What is going on at University of Iowa?

[TSteven]

Originally Posted by sdbeta1

The small size is due to campus culture. Formal rush is being formally eliminated after last semester as a result. The IFC website isn't updated too often. Beta and TKE have recolonized since their closures. Kappa Sigma as well but has since disbanded. Some of the closures were due to risk management issues DU, Fiji, Pike, Beta. Of which were all big houses in terms of membership. Others due to membership, Kappa Sig and Phi Delt. I believe Delta Tau Delta is scheduled to come onto campus, they have been attempting to expand by one IFC chapter each semester.

Another issue is that traditional houses are being converted into apartments. Thus there is no space for some chapters in terms of housing. Off the top of my head I can think of three houses that have been converted, and one that is about to be converted.

What would you (or any others who might know) say *is* the campus culture? More to the point, are there less men going through rush? And if so, why?

And for what it is worth, the NIC has advocated for years that member fraternities should rush 365 days a year. The concept of a "structured rush week" was more of less to allow freshmen the opportunity to view all the chapters at one time.

[ISUKappa]

Originally Posted by TSteven

A simple guess is that the University of Iowa administration (or administrations as the case may be) has chosen to take a firm stance on risk management issues. Until everyone "gets it", then chapters are going to be closed. At at the same time, when students see so many chapters being closed they can become leery of joining any fraternity. Simply because the many positive reasons for joining are being overshadowed by the negative actions of the few.

I believe this is a large part. IIRC all of the fraternities are required to be dry, regardless of inter/national policy.

As for chapter size, of the chapters that have closed, would they be consider the traditionally large chapters at Iowa? And is the "small in size" average chapter size a result of the number of men participating in rush (i.e. campus culture), or the number of bids extended?

Definitely some of the larger chapters are those that closed (FIJI was a very large chapter). I think part of it is the low number of men participating in formal rush.

For example, while I do not know for sure if the Iowa fraternities do this, I know that many fraternities on Midwestern campuses extend bids based on the number of men that may live in the house. Give or take a few men. So if the current eleven houses on campus are at their own self-imposed total, then statically, it would be possible to suggest that those chapters are doing well.

AFAIK, there are no restrictions such as those

Having said all this, I am guessing that most of those chapters closed have extensive alumni that they can draw from. Both financially and in numbers. As such, once the suspension is lifted, I am sure more than a few of the chapters will be back. And it would not surprise me with membership numbers near or at what they were before.

FWIR, Beta was another very large chapter before it closed a few years ago. They've recently recolonized, but are less than half their former size.

Originally Posted by TSteven

What would you (or any others who might know) say *is* the campus culture? More to the point, are there less men going through rush? And if so, why?

I think a lot of men see no need to be in a fraternity, especially if their main desire for joining is socially driven. Bars are 19 in Iowa City, fraternity houses are dry. Those who want leadership positions can find them elsewhere. Greek marketing is not very good.

[TSteven]

Originally Posted by 33girl

I don't think anything has said that anything you post is "offensive" - I think people wonder where you get your info, if you are Greek yourself, and if not, why the intense interest in Greeks.

I mean, I post on a board for a profession I am not in, but I have come out and said I'm not a professional, just someone with an interest in the industry and how it works.

For what it is worth, oldu has already posted where he (I'm guessing, apologies if I have the wrong gender) gets most of his information in another thread. The bottom line is the information is out there for any one to research. What I am quite thankful for is that oldu has taken the time and care to provide this information in an informative and interesting manner for us on GC to discuss.

[TSteven]

Thank you for your responses. A few more questions if you don't mind. (See below in blue.)

Originally Posted by ISUKappa

I believe this is a large part. IIRC all of the fraternities are required to be dry, regardless of inter/national policy.

~ Is this a campus wide policy?

Definitely some of the larger chapters are those that closed (FIJI was a very large chapter). I think part of it is the low number of men participating in formal rush.

~ So as a follow up, are there men who only rush certain chapters? And as such, if the chapters are not active, they don't rush at all?

