Duke University Sorority Article

[AlwaysSAI]

Originally Posted by FSUZeta

most of our national officers(and those on the local level too) are not paid for their service- it is volunteer work.

I guess the author doesn't realize that. I aspire to one day be a National Officer, but I would have to figure out how to do that and still work to support myself-it's a lot of work.

and ETA on my last post post-My nationals do a lot for me. Phi Sig has a website where brothers can go and find job postings through other brothers and be recommended for that job by a brother. In SAI-our Province Officer comes every year and spends ample time with the chapter to help us build and make it stronger. She is also our voice in NH. The NVP-Ritual is looking at revising the ritual and our PO asked us what we would like to see added, changed, or removed. My NH listens to me when I speak as a member and my voice is heard. SAI also has a website where sisters can post jobs and reccomend sisters for jobs and the like.

No, not everything my Nationals does directly affects me or is for me specifically, but they are working for the betterment of the organization which has become apart of me, who I am and my life.

Maybe I'm the minority, but when I take adavantage of a networking connection because of my greek affiliation I don't want to just use it as a professional tool. When I say "I am a member of Sigma Alpha Iota/Phi Sigma Pi" I intend to mean it in every sense of the word. I will remain active and my affiliation will always be apart of my life. But, maybe that's just me.

(My kids are gonna be like AF's-point to the letter and say "Sigma-Alpha-Iota/Phi-Sigma-Pi")

[Janerz222]

-I'm willing to wager that this author's organization has/participates in a lot of what she thinks is missing. She can wait for someone to come knock her over the head with "opportunities", or she could spend a few minutes of inquiry and find a lot of them are there for her and her fellow Dukies. (She is not by any means alone in this regard.)

-as my biological sister (a longtime Duke GLO alumna) said upon reading this article: "You ARE the sorority, girlfriend. So get to it."

-I am speculating here, and may be off base in this particular case, but I'm going there anyway:

For a long time, I have sensed that many of our NPC chapters at prestigious universities consider themselves above our inter/national organizations, and therefore they ignore/do not fully participate in what the larger organization offers. There's a bit of embarrassment at being a sorority member. So to assuage that and to make themselves feel more justified that they haven't sold out, they convince themselves that "it's different at Duke/Princeton/Stanford". (Note, I'm not throwing stones at glass houses--this most certainly applies to my alma mater/college chapter and to myself to some extent during my own college days.)

By belittling your ties to and the value of the inter/national organization, you can have your cake (3-4 years of fun) and eat it too (ignore the ritual/restrictions/hard work/alumnae involvement).

Imagine how much more we could accomplish if that energy was spent on strengthening the areas our of GLOs that they see as lacking! As an exception to the norm (an actively participating alumna from my chapter), that's the tack I've taken, and I wish I had more company.

You can complain about it, or you can do something about it. I agree that the former is much easier (and makes for more juicy journalism and more hits on your webpage). However, two of the lessons I've learned from being an NPC woman are that you can only change an organization from within, and that women make fabulous agents of purposeful change.

[DeltaBetaBaby]

I think she makes some very good points. My group gives me very little reason to stay involved after college, and I haven't paid alumnae dues in years. The alumnae groups plan social events and do some philanthropy work, both of which I can get elsewhere.

I would guess that the three Chicago-area chapters (Chicago, NW burbs, and W burbs) have under 100 active members in total. I suspect many other organizations have similar problems, and I have a hard time believing that every single group doesn't have at least 5,000 members in the Chicago area.

Groups need to refocus on what they are providing women after graduation, and if they can do it as a Panhellenic community, all the better, because there is strength in numbers.

I have never used Greek connections to help me in my career. In fact, I have consistently left it OFF of my resume because so many people have negative Greek stereotypes, and I do not wear my badge to work on NPC badge day.

[als463]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

I think she makes some very good points. My group gives me very little reason to stay involved after college, and I haven't paid alumnae dues in years. The alumnae groups plan social events and do some philanthropy work, both of which I can get elsewhere.

I would guess that the three Chicago-area chapters (Chicago, NW burbs, and W burbs) have under 100 active members in total. I suspect many other organizations have similar problems, and I have a hard time believing that every single group doesn't have at least 5,000 members in the Chicago area.

Groups need to refocus on what they are providing women after graduation, and if they can do it as a Panhellenic community, all the better, because there is strength in numbers.

I have never used Greek connections to help me in my career. In fact, I have consistently left it OFF of my resume because so many people have negative Greek stereotypes, and I do not wear my badge to work on NPC badge day.

