[hoosier]

Here's story about Princeton.

The 4 sororites got 140 pledges, and 11 fraternities got 140 pledges, in spite of the school sending an anti-fraternity letter to parents.

Sometimes, when the road is rough, it makes you stronger.

One of my fraternity's old natl. presidents (and a pastor) always used the line "We don't pray for a smooth sea, we pray for a strong ship."


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Greeks, university clash on campus life

Sunday, October 24, 2004

By AMY SENNETT


For years, American pop culture has depicted college social life as a humorous struggle between debauched students and straight-laced administrators, and while those stereotypes may be exaggerated, there is an ongoing skirmish at Princeton University over how students choose to socialize.

In this year's battle of the Greeks and the deans, score one for the students.

Despite the university's efforts to discourage fraternity and sorority life on Princeton's campus, a record number of students this fall went through rush - the common name for Greek recruiting activities.
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More than 140 freshmen and sophomore women and an almost-equal number of men joined Greek-letter organizations this year in spite of a letter to freshman parents from the administration discouraging it.

The university does not recognize the groups, which it believes negatively affect campus social life and the sense of community in residential colleges.

"Princeton does not officially recognize fraternities and sororities because we do not believe that, in general, they contribute in positive ways to the overall residential experience on campus," wrote Janet Dickerson, vice president for campus life, and Kathleen Deignan, dean of undergraduate students in the letter received by freshman parents.

"They can contribute to a sense of social exclusiveness, and in the cases of some fraternities, they detract from the quality of the residential experience by placing an excessive emphasis on alcohol."-- -- --

Alcohol consumption among fraternity and sorority members has long been a concern at Princeton. Earlier this year, actor Paul Newman urged students to discontinue their tradition of drinking a beer an hour for 24 hours on April 24, dubbed "Newman's Day."

Yet Greek-letter life is not limited to socializing. Greek organizations, particularly sororities, emphasize their involvement in philanthropic events on campus and in the community.

Each sorority has its own national philanthropic cause for which it holds annual fund-raising events. Sorority members also are actively involved in community events, such as the Race for the Cure and the Special Olympics and historically have worked at Trenton's Lifegate Christian Assembly soup kitchen and on the Martin House housing initiative.

Princeton has 11 fraternities and four sororities, all four nationally recognized chapters overseen by the National PanHellenic Council. None of the Greek-letter organizations on campus has a house, though some share space at the Prospect Avenue eating clubs.

Dickerson said the university estimates 800 of Princeton's 4,600 undergraduates are members of fraternities or sororities.

This year, the three sororities participating in formal rush - Kappa Kappa Gamma, Kappa Alpha Theta and Pi Beta Phi - each took a record 36 new members. Typically the groups accept 25 to 30 new members and have just over 100 members per chapter. Fraternities are significantly smaller.

The university is particularly troubled by the timing of the rushing process at the beginning of the school year.

"We are especially concerned when students elect to participate in fall rush their freshman year," continued Dickerson and Deignan in the letter, ". . . thereby restricting themselves to one set of activities and acquaintances before they have had a full opportunity to explore a variety of interests and develop a diverse set of friendships.

"It puts unfair pressure on young people, who deserve time to think about social choices they might make."

Formal sorority rush took place during the last week of September this year. All freshmen and sophomore women were invited to participate in four nights of "no-alcohol" rush parties. Fraternity rush is conducted more informally over the first month of the school year. The groups hold parties in dorm rooms on campus beginning during freshman orientation week in early September.

Dickerson also said Deignan had met with Greek-letter organizations to encourage them to push back their rush activities in the past but had not been inclined to negotiate with them. The groups were not contacted before the letter was sent to freshman parents.

"We have consistently chosen not to grant them recognition because it detracts from the central early purposes of our residential education program," Dickerson said. "And as we understand it, they don't want to be recognized because they don't want to adhere to the university's policies on alcohol and financial management."-- -- --

Sorority and fraternity leaders declined to comment and have asked members not to speak to the press.

In late September, the university canceled a Greek-letter life discussion panel sponsored by OWL, the Organization of Women Leaders, a campus group. Two days before the panel was to occur, the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Life called off the event on the grounds, according to OWL President Maria Hughes, that it was a "a pro-sorority event."

"The university does not recognize these groups and does not offer them the privileges of other registered student organizations," Deignan said via e-mail.

"OWL does not officially take a stance on sororities and we were hoping that this event would help to demystify Greek life here," said Hughes, a junior and a Kappa Kappa Gamma member.

"This way freshmen and sophomore girls who are trying to decide whether they would like to rush could get a chance to ask their questions about logistics and get more of an `inside scoop' rather than having to rely on rumors that circulate," she said.

"There is a fear that once a freshman joins a Greek-letter organization, their entire four years is planned out for them," said student government President Matthew Margolin. "There are so many groups and possibilities at Princeton, but some people believe that if you join a frat or sorority that it will define you, put you in certain specific social circles.

"I think the big advantage of being in a sorority or frat is that you immediately feel really close to a big group of friends," Margolin said.

Greeks and non-Greeks point to that connection between new and old students as a major benefit.

The Daily Princetonian, the campus newspaper, quoted junior Jen Ragus, a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma, who said, "Princeton doesn't really provide any formal mechanism for bringing freshmen and upperclassmen together.

"Through frats and sororities, older members can give new students advice, make them feel more comfortable and help them to adjust to college."

Other Greek-letter students have echoed such sentiments, saying the organizations promote lasting bonds among people with little in common and, especially, some connection between upperclassmen and underclassmen whose paths might not otherwise cross.

The downside, students say, is that fraternities and sororities tend to strictly define one's social interactions and create an insider-outsider perspective. -- -- -- Residential adviser John Jacobson's experience confirms the university's concerns about Greek-letter life's effect on the freshman experience. While the majority of freshmen attend advising activities, a few drift away from the group.

"You might have seven or eight kids in an RA group, but you always lose one who is going to do frat and sorority things. Athletes or Greek life - they already have a group."

The university's efforts may have left little impact on freshmen, but they have raised parents' eyebrows.

"My roommate's mom hung up on her when she told them she was rushing," said freshman Jackie Latina.

Freshman Alyssa Smilowitz said she was surprised by Princeton sororities and her decision to rush. "It wasn't as intense as other campuses. I met a lot of girls, and I like them a lot."

But she wasn't sure her parents would feel the same. "I told them I was just going to try out the rush process," said Smilowitz.

One student who decided to wait was freshman Emily Aull. "I'd think about doing it sophomore year, but right now there are so many new things," she said.

In a late September editorial, The Daily Princetonian newspaper urged Greeks to change the timing of rush, noting that Greek life dominates social life at the start of the year and "freshmen are unfairly goaded into believing that failing to join a Greek society will leave them on the outskirts of the Princeton social scene."

The editorial concluded that the benefits of Greek life would not be sacrificed by postponing the recruitment process until freshmen get settled into university life.

In recent weeks, several members of Greek organizations have defended themselves against such views.

"Like dance groups and singing organizations, fraternities and sororities do not hurt anyone and greatly enrich the experiences and enjoyment of their members," wrote Matt Musa in a letter to the editor of the Princetonian on Sept. 22.

"If those groups, which take up far more time than fraternities, can recruit as soon as school starts, let the Greeks do the same."