organize Greek Week. I'm helping to organize IFC rush. I made the Greek Life web site. I drive out to school every weekend to help renovate the house. But I'm sick of watching it all go to pot because of other people. I'm sick of being the one going "No, we cannot have a keg at the charity carwash". And I'm not the only one- you haven't been scared until you've seen the NPC advisor start screaming "I hate this school!" Poor thing, she came to us from OU all idealistic.

My own house....you're right, I don't talk about them much. There are times when I love them to death, because they work hard and do the right things. But there are other times....we have the worst grades of any fraternity- and that's a tough thing to pull around here. We always have several guys on probation for grades. We don't work hard enough on recruitment. There's a fair bit of infighting. But at the end of the day, I'm very happy with the house I joined. I don't have any problems with my house that need discussing with outsiders.

And as for our sororities....sorry, but the NPC girls I've dealt with were not of the kind of caliber I'd expect. There are exceptions to the rule, as with anything, and those women are treasures, and I love our local sorority, they're a great group, but......the sum of my experiences with them tells me they're not the sort of people I'd like to have dealings with. Doesn't say a thing about you or your sisters, or any other sororities anywhere, it's just how I feel about things here.

I wrote that right after kddani's post- missed the other two. We'll be OK, I'm sure. My chapter won't fold, that I know. But what's a Greek system with one chapter all on its own? I was angry when I found out about the coke ring- because of how stupid it was that they were doing it, but more because that was one less house.

I really do wonder if Greek life has a place anymore......people just don't seem interested in doing the whole 'rah-rah' college thing. They want their professional degree and a place in the "real world".

Doesn't need to be rah rah!
 

Wow, you are down on yourself. You obviously do a lot for Greeks ar your University. I am sure things would have been MUCH worse without you! But no despair. Activities don't need to be rah rah to get noticed or to promote chapter/ campus unity.

You said 800 people in the greek system right? Would you get noticed if you all organized a campus clothing drive at the end of the year? What if IFC and ISC sponsored a band? Maybe show a free movie in your theater or a large classroom every Sunday night. Are those things rah-rah? No. Would normal, non-greek people be involved? Maybe not that many, but I'm sure people would come or donate their clothes. Obviously you can't do this on your own, and it will take other people to help you but it can be done.

And, more likely than not, everyone else in your Greek Community feels the same way you do: discouraged.

cheerio

Just a piece of advice - talk to your nationals and see what they can do to pull you out of this hole your in. If they can't do anything abou it, talk to your school and see if they can do more for greek life in general.

I'm sorry to hear about the coke ring - and yes as somebody stated, it happens more than you think. If that can bring down one person, imagine the effects it can do on an whole organization.

I hope things get better for you. Talk to your organization and see what their plans are for the year. see what they are intersted in, and what the campus is interested in. Get some excitment back in your life, that's what greek life is all about!

Hope it helped :)

Smile!!!

I'm from really close to Amherst, and so I "actually" understand.Coming home from school this summer is pretty strange... People from this area are most defenetly "anti-greek"and more extreme liberals, especially in this 5 college area with 3 out of the 5 not having greek systems, or strong ones at that. When I went out the other night, wearing my lettered sweatshirt, people were giving me weird looks....Since I've been back I havn't seen ANY letters around either. I guess it has a lot to do with location, different schools have stronger systems and support. There is no reason why UMass can't grow... with rising enrollment and all that... just advertise more, and emphasize all the good things.

Ladies - lay off the man.

He didn't pass the buck here really, and there's no reason to assume he's doing anything but busting his ass for the greek system at UMass/Amhurst. Even if you're from the North, New England can be a harsh place for greek life sometimes - it's just not ingrained there like it is at home for me (in the Midwest). (also - I haven't found your attitude to be overly negative, but that's purely an aside)

So instead of less-than-helpful suggestions like "do something about it", how about WHAT can be done? XOMichelle had some good ideas . . . so let's start with system-wide things:

-co-sponser a concert etc for the incoming freshman, and splash "GREEK LIFE PRESENTS..." all over it - then rush the hell out of kids while you're there.

-Push more multi-house social events - even system-wide. Work out bar nights, etc where houses can interact with each other, meet new people, and break down the barriers between houses. Also, make it open to randoms, and see if reputation can be improved there too.

