Quote:
Originally Posted by AOII Angel
All of this stems from poor education. We assume our collegiate chapters know that membership is for a lifetime and that there are benefits to membership, but we usually do not expound on these benefits. The active alums and alumnae chapters who support each chapter need to do a better job of showing these women that our rituals are valid and useful, that continued involvement does serve a purpose and that your membership doesn't end when you are handed a college diploma. I loved my ritual as a collegian and knew I'd always be an active alumna, but no one ever told me how to do these things. We have to do a better job of showing these women what you can do to stay active, how to maximize your membership and how to make the sorority experience worthwhile. I'm trying my best with the chapters I'm involved in, because I recognize that this was a problem when I was a collegiate. You can't make changes if no one identifies what needs change. Sorry if this is long winded! I am really saddened by the authors attitude about membership. She, like many of our sisters, have missed the whole point of membership.
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I couldn't agree with this more! Our sororities and fraternities do wonderful things, but we need more PR (and often local PR) to make sure our collegians and alumni/ae know about it. Honestly, when I first started advising a chapter, I wasn't thinking that there was more I could get out of DG, but rather that I should give back to an organization that made my college days great and provided me with lasting friendships. Only after I got involved as an alumna, did I realize how much DG has to offer me now.
As for Duke, for some reason when I was there (graduated in 2000), we really didn't have very active alumni/ae support. Partly, I think, because many Duke grads don't stay in the area so the alums who were involved were not Duke alums and didn't know a lot of the "culture" (i.e., the things going on on campus). I don't believe there are any other Duke alums on here, but if there are: what happened to the other lip sync? (One sorority used to hold a highly-popular and financially successful lip sync that involved both fraternity and sorority teams.) Yes, lots of Duke women, sorority girls and otherwise, attend fraternity rush events. I swear, though, the lap dances were not going on when I was there (and I knew women in every sorority) or maybe I blocked that all from my memory! How could things go so down hill in just a few short years? It surprises me that such competent women, who were accepted into Duke, allow themselves to be put in such a position! I am proud of Panhel for banding together, though. It seems like they have realized that if they all stick together they can change the way their members are treated and perceived. Crossing my fingers for more improvement!