Debunking the Sorority Women Airhead Myth

[SWTXBelle]

I was always amazed when people thought they were being complimentary when they said "You are in a sorority? Wow - I never would have guessed!", or worse "You're smart for a sorority girl". HUH?

[VandalSquirrel]

Originally Posted by SWTXBelle

I was always amazed when people thought they were being complimentary when they said "You are in a sorority? Wow - I never would have guessed!", or worse "You're smart for a sorority girl". HUH?

Instead of being insulted I revel in the person making the statement coming to terms with their own stereotyping issues.

[SWTXBelle]

Oh, I did - I'd ask them "What exactly do you think a sorority girl is like?"

[UGAalum94]

Originally Posted by VandalSquirrel

Instead of being insulted I revel in the person making the statement coming to terms with their own stereotyping issues.

I like the way you handled that.

They probably learned more too.

[VandalSquirrel]

Originally Posted by UGAalum94

I like the way you handled that.

They probably learned more too.

Well let's be honest, there are members of the Greek system who behave in ways that taint all of us. I'm not saying that these people are 100% wrong, because there are obviously students who behave in a way we're not thrilled about, but they aren't 100% right either.

I wonder who will have their stereotypes challenged when I wear my badge to class and work tomorrow?

[OhSoVeryLadylike]

Elementary Education is CAKE major??

[KSUViolet06]

I usually point out to people who think sorority women are stupid that the sorority chapter GPAs (3.0 and up) are consistently higher than the all women's average (like a 2.4).

[em_adpi]

I have a professor that says "You must be in a sorority" every time a girl says something airheaded. I should point out here that the class is all about stereotypes, so he's just trying to push buttons.

I will also mention here that he has NEVER said that to me.

[bejazd]

I think we sorority women probably don't do enough to publicize how much sorority membership can do for average students at all campuses. It's important what we are doing to help "C" students become "B" students and "B" students to become "A" students. Is there any other activity a college woman can get involved in that can offer a college woman so much in terms of scholastic support and leadership training? or opportunities to personally connect with women who share their career or academic interests? Putting more emphasis on what we're doing to impact scholastic improvement amongst all our members could go a long way to "debunking" the airhead stereotype.

[DSTCHAOS]

Originally Posted by bejazd

Is there any other activity a college woman can get involved in that can offer a college woman so much in terms of scholastic support and leadership training? or opportunities to personally connect with women who share their career or academic interests?

Yes.

This is why not everyone wants to be in a sorority or will successfully pursue a sorority. They can find these and other things elsewhere on most campuses.

For instance, there are many women who want NPHC membership but don't want all the rights and responsibilities that go along with being a member and a "soror." To those people, we often say "there's a great academic support club around the corner" or "the university has a minorities in medicine program where you can meet and mingle with other med students and people in your career of choice." The NPHC is not necessarily for them.

[sageofages]

Be informed, be articulate, be a part of something larger than yourself. All are the hallmarks of sorority woman.

I always like to point out...I know some remarkable HIGHLY educated people who lack a single BRAINCELL of common sense. To me that defines "air head".

Living well is the best response to "you are a sorority girl"?

[bejazd]

[quote=DSTCHAOS;1611543]Yes.
They can find these and other things elsewhere on most campuses. /quote]

True, hey can find some of these things in other activities, but sorority membership IMO does a very good job of providing a comprehensive lifetime experience...that will expose you to women from other areas of academic life, different socio-economic backgrounds, different ages, different geographic areas...and it's not something that's limited to your college years but can grow and change with you for the rest of your life.

It's not for everyone, nothing is, but I do think we are headed in the right direction generally in terms of breaking down barriers to membership and really offering quality membership experiences for a very broad group of students.

[skylark]

I have the same types of reactions from people (in the legal profession, mostly) when I tell them I advise a sorority chapter. The problem I get frustrated with is that there are male lawyers I know in the area who even put their affiliation/advising info on their webpages and resumes and it gets perceived as a positive "giving back to the community" kind of thing. It is rare that I am able to mention this to people and (without giving a 2-3 minute explanation of what I do and why) have people respect this part of my life. I constantly hear in non-greek's voices that they consider it a trivial thing to be spending time doing.

I remember I told someone at work last fall during recruitment that I was driving to the campus after work to help my chapter. She gave me a confused face and asked, "what would sorority girls need help with." I was kind of thrown back by her attitude and told her that recruitment was really stressful and it takes a lot of work and cooperation with others. It helps to have someone older and more mature there to keep things positive and going smoothly.

She just looked back at me like "whatever" and shrugged. It is really sad that I don't really feel like it is something I can list as a volunteer activity on my resume or webpage-bio, even though it is in so many ways my most rewarding "volunteer work" because of the close mentoring relationships that I really do think make a difference. My own theory is that it is the airhead stereotype that makes it different for male versus female advisers.

[DSTCHAOS]

Originally Posted by bejazd

True, hey can find some of these things in other activities, but sorority membership IMO does a very good job of providing a comprehensive lifetime experience...that will expose you to women from other areas of academic life, different socio-economic backgrounds, different ages, different geographic areas...and it's not something that's limited to your college years but can grow and change with you for the rest of your life.

Uh huh and women who don't want to be in a sorority (or were denied membership) can find all of this elsewhere if they really want it.

[gtdxeric]

Women are smart, men are dumb. Greek women are smarter than non-Greek women. None of the stereotypes are true, except the good ones.

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