#tempomagazine

    A major aspect of the college experience for millions of students across the nation is the thrill of Rushing a fraternity or sorority.  Lately, the negative stereotypes of these organizations have been causing a decrease in interest.  Countless news articles have swept the nation about hazing and problems brought about by Greek letter organizations.  Remember, it is only these organizations that have a small subgroup that make mistakes like this.  Nobody keeps in mind the student that died at Florida A&M, due to hazing in the marching band.  

    Everyone seems to be focusing on the negatives of Greek life.  By the negatives, of course this means the faults of a handful of messed up chapters nationwide that take things too far.  In no way are these actions to be condoned, but holding their faults against the greater group of Greeks is like saying that one Dalmatian bit someone, so let’s put down the whole species.  Let’s look at the benefits of going Greek during your college years.  The numbers of going Greek do not lie.

    One major problem facing all college campuses is retention.  How do the numbers of graduates match up?  Nationwide, 71% of all Greek members graduate.  This may not seem as high as desired, but when compared to the 50% of non-affiliates who graduate, there must be something in going a fraternity or sorority that makes your college experience worth having.  How good is the education received during this experience?  Statistically, all fraternity and all sorority GPAs are higher than all men’s and all women’s GPAs respectively.  As much as movies and television may have created a negative view on Greek organizations, scholarship is one of their biggest focuses.

    In a study conducted by the University of Missouri-Kansas City, on 730 surveyed college campuses, an average of 85% of student leaders were Greek. Organizations like the Student Government Association and countless other clubs have Greeks as their leaders because something about these organizations pushes their members to work harder and get involved on campus. Speaking of involvement, this study shows that Greeks are generally more involved on their campus and rank their college years higher than non-Greeks. If you don’t believe this, ask members of your club if they are Greek or not.

    Everyone has heard of the Who’s Who in America publication.  This presents the outstanding members of different levels of education.  One is chosen for this based on academic achievement, leadership qualities, involvement and service to their community.  As for the college version of this, an average of 76% of college students selected for this honor are members of a fraternity or sorority.  Is it purely a coincidence that the vast majority of high accomplished college students are Greek?

    So, past the four years on campus, how does going Greek impact life after college?  For those looking at going into the business world, know that 85% of executives in Fortune 500 companies are Greek.  Politically, 70% of US cabinet members and 76% of US senators have been part of a fraternity or sorority.  Let us not forget that all but two presidents since 1825 have been what most would call Frat Guys.  Greeks tend to build a greater sense of accomplishment and strive to develop more in their community and do more than just the minimum of what’s expected.

    Many people look down on the Greek community at many college campuses because of a negative stereotype created by media.  It seems evident that people prefer to focus on the negatives of some organizations hazing or celebrating alcohol abuse.  No news reports show the hundreds of thousands of dollars these organizations raise for local and national charities annually.  How many have looked at the stronger Greek GPA than that of non-affiliates?  How about the nearly countless service hours?  The vast majority of Greek letter organizations stay true to the ideals of scholarship, brotherhood/sisterhood, philanthropy and leadership.  Really, who wouldn’t agree with these?

The author of this article is an avid member of CCU's Greek Life.