-Pool resources from the school etc to create larger, but fewer, system-wide rush events - a BBQ etc works very well, esp right at the beginning of a semester (esp fall).

As for stuff w/in your own house, that I don't have as much experience with - maybe KDDani et al can suggest some ways to get the chapter back on track.

I applaud you for caring enough to post here - good luck dude.

-RC

discouraged isn't just how the Greeks feel- it's how the school feels. Bad sports, bad profs, bad dorms, bad admin, and a state government that keeps cutting our budget. That's where my bad mood comes from today- the governor vetoed $30 million worth of our budget.

(And in case you were wondering, I'm not some loser who hangs out on the computer all night- I'm babysitting and trapped in the house, and I've nothing better to do than banter back and forth.)

Now this is more like it.....but this is also where I get most frustrated.

We don't have any kind of formal rush for the men- AT ALL. No system-wide events, no rules, no nothing. It's a free-for-all. I've been trying to get people to switch to a more organized system, but they're all convinced it'll ruin their already small numbers. And I'm sorry, ladies, but NPC doesn't help- they seem to have a rule against everything the men want to do. And on top of it all, the school tries to keep us down- last year housing actually banned us from helping out with freshmen move-in. They threatened to arrest any Greeks who entered the dorms. Charming, I think.

Thanks Saint for the hometown confirmation. :) It's nice to have someone around who understands. I was once thrown out of an Amherst College party because I took off my sweatshirt and oops, had letters on underneath. They said something about beating my dirty Greek a**.

You guys are all making me feel better, at least.

New england!
 

From one New englander to another


I say good luck!

I have to agree with SaintXCPi and KSig RC about New England. I go to UMass Dartmouth and people really arent into greek life up here. And people just dont have pride for their school. I know in the south sporting events are the big thing, at my school not that many people go. I understand One Plus totally, and I pray that we can get 20 guys to recolonize TKE at my school. Im there for you bud, I know what its like.

Moreover, I think some of the big southern chapters should take a road-trip to your New England chapters. You'll find its a totally different world as far as greek life.

PotentialPledge rocks! And her school is awesome, it's chiseled entirely out of huge rocks! :)

And this is for the people who don't know MA- UMass Amherst is the UMass with the basketball team you sometimes here about- it's the "real" UMass. UMass Dartmouth is a branch campus- but it's still awesome!

hey one plus my name is Matt and im a guy.

First, I'd like to say that on a campus of 30,000, only about 1500 students are actually Greek (Not counting USFC of course), and our campus has also tried it's best to bring Greek Life down (I mean, we average one house expelled a year). And no matter how much money we raise thru Greek Week and other Philantropies, the only way Greeks get some Pub is if they do something bad, AND Numbers have dropped tremendously since the 80s. But despite all that, we know we're in the minority, and just try to have fun and keep up the traditions that our Brothers and sisters before us did, and try our best to show others that the stereotypes just aren't true.

Second, my house is the smallest one and youngest (we were rechartered in 99 with a new group of guys), and my pledge period wasn't what I had liked it to be. I didn't have a big sis, we didn't do pref, we didn't do walkarounds, and we DIDN'T HAVE A FORMAL. But I'm still proud of what I've done and accomplished in Delta Sig, and I don't complain because I know we're going to work hard to bring a lot of those traditions back to our house.

Basically what I'm saying is that you have to make the best of (what you would think) is a bad situation, and try your best to change it. You shouldn't have time to be complaining about the negative aspects of your Greek life, because you should be workin hard to change them.

OnePlus--

You said on another thread regarding rivalry that you don't have interaction with any of the other greeks. Without a decent system within your own community, you can't expect that others would want to join groups, yours or others. As hokey as this sounds, you need to create solidarity amongst all greeks, at least respect for each other, and then focus on finding members.

I publically apoligize to PotentialPledge. I tend to assume that everyone on the Net is female until I discover otherwise. I've found men tend to be less insulted at the confusion.

one plus I wasnt insulted at all lol. You should come visit Dartmouth sometime. Ive never been to Amherst.

PotentialPledge, come visit Dartmouth? I practically live there. I'm about ten minutes from the campus right now.

