Greek Organizations

When you think of college
fraternities, do scenes from the movie Animal House come to mind?

For 30 years, America's view of fraternities (and in some cases, sororities)
has been influenced by the toga-wearing, hard-drinking, food-fighting brothers
of Delta House. In fact, fraternity members, themselves, may have
believed that the brothers of Delta House were role models to emulate, perhaps
the very thinking that caused a backlash against fraternities (originally
organized to promote scholarship) in colleges across the nation.

But fraternity brothers are not the town rowdies that comical movies, books, and
television shows often portray. When colleges support and partner with
these Greek-letter organizations, fraternities and sororities can become
sources of scholarship, philanthropy, leadership, and deep, abiding
friendships.

Just ask Dr. Steven J. Tyrell, vice president for student affairs at Alfred
State College (SUNY College of Technology) in upstate New York. He
believes that Greek-letter organizations can be positive forces in the lives of
our young people provided the organization and the institution
(college/university) clearly understand and agree upon what is expected of both
parties.

"Because fraternities and sororities can have such positive influences on
today's college students, Alfred State College has taken steps to support and
nurture these organizations with the proviso that the college and the
fraternities/sororities have the same goals. To this end, the student-run
Greek Council on campus and appropriate student life administrators have forged
a relationship statement that spells out the criteria Greek groups need to
follow in order to receive the recognition and support of the college," Tyrell
says.

Among the most important of these requirements, says Tyrell, is that the
membership hold each other accountable.

"Students need to take ownership of their club and of the actions of its
members," says Tyrell. "When students are
held accountable, most often they live up to our expectations."

The relationship statement crafted by the Division of Student Affairs and the
Greek Senate at Alfred State holds fraternities and sororities to four major
standards:

Scholarship-because academics and scholarship are ideals upon which most Greek
organizations are founded, a student's academic responsibility should
unquestionably receive the highest priority. Greek-lettered organizations
encourage members to embrace a lifelong desire for learning and thus they
demonstrate this value in how they inculcate the value of scholarship in their
actions and daily practices. Fraternities and sororities must promote
scholarship by providing opportunities for students to develop important study
habits such as study groups and workshops on time management, note taking,
study skills, and test anxiety, as well as foster informal and formal advising
sessions with members. Each organization must maintain a minimum of a 2.0
(out of 4.0) grade point average.

Philanthropy and community service-Greek organizations provide members with the
opportunity to become involved in giving back to the community through service
and philanthropies because Greek organizations care about others and are
willing to do something to show that care to others.

Leadership (development)-Greek members can cultivate their leadership skills
through their participation in organizational activities or through their involvement
in Greek Senate activities. In order to meet their obligation as an
exclusionary group, they are required to fully participate in Greek Senate
activities, meetings and initiatives, as this insures that the standards will
be met and completed at a level of quality that will allow the entire Greek
community to thrive at the college. Alfred State College will provide training,
seminars, and other leadership opportunities that meet the specific needs of
the current Greek population.

Brotherhood/Sisterhood (friendship)-when choosing an organization, students may
look for a comfortable fit where they feel they can share values and interests
with members. A chapter can serve as a place where friends become family
and the friendships can last a lifetime. Greek organizations also give
members the opportunity to network with alumni/ae and interact with members who have made a
successful transition from college to the work force. Fraternities and sororities also
provide a wide variety of events which help bring members of different
organizations together, fostering relationships outside the core group.

When asked how the college can be certain these standards are being met, Tyrell
noted, "We're not naïve. In a nutshell, we expect the Greeks-who are all
assigned a Student Life adviser-to provide us with annual reports; plans for
leadership opportunities; policies and procedures -especially as pertains to recruiting
new members; and clear, functional risk management policies and procedures to
mitigate potential risks to members or visitors.

"Should a Greek-lettered organization-or any student organization on campus,
for that matter-disregard the guidelines set in place, it risks losing
recognition by the college; groups who choose not to abide by our standards
cannot seek to associate with the college or with Greek Senate, nor will they
obtain (or retain) college recognition," Tyrell continues.

"We've had great success with our Greek organizations in the past few years,"
adds Tyrell, "and we're expecting even greater success with the full
implementation of our relationship statement.

"So, despite the sometimes tarnished reputation of college fraternities and
sororities, Alfred State College has made a commitment to foster the
responsible growth of such organizations. After all, if approximately 25
percent of chief executives on the Forbes Super 500 list were members of
fraternities during their college years, it simply supports our belief that the skills students obtain while
being a brother or sister in a Greek organization can later give them an edge
when they enter the work force, allowing them to become contributing members of
our society."