I'm a member of the same national GLO as DeltaBetaBaby and I find this to be very sad...As a recent graduate and an active alumna, I'm able to stay connected to my organization and still do things that help me grow as a person. I'm still in the military, go to Graduate School at a Big Ten University, work for the County as a caseworker for Children & Youth, volunteer for Big Brothers/ Big Sisters, volunteer to help tutor people going back for the G.E.D.s and I'm still active as a Secretary in my Alumnae Chapter...Yes, I do other volunteer work on the side not connected to my GLO but, I still love the fact I can contribute to CMN through working with the other Alumnae to raise money during certain events. I'm proud to put my GLO on my resume and I've had good comments from putting it on there by Military professionals, Graduate School Advisors, Supervisors (looking to hire, or who have already hired me) and even Law School at some of the best Law Schools in the nation....I wear my badge on NPC day and I'm proud of my GLO...I feel sorry for those that are embarrassed by a concious decision they made back in college....GLOs are not just for "fun" in college-maybe if alot of us NPCers felt the same way as the NPHCers we'd have much more of a lifetime commitment. I went to a very good Big Ten University Undergraduate school and I'm not ashamed to say I'm Greek! Hopefully other people will eventually feel the same way I feel....It's like AlwaysSAI said, I've had doors open for me just because I'm Greek...I've had people say, "Oh-my sister, mother, cousin, etc. is a *** **...." or I'm a (insert other NPC or NPHC name here)....I've found that NPHC members are much more proud to sport their gear even at the ages of 40+...it's nice......Let's all do that and show our pride instead of write about our disdain in a newspaper (and at the same time giving our organizations more BAD publicity).....

[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.

[BabyPiNK_FL]

Lipsync in a bar?! Oh the horror. Well that is a damn good example of a Panhellenic acting together. Keep it up ladies! I'm so tired of seeing women act like sluts for fraternity men. It used to be bad at my school but there has been a very natural shift occuring because people just don't have time or aren't interested in doing those things anymore.

I think once they value themselves, then there will be a return to values. Although I hope values is not all they get out of their sorority experience. I got values & morals from my mother. But from my sorority experience I've gained leadership, sisterhood, good friends, and a lifelong bond I look forward to. I think that it's so easy to advertise by claiming things, but the stereotypes are still there and the actions that reinforce the stereotypes are still happening and to attract and keep people involved in Greek life there is going to have to be an increase in the visual/physical examples of benefits in joining. I know I had no interest in joining until I actually made friends and hung out with members of my chapter.

[33girl]

Originally Posted by BabyPiNK_FL

Lipsync in a bar?! Oh the horror. Well that is a damn good example of a Panhellenic acting together. Keep it up ladies! I'm so tired of seeing women act like sluts for fraternity men.

People have been bitching about Derby Daze and similar fraternity sponsored events for years, and there were things passed by NPC YEARS ago (as in the late 80s) about not participating in them if women were being objectified or not treated well. Many schools' Panhellenics agreed with this and the competition was changed accordingly. If it was still going on at Duke in 2006, it's because the Panhellenic at the school let it happen. It's supposed to be a fun competition for charity, but the sororities get WAY too involved in who wins and do anything (including slutting it up) to be #1.

Not only that, I think there's an issue in that they are referring to this as "lip sync" instead of "Derby Daze Lip Sync." It is not a system wide event, it's Sigma Chi's event.

[dukedg]

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.

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!

[dukemama]

Originally Posted by dukedg

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'm a Duke grad (1987) and I think you've hit the nail on the head with that statement. "National" universities such as Duke tend to have a lot of their student body return to their home states after graduation; at least that's what seemed to happen when I was there.

Originally Posted by dukedg

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.)

I don't recall Lip Sync ever being a Greek-sponsored event, maybe because the entire student body could participate (and yes, even I did senior year ). It wasn't just a competition between fraternities and sororities back then.

[sueali]

Originally Posted by als463

I'm a member of the same national GLO as DeltaBetaBaby and I find this to be very sad...As a recent graduate and an active alumna, I'm able to stay connected to my organization and still do things that help me grow as a person. I'm still in the military, go to Graduate School at a Big Ten University, work for the County as a caseworker for Children & Youth, volunteer for Big Brothers/ Big Sisters, volunteer to help tutor people going back for the G.E.D.s and I'm still active as a Secretary in my Alumnae Chapter...Yes, I do other volunteer work on the side not connected to my GLO but, I still love the fact I can contribute to CMN through working with the other Alumnae to raise money during certain events. I'm proud to put my GLO on my resume and I've had good comments from putting it on there by Military professionals, Graduate School Advisors, Supervisors (looking to hire, or who have already hired me) and even Law School at some of the best Law Schools in the nation....I wear my badge on NPC day and I'm proud of my GLO...I feel sorry for those that are embarrassed by a concious decision they made back in college....GLOs are not just for "fun" in college-maybe if alot of us NPCers felt the same way as the NPHCers we'd have much more of a lifetime commitment. I went to a very good Big Ten University Undergraduate school and I'm not ashamed to say I'm Greek! Hopefully other people will eventually feel the same way I feel....It's like AlwaysSAI said, I've had doors open for me just because I'm Greek...I've had people say, "Oh-my sister, mother, cousin, etc. is a *** **...." or I'm a (insert other NPC or NPHC name here)....I've found that NPHC members are much more proud to sport their gear even at the ages of 40+...it's nice......Let's all do that and show our pride instead of write about our disdain in a newspaper (and at the same time giving our organizations more BAD publicity).....