AFAIK, there are no restrictions such as those

~ Thanks. I wasn't sure if Iowa was similar to some of the other Midwestern schools in that respect.

FWIR, Beta was another very large chapter before it closed a few years ago. They've recently recolonized, but are less than half their former size.

~ In your opinion, do you feel they are half their original size due to the reduction of men now rushing, because they may be viewed as "damaged" or "tainted", or simply because they are still early in the re-colonization stage?

I think a lot of men see no need to be in a fraternity, especially if their main desire for joining is socially driven. Bars are 19 in Iowa City, fraternity houses are dry. Those who want leadership positions can find them elsewhere. Greek marketing is not very good.

~ By Greek marketing, do you mean the Administration or within the Greek Community - in this case, the IFC? And do you feel this is something more temporary or something that might be permanent?

Thanks again.

[oldu]

For the record, I am a Greek of many years. I have been involved with my own fraternity and chapter off and on over several of those years. Now retired, I can say that my fraternity experience had more to do with my success than anything else I was involved with. In addition to being interested in the subject, my goal is to motivate more Greeks to seriously address their activities to bringing this opportunity to the youth in college today. This is one of the few forums today in which this can be done and I would like to see it as constructive as possible.

[ISUKappa]

For some reason, I'm having a difficult time replying to TSteven

Originally Posted by TSteven

Thank you for your responses. A few more questions if you don't mind. (See below in blue.)

~ Is this a campus wide policy?

AFAIK, it only applies to Greek housing. A member of Lambda Chi Alpha died in 1995 after a night of heavy drinking, and I think a lot of the alcohol-related changes happened as a result.

~ So as a follow up, are there men who only rush certain chapters? And as such, if the chapters are not active, they don't rush at all?

I think some probably did only want certain chapters and now that they're no longer on campus, they aren't in any chapter.

~ In your opinion, do you feel they are half their original size due to the reduction of men now rushing, because they may be viewed as "damaged" or "tainted", or simply because they are still early in the re-colonization stage?

They were starting the recolonization process in 2006, and I *think* they've been installed as a chapter, but I'm not positive. I don't think they're necessarily viewed as "damaged" (IIRC the Betas were closed due to serious fire and health code violations along with some university alcohol violations -- kegs in the chapter house), I just don't think the type of men who previously joined GLOs at Iowa are joining anymore, especially as there are other social/leadership avenues available.

~ By Greek marketing, do you mean the Administration or within the Greek Community - in this case, the IFC? And do you feel this is something more temporary or something that might be permanent?

I think the Greek Community as a whole lacks proper marketing. A current, consistently updated website. Better recruitment materials. Part of that stems from the Administration (I'm not positive if they're allowed to put anything in incoming Freshmen welcome packets, or if so, what) and I think part of it comes from the Greek Affairs not really knowing how to market themselves well. I think they're trying, but it's just not enough.


Thanks again.

there... that seemed to work.

[TSteven]

Originally Posted by ISUKappa

For some reason, I'm having a difficult time replying to TSteven

there... that seemed to work.

I have been told I can be difficult. So I do apologize for being so.

Seriously, I do want to thank you for your candied and insightful view. Yet I have a few more questions if I may.

What do you view as the future of Fraternity life at Iowa? Do you feel that the campus culture has turn the proverbial corner or can they (fraternities) come back to the prominence they had before?

Also, do you foresee any negative effect on the sororities?

[oldu]

My reference to conditions of "now vs. then" at Iowa are more long term. I remember visiting Iowa City several years ago when there were thirty plus fraternities, most well housed and the majority with 60 or more members. Almost every activity on campus was controlled by Greeks. Compare that to today.

It is not a problem exclusive to University of Iowa. Many of our most prominent public universities are going through the same thing, witness: University of California, U. C. L. A., Colorado, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio State, Oregon and Texas. While it is critical for fraternities, the ladies have not escaped the problem either. Go look up how many sorority chapters have closed at the above institutions.