Shadokat, how exactly shall we build community? When we announced we were voluntarily going dry, we got garbage dumped on our lawn, one of our pledges was threatened, and I got death threats in the mail. I realize that cranks did all those things, not chapter leaders, but it shows the prevailing attitude.

Most Practical Solution
 

I believe there is a solution to your problem. It would be quick, dramatic and effective. This solution probably will sound strange, but the positive & practical effects would be immediate. I looked at the Greek Affairs website for U-Mass-Amherst which, as I read the thread, appears to be the school in question. You seem to have a mixture of local fraternities, plus some nationals that - as you describe them - are lethargic, and mired in poor leadership, no direction, etc.
The answer is to immediately contact the major nationals fraternities known to be very aggressive in rush and very skilled in expansion, and ask them to come onto campus as soon as possible. You said there are no rules; that works out perfectly. It's free-market Heaven, and the big dogs can establish strong, attractive, positive organizations within one school year. The system will be flooded with new blood and energy, and the older houses will have to scramble to keep up. YOUR chapter will be better, larger, stronger because of the competition and the energy. Right now no one is challenging them. The weak and unwilling to compete will die, pruning the tree and making it stronger. I don't buy the "weakest link of the chain" analogy for a fraternity system. If a chain has a weak link, you get a pair of pliers and take it off before it endangers the whole structure. Those chapters offering the best "product" will prosper.
These national are very aggressive, very strong marketers, and are not represented on your campus according to the website: Alpha Tau Omega, Beta Theta Pi, Phi Delta Theta, Pikes (Pi Kappa Alpha), Tau Kappa Epsilon, Sigma Alpha Epsilon and Sigma Chi. Guaranteed to shock the campus and the administration and the existing system. Guaranteed success. There are literally thousands of prospects out there on a campus that size who would never consider joining a fraternity now. The big dogs know how to make big things happen fast.

I just moved from the south to New England and I will attest to the fact that it is quite apathetic. The general attitude of everything (not just greek life) seems to me (notice I said SEEMS, not IS) like it is less friendly in general. Also, and this might be off topic...people here do not dress in as bright of colors....just an observation.

Anyhow, the first time I visited here, I went down Thayer St. (in Providence, Brown Univ. area) wearing my DZ pink bid day baseball style tee and I swear, I would have gotten less stares if I had been, oh...ON FIRE. It was quite strange. In Houston, you pretty much can't go out of the house without seeing at least one person in a greek shirt of some kind at the mall, grocery store, etc.

So does this make me choose different shirts to wear around town...heck no. I will wear my letters proudly. You wanna stare, go ahead. It's PR as far as I am concerned. And I will smile and be polite just like usual and maybe someone will be open enough to realize that greeks are a positive thing.

So be agressive. With your politeness, friendliness, helpfulness, letter-wearing, recruitment, standards, etc. Do not settle for any less that what you want. You will be surprised.

aw, dzsaigirl, sounds like you got a dose of New England hospitality. I think we're just a more domestic breed- don't like to waste time on social niceties. We also don't like to impose on other people, or to be imposed on. I have to supress my horror when I see people in Greek letter shirts- it's just so 'look at me, look at me'. It was a huge struggle to get my chapter to buy them, and I have to make myself wear mine- I can't stand it, and I cover it whenever I can. Greek letters also smack of elitism, and there is no worse sin in New England. You might be a dread Republican.

boilingbaker, we tried that. They won't touch this campus with a ten foot pole. TKE, Pike, and SAE all used to have chapters here, and none of them are interested in coming back- EVER. They've been very clear about that. Sigma Chi and Alpha Tau Omega have been contacted, and weren't interested. Nobody wants to walk into a bad situation- they're all willing to try if there's already an interest group, but they won't come and just start recruiting. Theta Chi was the first fraternity to send a real recruitment person here in decades, and that was only after 10 years of pressure from their alumni- this is their Gamma chapter, I believe. And even they're cautious- this is the fourth time they've recolonized here. The last try didn't even get their charter, the colony was shut down for hazing.

I noticed that too dzsaigirl. People in New England dont where bright colors, and arent nearly as friendly as southerners. I like to say im from the south, eventhough people dont consider dc the south. Another thing I noticed about New Englanders is that they never leave the region.

What about greek life do you like? Seriously.

