There are common misconceptions and negative stereotypes about the Greek community; in many cases people only hear the negative things and the bad situations.
However, there’s a lot that goes to being Greek than just partying.
Greek life can definitely be time consuming, but for most, it’s only a portion of the things they’re involved in.
For example, JJ Paolino is Theta Chi’s president and former social chair. He not only works for media services, but he also tours the Bay Area as a musician and serves as President of GAMMA, or Greeks Advocate Mature Management of Alcohol. He also volunteers every Friday at the Tampa Shriner’s Children’s Hospital, and he does fundraising for his fraternity at Buccaneers games.
“I get stressed sometimes, but I enjoy all of it. There’s never a dull moment,” Paolino said.
Not every person has that much going on, but being in a Greek organization keeps everyone in line.
Others may not realize that there is a GPA requirement to get into any Greek organization. Not only do Greeks need to have certain grades to get in, but maintaining a minimum requirement for membership is a positive incentive to keep members’ grades up.
If they don’t, there are consequences.
The fraternity requirement is a 2.3 GPA to pledge. That may not sound difficult, especially for pledges coming right out of high school, but there are quite a few people in college who aren’t so lucky.
Once a fraternity member’s GPA drops below a 2.3, they start to get some privileges taken away, like going to social events or formals.
Also, in Theta Chi, if a brother wants to hold a position on the executive board they’re required to maintain a 2.75 GPA. If they can’t keep their grades up, then it’s very likely that they can’t keep up with a position also.
Each sorority also has different GPA requirements. For example, in Delta Gamma, no one can have below a high school GPA of 3.0 and a 2.8 for college. A 2.5 is required to stay in the sorority, otherwise sisters get put on probation, and nothing lower than a 2.8 is accepted if a sister wants to be able to run for a position and hold it throughout the year.
Not only do Greek organizations keep the members in line with grades, but there are also mandatory events to attend, such as speakers, theme weeks, meetings and study hours.
If someone does decide to run for a position, then there are even more responsibilities, like planning events and functions, taking care of money and paper work and taking a lot of blame for other members’ faults.
Being Greek can definitely keep everyone busy and on their toes, but there’s a lot of perks. For many, it’s a great way to make great connections all over the nation and open doors to various opportunities.
Kim Dawson is currently interning at Robert W. Baird Investment Company.
She found out about the job opportunity from another sorority sister.
As a result, not only does Dawson have an internship to put on her resume, but she’s also a member of the business fraternity Delta Sigma Pi, a babysitter, maintains an impressive GPA, all on top of going from holding a Vice President position to being elected President for Delta Gamma starting this Spring.
“I like to stay busy and I like everything that I’m involved in. I really think all the hard work will pay off by the time I graduate. I’ve had so many great experiences through DG,” Dawson said.
So while there are some negative stereotypes of Greeks, it’s important to realize that Greek life can have positive influences on a student’s career beyond simple social connections.