Where have we gone wrong? More importantly, what can we do to convince our brightest students who are attending our preeminent universities that they could gain from membership in a fraternity or sorority?

[ISUKappa]

...

Originally Posted by TSteven

What do you view as the future of Fraternity life at Iowa? Do you feel that the campus culture has turn the proverbial corner or can they (fraternities) come back to the prominence they had before?

Now, my viewpoint is as a former sorority advisor, so I didn't have the direct relationship with the fraternities, but I don't know that fraternities at Iowa will ever be as prominent as they were before. I think the campus is just changing too much. The incoming student is not the same as they were even 10 years ago. This phenomenon is talked about on GC all the time and Iowa is no exception.

Also, do you foresee any negative effect on the sororities?

I think there is some, but to a lesser extent. Total was lowered a few years ago and still only about 5 chapters are at or above total. IME, the women going through recruitment are changing as well. Not that it's necessarily a bad thing, but IME, it's led to lower retention rates and disconnect within the chapter and with the advisors. But maybe that was just the women I saw. I know other houses are doing very well with numbers, retention, leadership and scholarship.

[Tom Earp]

Originally Posted by oldu

For the record, I am a Greek of many years. I have been involved with my own fraternity and chapter off and on over several of those years. Now retired, I can say that my fraternity experience had more to do with my success than anything else I was involved with. In addition to being interested in the subject, my goal is to motivate more Greeks to seriously address their activities to bringing this opportunity to the youth in college today. This is one of the few forums today in which this can be done and I would like to see it as constructive as possible.

oldu, that is funny since I just got off of the phone with a member of Acacia who is in our age range discussing much the same thing.

As far as Iowa, I get reports but do not have links to list so I do not copy/paste and show them'

But, it seems that each of the Fraternities were pulled for various reasons and from the sounds rightly so. Drugs, underaging drinking, and unsanitary conditions being a few. So, it should not be on the Schools shoulders, but the Greeks themselves.

[PageantDiamonds]

Don't worry, oldu, some people are unpleasant and must always nitpick.

[catiebug]

And some people pretend to be what they are not.

Originally Posted by PageantDiamonds

Don't worry, oldu, some people are unpleasant and must always nitpick.

[SWTXBelle]

[breathesgelatin]

Originally Posted by oldu

Almost every activity on campus was controlled by Greeks.

I don't mean to nitpick or be rude. I find this thread very interesting. BUT...

Why is this a goal of many Greeks? At my school every activity on campus WAS controlled by Greeks and while I am a Greek and proud, it was not then and it is not now apparent to me that having "every activity on campus" controlled by Greeks is a positive thing. Were you meaning this as a downfall/problem at ISU or just as an example of "how the mighty have fallen"?

In my opinion it's a better goal for Greeks to seek leadership positions and work with non-Greek affiliated individuals for the betterment of the entire campus--FOR EVERYONE, not only for Greeks.

I was just curious because this is a view I see expressed or implied often on Greekchat and I wondered what the rationale behind it was. Is it just nostalgia? "Remember when we controlled everything...."

I would submit that a Greek system can be incredibly strong and dynamic while sharing power and allying with non-Greeks--and probably ultimately gain more public respect in the long run. Thus I don't see Greeks controlling every campus activity as a goal to work towards, nor do I see it as a sign of/necessity to having a strong Greek system...

[bejazd]

Originally Posted by breathesgelatin

Thus I don't see Greeks controlling every campus activity as a goal to work towards, nor do I see it as a sign of/necessity to having a strong Greek system...

I agree. The groups that will be successful in the future will adapt their programming to meet the needs and the interests of today's students. That does not mean we have to meet ALL of their needs. But we do have to respect and be aware that not everyone who can be a real asset to our membership is white, beautiful (or handsome), rich, middle class or already accomplished in eighty kazillion activities. If we're helping students to achieve better GPAs, giving them opportunities to serve their community, connecting them with alums that will help them in their future careers and providing a safe, fun social experience, the Greek system will grow and prosper despite changing campus climates.