I haven't read your other posts, but I feel how disappointed you are. Being an active in the '70s on a commuter campus was not
the thrill I had hoped it would be. We had profs who would scoff at the guys in their letters and other students who acted like Greeks were idiots. Lots of social issues and everyone was involved in politics to some degree. Protests, marches, streakers:D -it was all there. The dormies would pay their 2 bucks and drink the beer at the TGs, then make fun of the fraternity and sorority members. BUcutie ad others have mentioned how many fraternities have folded. Kevlar could probably tell you the same thing.

I don't take offense at what you have said on THIS thread because I think you are indeed venting things you feel but can't say to yor brothers. What to do?
Shadokat is right!. You said on another thread regarding rivalry that you don't have interaction with any of the other greeks. Without a decent system within your own community, you can't expect that others would want to join groups, yours or others. As hokey as this sounds, you need to create solidarity amongst all greeks, at least respect for each other, and then focus on finding members.
You have received excellent advice and though it may be difficult, you have to get the others motivated. If you have some "big guns" to bring in, then do it. Also, I keep saying build up your chapter one by one if that's the only way left. If you don't get out there and mingle socially with GDIs, you will never meet the PNMs that could bring new life to your fraternity. My Hubby lived in the old dorms where NO ONE WAS GREEK. (Except me) I brought 3 guys to Sigma Chi that never thought about joining a fraternity and the fraternity would never have sought them out because they ASSUMED everyone in the quad was anti Greek. It can be done.

What do I LIKE about being Greek? I like my house. That's about it. I wouldn't even have stayed at this school except for my brothers. I'd like Greek Life to be better, but just maintaining mediocrity is an uphill battle.

hey justamom, sounds like you've been here. we still have streakers, the bane of the campus tour guides, and thanks to inflation GDI's get charged $5 instead of $2, but it's pretty much the same thing.

Recruitment is the bane of my existence- we do everything right, and get no results. We dorm storm, we go to dorm parties, we talk up all our friends and everyone in our classes, we get girls to talk us up....and every semester the same reaction: yeah, you're great guys, and it'd be fun, but I really have to concentrate on my schoolwork. I hear that 300 times a semester. I said it in another thread- people here don't want to do the rah rah college thing. They live in a dorm for two years, then an apartment for two years. They go home on the weekends. They don't go to football games. Greeks aren't the only ones with recruitment problems- there are now about 100 students clubs, with about 400 members among them. Ten years ago we could boast double that, and I'm told in the 70's it was even higher. People just aren't joiners anymore, I don't know why.

I live in MD now, and I really miss New England. I'm a JWU grad, a founding sister of my Tri Sigma chapter, and am actually going to have to disagree with a few things some people have said. I only quoted you because I do agree with the last thing: New Englanders don't really leave! Personally, I hated leaving RI, and plan on moving back there next July. There is something so familial and warm to me about New England, but I come from NYC, so...Guess it was the antithesis. My best friend and ex is an RI native and HE wants to move back when I go too. Once New England gets in your blood, it's hard to get it out! It's infectious! PROVIDENCE HERE I COME!!LOL

BUT, I have to say that I was surprised by dzsaigirl's comment re: the looks she gets on Thayer. With a fairly good size Greek system at JWU and URI and Greeks at Brown, Greeks should be a familiar thing on the East Side. Most of the JWU Greeks live off of Hope, on Evergreen, and off of Waterman, so I'm really shocked! Plus, most of us Greeks have stickers on our cars....Hmm, interesting!

People just aren't joiners anymore, I don't know why.

You are on to something here. This sounds like our HS situation.
Attendance at football games and such is really lacking. The stands are empty except for the parents of the players and a set group of kids that will always show up. WHY? Because there are so many other forms of entertanment in our area.

We are up against hunting and fishing (BIG TIME) premier soccer,
fall ball and then, you have a lot of kids working or generally into their own thing. Student Council is almost devoid of boys and
those that are active tend to be the same members of ALL the orgs. which is really spreading it thin.

I've taked to my son and his friends and it seems that nobody wants to "sit the bench" anymore-but then I can't really blame them. If it isn't fun, they won't participate if nobody participates, it isn't fun... Catch 22.

I think some take this attitude with them into college. As Greeks, we are also up against competition for the dollar and I do think this has more to do with it than we've discussed on the boards.

