A local sorority at USC?

[SC2013]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Okay, first of all, you are saying a lot of nasty things about chapters you once wanted to join, so you sound like sour grapes. Cut that out.

Oh no! I really don't mean to. I really love the idea of sisterhood and what these chapters stand for, I feel like in practice it's fallen a little flat. If I had joined any of these chapters--and I would have no qualms--I would try to change this internally as well.

It's difficult to convey what I see on campus to anyone not here at the same place, same time. The Row has gotten really rowdy. The USC email is just a culmination of our environment, for the whole world to finally see. The only reason the email went viral is because people thought it was funny, not because it was untrue. It just makes me sad to see that what Greek organizations aim to be hasn't really stuck here...

[KSUViolet06]

Originally Posted by SC2013

Oh no! I really don't mean to. I really love the idea of sisterhood and what these chapters stand for, I feel like in practice it's fallen a little flat. If I had joined any of these chapters--and I would have no qualms--I would try to change this internally as well.

It's difficult to convey what I see on campus to anyone not here at the same place, same time. The Row has gotten really rowdy. The USC email is just a culmination of our environment, for the whole world to finally see. The only reason the email went viral is because people thought it was funny, not because it was untrue. It just makes me sad to see that what Greek organizations aim to be hasn't really stuck here...

How does one know what Greek organizations "aim to be" and how they are or aren't fulfilling that when one is not a member?

How does one intend to start a sorority and gain support for it on the grounds of basically saying "all the other groups have NO VALUES?"

Good luck with that.

[SC2013]

Originally Posted by KSUViolet06

How does one know what Greek organizations "aim to be" and how they are or aren't fulfilling that when one is not a member?

How does one intend to start a sorority and gain support for it on the grounds of basically saying "all the other groups have NO VALUES?"

Good luck with that.

I may be presuming too much, but most Greek organizations' mission statements, mottos, creeds, etc. all stand for very noble endeavors, seeking to improve not only themselves and their brotherhoods/sisterhoods but the community and academic environment. That's what I was assuming, and I've noticed a steadying dichotomy between the face houses put on when parents and nationals are around, and when left to their own devices.

We as a culture--youth culture, USC culture, Southern California culture, Greek culture--have started to value, or rather place too much value, upon the more superficial aspects of Greek culture that nationwide have negatively stereotyped GLOs. The social aspects of the Greek system are certainly strong, valuable, and beneficial to all. However, other aspects have fallen to the back burner.

I love USC and this has given our university specifically a terrible and largely unsubstantiated reputation. I'm thinking of ways in which we could reverse this, and if it took a local sorority that refocused on the founding principles of sisterhood to try and turn this ship around...

Maybe I'm just being outdated. But my sister just received a copy of her sorority's magazine in the mail and I was reading through it, and many of the facets that nationally the sorority is proud of and supports are not satisfactorily represented on a regular basis in my opinion. Furthermore, the founding members' goals and beliefs on how the sorority's members should act and behave are only present when adults come around.

These founders' ideals and mission statements are what attracted me to the Greek system. I still believe in the importance of the bond of GLOs but perhaps I was just too idealistic in believing that the symbols of these GLOs go beyond surface level?

[KSUViolet06]

Originally Posted by SC2013

I may be presuming too much, but most Greek organizations' mission statements, mottos, creeds, etc. all stand for very noble endeavors, seeking to improve not only themselves and their brotherhoods/sisterhoods but the community and academic environment. That's what I was assuming, and I've noticed a steadying dichotomy between the face houses put on when parents and nationals are around, and when left to their own devices.

We as a culture--youth culture, USC culture, Southern California culture, Greek culture--have started to value, or rather place too much value, upon the more superficial aspects of Greek culture that nationwide have negatively stereotyped GLOs. The social aspects of the Greek system are certainly strong, valuable, and beneficial to all. However, other aspects have fallen to the back burner.

I love USC and this has given our university specifically a terrible and largely unsubstantiated reputation. I'm thinking of ways in which we could reverse this, and if it took a local sorority that refocused on the founding principles of sisterhood to try and turn this ship around...

