Good Fraternities at Mississippi State?

[macallan25]

Originally Posted by SWTXBelle

Having been married to the president of a local - and then a chapter of Sigma Chi - I got to see that there are men who are not content with pledging the "top" house to drink and have "hot" girls. The men who formed this local - the president of SGA, an SGA supreme court judge, College Republicans president, etc. (my point - already involved and successful on campus) could have received bids from any top campus on chapter.
They formed the local because they knew there was a need for a chapter that DID focus on brotherhood. I cried when they received their charter, because I knew what it had taken to get it. I knew that the ideals and creed weren't just something they learned so they could party in their letters. Did they want to succeed socially and in competition with other greeks? Sure. But it wasn't their primary focus.
So while many might make the generalization that hey, all guys want is drinking buddies and a chance to score with girls, I have to say that my experience is different.
If this is your experience, hey, who am I to argue? That's your experience, and that's your brotherhood, and that's how you want to represent it. More power to you. But just don't make a gross generalization about all freshmen. I personally don't believe that all men are stupid. Argue with me if you want . . .
Asking for the reps of houses is so futile because it depends on who you ask. You can get concrete data - g.p.a., mixers, sports results - if that's what you want from visiting the websites of all the chapters. If that's what he wants, he would be better off collecting the data himself. Then he can narrow the number of chapters according to his personal criteria, and look for the guys he with whom he can bond.

Look, I was simply making a comment based on my experiences with my own school and others. Don't tell me though that I am making "gross generalizations" about freshmen guys and what a MAJORITY of them want in a fraternity. I have seen every single guy that comes through rush for the last 4 years. I am damn well qualified to make that assumption. Being a member of a prestigious, well respected, wealthy chapter, with like minded guys, that has good parties and has good relationships with good sororities is definitely at the top of their list. They don't know about brotherhood and fraternity ideals yet......why would we expect them to? Again, those types of things are learned over time and are what we are supposed to teach to them when they are pledges.

Thanks though for your concern. I'm glad you are married to a former president of a local and then Sigma Chi. Congratulations. Next time though........think twice before you tell me or anyone else that we are making generalizations of any kind......because you pretty much made an enormous one with your entire post. I'm kind of talking about the part where you basically stated that we/our chapters don't have any brotherhood and things of that nature because of what I feel most freshmen guys are looking for in a fraternity.

[statedawg]

Didn't mean to start a gender war, but the replies bring a lot of insight...

Macallan - the info you can get would be a big help. Thanks.

Leslie Ann - thanks for the links; i'm getting a sense of what each chapter is about through their sites but i know what they choose to put on their own websites can be deceiving.

Alphagamuga - I'm from Biloxi and have seen older friends of mine who stuck together as a group in high school end up at different houses at MSU, which makes this whole thing a little harder to figure out.

To defend my question, I think some of the guys know where I'm coming from... First, I want a fraternity that is going to be fun--and I want a group of drinking buddies too. At the same time, though, I want a fraternity that I am proud of, that will earn the respect of my parents, and strong friendships for the rest of my life. Good people who work hard and play hard. Not so small that the parties suck, but not so big that people don't know each other. Is that too much to look for?

To boil this down, I get the impression that most fraternities have some sort of image--jocks, dorks, potheads, rich guys, preps, animal house, etc. Apparently a few don't really fit in a category, but are just considered "good" or "bad" by general standards. Maybe I have this whole thing wrong, but that's the kind of stuff I'm trying to find out.

[Leslie Anne]

Originally Posted by statedawg

i'm getting a sense of what each chapter is about through their sites but i know what they choose to put on their own websites can be deceiving.

Absolutely. You need to take what you can from it.

Originally Posted by statedawg

I'm from Biloxi and have seen older friends of mine who stuck together as a group in high school end up at different houses at MSU, which makes this whole thing a little harder to figure out.

That's really common, actually. As you get older you start looking for different things in your relationships. Interests start coming into sharper focus when you get to college. It doesn't necessarily mean that you have to lose the friends that you have from high school though. I joined a sorority that my close friends from high school would never have joined. The important thing is that it was right for me and helped me develop as a person.

Originally Posted by statedawg

To defend my question, I think some of the guys know where I'm coming from... First, I want a fraternity that is going to be fun--and I want a group of drinking buddies too. At the same time, though, I want a fraternity that I am proud of, that will earn the respect of my parents, and strong friendships for the rest of my life. Good people who work hard and play hard. Not so small that the parties suck, but not so big that people don't know each other. Is that too much to look for?

Nope! Not too much to look for at all. I think what you're looking for is right on target. But, ya know, even if all you wanted was the partying it really isn't anyone's business but your own.

Originally Posted by statedawg

To boil this down, I get the impression that most fraternities have some sort of image--jocks, dorks, potheads, rich guys, preps, animal house, etc. Apparently a few don't really fit in a category, but are just considered "good" or "bad" by general standards. Maybe I have this whole thing wrong, but that's the kind of stuff I'm trying to find out.

Yes, they most definitely do have images. Don't let anyone try to tell you otherwise.