Ditto. I also want to state that I am very proud of listing my sorority on my resume, and I pay special attention to those who list greek affiliation on their resume when I am hiring.

I also wanted to add, my nationals was able to support Alumnae not only by networking and socializing but in their time of need. Nationals raised thousands of dollars to give to alumnae of the gulf coast who lost everything.

[DUAPhi]

There was another lip synch contest that went on....I know my chapter did one the year dukedg graduated, but I want to say AOII or did it....don't totally remember.

As for alum support, aside from the "mass Durham exodus" that occurs every year college, the alums that are in the area (and not all of them, just some) came from schools with VERY different greek scenes....many times from hard-core "go greek or go home" southern schools. Duke does not have housing, and while Greek Life is important, it is not the be-all, end-all that many of the women advising thought it should be. Duke is a stepping-stone school where most go on to graduate schools - there are always bigger priorities, and greek life is seen as your social outlet only should you choose to join. It also makes smaller chapters hard to sustain...when I left, there was a 60% affiliation rate, so COR/COB processes were difficult...women who wanted to be greek were, women who weren't wanted no part of it.

As dukedg stated, I graduated in 2002 and held an Exec Board position with Duke Panhellenic. While there were always "rumors" of inappropriate conduct (an infamous school girls and teachers mixer between two other fraternities and sororites comes to mind) I was disturbed to hear the lap dances, "women licking whipped cream off each other" karoke, etc. that is supposedly occuring now. It is beyond inappropriate and only adds fuel to the less-than-stellar PR fire Duke has recieved over the past two years. Kudos to the women standing up and putting an end to this. They are far too smart and talented to demean themselves in such a fashion.

[ThetaDancer]

Originally Posted by Janerz222

-I'm willing to wager that this author's organization has/participates in a lot of what she thinks is missing. She can wait for someone to come knock her over the head with "opportunities", or she could spend a few minutes of inquiry and find a lot of them are there for her and her fellow Dukies. (She is not by any means alone in this regard.)

-as my biological sister (a longtime Duke GLO alumna) said upon reading this article: "You ARE the sorority, girlfriend. So get to it."

-I am speculating here, and may be off base in this particular case, but I'm going there anyway:

For a long time, I have sensed that many of our NPC chapters at prestigious universities consider themselves above our inter/national organizations, and therefore they ignore/do not fully participate in what the larger organization offers. There's a bit of embarrassment at being a sorority member. So to assuage that and to make themselves feel more justified that they haven't sold out, they convince themselves that "it's different at Duke/Princeton/Stanford". (Note, I'm not throwing stones at glass houses--this most certainly applies to my alma mater/college chapter and to myself to some extent during my own college days.)

By belittling your ties to and the value of the inter/national organization, you can have your cake (3-4 years of fun) and eat it too (ignore the ritual/restrictions/hard work/alumnae involvement).

Imagine how much more we could accomplish if that energy was spent on strengthening the areas our of GLOs that they see as lacking! As an exception to the norm (an actively participating alumna from my chapter), that's the tack I've taken, and I wish I had more company.

You can complain about it, or you can do something about it. I agree that the former is much easier (and makes for more juicy journalism and more hits on your webpage). However, two of the lessons I've learned from being an NPC woman are that you can only change an organization from within, and that women make fabulous agents of purposeful change.

Exactly! I think you hit the nail on the head with this one.

[KDAngel]

The article doesn't bother me whatsoever. I think it's safe to say some nationals do a lot more for their chapters than others. Additionally, some national officers see some of them their chapters are more or less self-sufficient and kind of let them do their own thing. I think a lot of time, women feel lost in the mix of it all. And while I think the problem should be remedied, I don't think there's anything wrong with saying how you feel.

[Tom Earp]

While I cannot speak for the Sororities, I know there was a problem within LXA concerning what was being done for Alumni except for asking for money.

Everything was aimed toward the active chapters only. Wirh enough alums complaining there ahs been a turn a round by IHQ.

There is more emphasis being placed on the alumni for a change to keep us involved. I feel they still could do more with the many hours, time and money spent by us.

[TSteven]

Originally Posted by FSUZeta

if this young woman is looking for more professional guidance, she should join the journalism club or the greek letter equivalent. that is the purpose of a professional organization. social organizations are just that-organizations that enhance the social aspects of college, and hopefully help make the member a more well rounded individual.

Originally Posted by 33girl

I did NOT join a sorority for "political mobilization" - I grew up with that. If I want to be involved politically, I know where to go. I didn't join for "networking" either. I joined for friends and fun that I'm still having 20 years later.

Thank y'all for saying this. I so agree with both statements.

I would just add that social (general) fraternities and sororities should first be - gasp - social in nature. And that by joining a social fraternity or sorority, you simply have widened your social circle. Further more, just like the rest of society, you have the opportunity to use your social contacts (including, but not limited to your GLO) to better yourself. As it has been said so many times before, "you get out of your GLO what you put into it".