Maybe I'm just being outdated. But my sister just received a copy of her sorority's magazine in the mail and I was reading through it, and many of the facets that nationally the sorority is proud of and supports are not satisfactorily represented on a regular basis in my opinion. Furthermore, the founding members' goals and beliefs on how the sorority's members should act and behave are only present when adults come around.

These founders' ideals and mission statements are what attracted me to the Greek system. I still believe in the importance of the bond of GLOs but perhaps I was just too idealistic in believing that the symbols of these GLOs go beyond surface level?

You didn't really answer my question. How do you know? You know all of this about sororities from reading your sister's sorority magazine?

If you were to start a local, you wouldn't get far with the attitude that the existing groups are somehow "not measuring up" to their values (that you don't know about because you aren't actually in them.)

[Drolefille]

Originally Posted by KSUViolet06

You didn't really answer my question. How do you know? You know all of this about sororities from reading your sister's sorority magazine?

If you were to start a local, you wouldn't get far with the attitude that the existing groups are somehow "not measuring up" to their values (that you don't know about because you aren't actually in them.)

Geez because she sees all the drinking and sex and KNOWS that those people are not, in their non partying times, living up to the standards that she KNOWS are there. Duh.

[SC2013]

Originally Posted by Drolefille

Geez because she sees all the drinking and sex and KNOWS that those people are not, in their non partying times, living up to the standards that she KNOWS are there. Duh.

Well I live with 2 sorority girls. I know that they don't just drink and have sex all the time, but thank you for generalizing my concerns into black and white.

One is very involved in student government, volunteers, is double majoring, and was strongly considering dropping her sorority because it didn't enable her the time to have these extracurriculars, and she doesn't spend too much time at the house generally. She eventually decided to stay in the sorority because she decided that whenever she did have free time she'd have a group of girls to go out to the Row with. She and my other roommate both agree that their organizations rely mostly on social activities. I mean, that's what makes them successful and I understand how that is. My other roommate sees the philanthropic requirements as a nuisance, as do many of my friends in GLOs. It's not like since I'm not in a GLO I'm completely unaware of GLO members' mentality. Many girls are very involved in service work, many girls are very driven in their studies; that's a given. However, that seems to come in conflict with their involvement in their sorority rather than enhance their experience. What I'm saying is, it shouldn't be that way.

And hopefully that wouldn't take a new colony, and instead being on probation to have members reexamine the meaning of being Greek. So far it doesn't seem to have that effect, however. I personally see USC's Greek community as what should be the future leaders of a student body already comprised of incredibly involved, talented, well-rounded, intelligent people. And the Greek community already contributes a great deal; I just feel like it's missing the mark in other instances too.

[33girl]

Originally Posted by SC2013

Well I live with 2 sorority girls. I know that they don't just drink and have sex all the time, but thank you for generalizing my concerns into black and white.

One is very involved in student government, volunteers, is double majoring, and was strongly considering dropping her sorority because it didn't enable her the time to have these extracurriculars, and she doesn't spend too much time at the house generally. She eventually decided to stay in the sorority because she decided that whenever she did have free time she'd have a group of girls to go out to the Row with. She and my other roommate both agree that their organizations rely mostly on social activities. I mean, that's what makes them successful and I understand how that is. My other roommate sees the philanthropic requirements as a nuisance, as do many of my friends in GLOs. It's not like since I'm not in a GLO I'm completely unaware of GLO members' mentality. Many girls are very involved in service work, many girls are very driven in their studies; that's a given. However, that seems to come in conflict with their involvement in their sorority rather than enhance their experience. What I'm saying is, it shouldn't be that way.

And hopefully that wouldn't take a new colony, and instead being on probation to have members reexamine the meaning of being Greek. So far it doesn't seem to have that effect, however. I personally see USC's Greek community as what should be the future leaders of a student body already comprised of incredibly involved, talented, well-rounded, intelligent people. And the Greek community already contributes a great deal; I just feel like it's missing the mark in other instances too.

OK, I'm sorry, but I just gotta say it.

How old are you? REALLY?

Heaven knows I love when current students come on here and are well spoken - it reaffirms my faith in the youth of today - but you sound like a 50 year old professor teaching a sociology course. It's more than a tad off-putting.

