I'm really happy with the way our meeting went today. It was not only with the President and one of our Deans, but also with our vice president/Provost (she handles both jobs .. she's a busy lady, and left another meeting to come to ours!).
It was MUCH longer then we anticipated - we originally figured it'd be 45 minutes to an hour, but wound up talking for almost 2 hours! We went through an abbreviated version of our powerpoint presentation, but we did it in much more of an informal discussion. They seemed very impressed with the amount of work we put into it, which was nice to hear
They had a lot of questions, and surprisingly didn't seem as concerned with the issues we thought they would be (hazing, alcohol abuse, etc) but moreso with issues of fairness and exclusivity. Which is understandable, although I disagreed with the President's opinion a little in this arena. His feeling on the matter is that no one should ever be excluded, and that "the hurt feelings of one person override any good it might bring to the school." We do think that guaranteed selection is something we should institute for recruitment at Drew, because if you're willing to be open minded to all of the groups you should definitely find a place. However, he feels that no one should have to feel that they only got "second best" or not what they wanted ... and honestly? I think that's a little ridiculous; in the real world outside college rejection happens. You don't always get in, you don't always get more than "second best" (which is, of course, all a matter of tent-talk perception anyway) .. and the experience of rejection teaches an important life lesson that if you haven't learned by the time to get to college, you NEED to learn while you're there! (Sorry .. touchy topic for me as someone who works with kids ... I get nuts about the "everyone wins or no one wins" things!)
Despite that bit, though, I think it overall went really well. The President actually told us that before he'd met with us, seen our presentation and how much research we did, his immediate reaction was to say no, absolutely not, it'll never happen on this campus. After the presentation, though, he said that he doesn't feel that way anymore; he still isn't 100% for the idea but he is more openminded to the subject, would like to think and research a little more, and is open to the possibility of allowing Greek life with more discussion.
As for a next step, he said he would definitely like at least 10 days to go through the research binder we gave him before he gets back to us with a response. He isn't even sure exactly what the next step is yet, since this is so completely new for our university. He did say that before it should go to the Board of Trustees, it should be opened for discussion to some sort of student committee or plebiscite or something. Which is unusual (most student proposals that go before the BoT don't have to go through that step) but I can understand his reasoning since it has been such a hot-button issue. Pending that, it can go to the Board for a proposal and discussion, and finally a decision.
Now, the not-so-happy news. Because of the upheaval in our student life department of late, and also just because making decisions in general takes a long time ... the President and Provost are estimating that it'll take somewhere around a year to get it proposed to the Board and decided upon. And of course, should it get approved, extension and colonization takes some time.
In my heart and in the back of my mind .. of course, I knew this. I knew that with the way they're restructuring student life it wasn't going to be decided as quickly as we had originally thought. While we have a unique opportunity to succeed in this venture now that in the past we may not have had .. the success will more than likely not be for the three of us who have worked so hard for it but for the students who will come after us. It breaks my heart to know that after all our work, after trying so hard .. I'll probably never get my letters and actually be a Greek student, despite the fact that in my heart I already feel Greek, you know? I feel like after all the research and time I've put into it, I really understand the idea of Panhellenic spirit and ideals .. and I love it.
But at the same time, I try and remember that even though I most likely won't have my letters, if we succeed so many other students at my school WILL have the chance to be Greek and to enjoy all the experiences and rewards that come with it. I'll have opened the door for SO many people, and will have left an incredible legacy behind at my school. And hey, I'm staying a fifth year for grad school .. maybe they'll let me be an adviser, or something?
I can't honestly say I regret coming to my school, and as a result not being Greek - I wouldn't have picked the major I did if I went anywhere else; I wouldn't have met my best friends; I wouldn't have met the man I'm planning on marrying. But at the same time, if I could change one thing ... I would have really thought hard about Greek life being available, because I really think that I would have loved it, and gotten an immense amount out of the experience .. and maybe it's a little conceited but I think I would have been a good member and made a positive impact on whichever organization I was a part of.
So that's where it went today. I'm really sad, but also at the same time incredibly happy, and ready to keep working on it because I DO believe it's a worthwhile cause and I DO believe we can succeed .. and that today was a success. Today was a positive day, even if I am sad.
Thank you guys for keeping us in your thoughts today! I really appreciated it and it was great knowing you were thinking of us!