:( I don't know what you can do, but I hope you find an answer or some inspiration. Seems like you've really tried...

If you want a full fleshing out of the problem of non-joining, I'd suggest Bowling Alone. It's a huge book written by a sociologist about how Americans don't have communities like they did in the 1950's. The Grange, the Rotary Club, PTA, everything is down, not just fraternities. It's less pronounced in the South than in the North, but it's a nation-wide problem. People just have other things to do- they have TV, they have movies, they have 36,000 activities and events pressing in at them, and they just don't have time for full-on committments to one or two things.

My HS was the same way- I was on the varsity swimmming team, in the drama club, the chorus, peer leaders, math team, chess club, I was class president....and there were about 30 or 40 other kids who were in all these activities with me. The rest of the students had jobs to go to after school. I was lucky, my job didn't interfere with any of it.

I always make a real effort to rush the guys who come to UMass from my high school. Last year, one of them was a complete loser and not worth the effort. The other two, one of them was driving home every Friday at noon to see his gf, and getting back Monday at 10, and consequently spent all his on-campus time doing schoolwork. The other one refused to "get drawn in" (I love that excuse) and wanted to just get used to the campus before he joined something. I think he transferred away. It's this way with everyone. It's only by the greatest effort that we get any recruits- we talk to so many guys, that just statistically we have to find a few who want to join and are acceptable.

I'm going to have to get that book. I've noticed too that my generation doesn't want to join anything. If they do want to be involved in something, they'll participate in a way that doesn't require commitment or go start their own thing. (Everyone wants to be a founder so they can have it exactly the way they like it with no compromises.)

College students do seem to be focused on getting a degree to get a job these days. No more of that "well-rounded foundation for lifelong learning" crap for them! Get in, get that engineering or business degree in less than four years if they can, and get that job ...

Of course, the kids who do that are missing out on a lot. I know a girl who started law school before she was 21. She couldn't even hang out with her classmates because she couldn't get into the bars. And what did she have in common with them?

Anyway, the one thing that does seem to work to hook people is the old line, "And it'll look good on your resume." Greek orgs (esp. if you're smallish) offer so many opportunities for leadership. Do you think you could sell Greek life that way?

Good luck!

I don't really know what to say here, I am somewhat disappointed by this remark, because although I'm from DC also, I love New England. I could make some blase remarks about the south and how slow everyone is down there and how it takes forever to get things accomplished...but I like the south just as much as the north, I spend time both in NYC and Tampa, I travel a lot actually, and my roommate and I last year both wore pink prom dresses in high school. Sure, I am one of a million.....but I really don't think we are that different, except for our viewpoints on the War of Northern Agression...OOPS, i mean the Civil War.

Yeah I was a total "non-joiner" and interested only in my school work. However, I came to realize that I was not enjoying what I heard people refer to as the "best years of your life." I also thought about the fact that if I all I had was a high GPA, big deal--that means all I did was sit on my ass and study. What employer wants that kind of employee? They want someone with communication skills, ambition, and the willingness to network.

And I think that's what being Greek does for me! Strangely enough, my GPA *improved* after joining a sorority (went from an average 3.5 to two semester of 4.0), I have more friends than at any other point in my life, and when I need something, chances are I know someone who can either help me or give me a name of someone who's got the info. And at my school, a primarily *engineering* school, I think that's an important point to make in recruitment--it's just GOOD for you to be involved in things, and a lot of times Greek orgs have rules about grades. For instance Phi Kaps here have solid study hours in the evenings and even though you can't find a moment of peace and quiet on the weekends, you better believe that after 6 or 7pm on a weekday their house is for the most part silent and brothers sit around with their books cracked open, helping the freshman with their work, etc. (And they're a pretty strong house, about 60-70 guys)

So anybody who mentioned talking up resumes or whatnot... I'd agree that that can help to some extent--Sometimes recruitment is hard here b/c of the kinds of nerds that only come here for their degrees! haha :D

greek love,
april

ps. oneplus... i also don't find you to be "negative" so don't feel too down!

Oh... well, I guess I also need to add that I wasn't joining my sorority just for connections and a thing to put on my resume; I didn't think about it sounding like that until after reading my own post (doh!).

I love my sisters and wish that I had "come around" sooner so I could have gotten the most out of those first two years too!

april :)