[Barbie's_Rush]

Nothing like a non-Greek lecturing Greeks on the meaning of being Greek. *sigh* I really thought you showed a lot of maturity and thoughtfulness when you wrote about your recruitment experience. Now I can see where you’re really coming from and it isn’t pretty.

You were a sophomore when you rushed after a year of observing what Greek life was all about at USC. You had an entire year to evaluate it and you still went through recruitment because you wanted to join. Sisters didn’t just start walking down the row in miniskirts. They didn’t just start having philanthropy events that don’t meet your exacting expectations. They didn’t just start being interested in having the best social life, looking good and hanging out with the hottest guys. You knew that going into recruitment. You wanted that.

How dare you have the audacity to tell sorority members that their behavior doesn’t represent the ideals of their organizations and that they don’t have a “true” sisterhood? You are not privy to any group’s inner workings. You do not know anything about secrets, rituals and anything else that happens inside the chapters. You’re not there when an entire group of sisters stays up all night to comfort a girl through a nasty breakup. You’re not there to support the sister who just lost her father to cancer. You’re not there to make the late night run for frozen yogurt because you’ve all been studying until your brains are about to seep out of your ears and yogurt is the only antidote. How dare you presume anything about anyone’s sisterhood? You know nothing.

You had a chance to be Greek and make a difference from the inside out. You were offered a bid to the struggling chapter and chose not to accept it. You are actually part of the problem.

You don’t really want to start a local. What you really want is to start an interest group with the expectation that some magical NPC group will come in and scoop you up and give you some kind of shiny new start and eliminate the stigma that you feel you’d have as a member of those struggling groups. Christ on a cracker with cream cheese on top, you’re even looking at potential groups. Do you really think an NPC group is going to come in and spend millions of dollars and man hours to establish a chapter on a campus like yours simply because you perceive yourself to be somehow more virtuous than those awful sorority girls you sought to join just a few months ago? Good luck with that.

[SC2013]

Originally Posted by KSUViolet06

You didn't really answer my question. How do you know? You know all of this about sororities from reading your sister's sorority magazine?

If you were to start a local, you wouldn't get far with the attitude that the existing groups are somehow "not measuring up" to their values (that you don't know about because you aren't actually in them.)

Founding principles and histories are readily available online, I can't pretend to know what is revealed during initiation, during chapter meetings, etc. but I'm assuming that the literature that is publicly available, not just from magazines, but from literature written by founding members (Google Books is awesome), from national organization websites, etc. still stands true. Like I said though, I could be presuming but my assumption is that the information given once being a member would delve further into what is publicly available, not deviate completely.

[KSUViolet06]

Originally Posted by SC2013

Founding principles and histories are readily available online, I can't pretend to know what is revealed during initiation, during chapter meetings, etc. but I'm assuming that the literature that is publicly available, not just from magazines, but from literature written by founding members (Google Books is awesome), from national organization websites, etc. still stands true. Like I said though, I could be presuming but my assumption is that the information given once being a member would delve further into what is publicly available, not deviate completely.

How on Earth does one know that EVERY SINGLE GLO at USC is not "measuring up" and that EVERY SINGLE SORORITY MEMBER ON on the Row is not deeply invested in those values?

Because they party?

I mean, WTF?

You really think that you are going to start a local, and women are going to want to join solely on the strength of you saying "heyyy PNMs, everyone else is not living up to their values!!!!! See, they're partying and junk!!!!"

Come on.

I mean, really.

[SC2013]

Originally Posted by KSUViolet06

How on Earth does one know that EVERY SINGLE GLO at USC is not "measuring up" and that EVERY SINGLE SORORITY MEMBER ON on the Row is not deeply invested in those values?

Because they party?

I mean, WTF?

You really think that you are going to start a local, and women are going to want to join solely on the strength of you saying "heyyy PNMs, everyone else is not living up to their values!!!!! See, they're partying and junk!!!!"

Come on.

I mean, really.

Come on. I party too. Every college student does. But being Greek shouldn't be just about...partying more. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with partying. But being Greek should be about more than that. It should be about striving to do better, do more.

And in theory, it is. In practice here, it's not really.