College is one of the great rites of passage many Americans go through year after year.

It is supposed to be the best time of your life meeting your best friends, staying up late, and gaining your independence. But the first few days of college can be some of the scariest moments of your life. You dont come to college with your best friends already made, and that may be the most daunting task of those first few weeks. Getting involved in the different organizations on campus is one of the best ways to meet people with the same interests as you and thats where you make friends for life. Slippery Rock University is no different from any other university with the clubs and organizations it offers. There is SGA, UPB, and Green and White, all of which offer the opportunity to connect with other students and make a difference on campus. Greek life is a group of organizations that can offer what SGA, UPB, and Green and White do combined all into one. Fraternities and sororities have been present on college campuses since our countrys founding in 1776. Since then, all but two United States Presidents since 1825 have been fraternity members, all 11 Apollo astronauts were Greek, and the all fraternity and all sorority GPAs are higher than the overall college GPA. It gives you a sense of belonging and pride, as well as a group of friends that share similar values, said Jared Stanley, president of the Interfraternity Council at Slippery Rock University. Stanley, 20, smiled as he remembered his transition into Greek life. He laughed when he thought about the ideas he had about Greek life when he first arrived on Slippery Rocks campus.

When I first came to college, I was against the idea of Greek life and so were a majority of my friends and family, Stanley, an education major, said. However, I decided to have an open mind and looked into Greek life at the Club and Organization Fair and found that it didnt fit the traditional stereotype I originally had in mind. The stereotypical Greek life experience is one surrounded by partying, drinking, not studying, and hazing. This stereotype is epitomized by the movie, Animal House, which became popular in the 1970s and is still popular today. Failing grades are another concern for students joining Greek organizations as well. In order to join a Greek organization on SRUs campus, a student must have a GPA of at least a 2.5. The different organizations have their own requirements when it comes to the GPA a member needs to hold in order to an active member and most stick the 2.5 standard. A grade report done for the Greek organizations at SRU for Spring 2013 show that the All Greek GPA is only 0.054 points under the SRU Undergrad GPA. Ashley Wodarek, president of the Panhellenic Council at SRU, said that joining a sorority or fraternity could hurt your reputation in some ways. People stereotype Greeks as partiers, Wodarek, a 21-year-old business management major, said. Stanley also agreed. It is really easy to see people with letters on and to associate them with something negative that they may have seen in the media, Stanley said. Hazing is also a big deterrent in joining Greek life. One only has to look in a newspaper or online to see another Greek organization caught hazing its members. Just a few years ago, a

sorority on campus was suspended for a semester because of a violation of hazing policies that SRU has enacted. A hazing hotline is set up for students to call at anytime to report hazing, Danielle Dodson, the Vice President of Recruitment for the Panhellenic Council at SRU, said. Dodson, a 21-year-old education major, went on to explain the process in a serious manner. The chapter is suspended for a semester and then put on probation on campus, Dodson explained. If they get caught hazing again within the probationary period, then the organization is kicked of Slippery Rocks campus. The organizations national council is contacted and specific organization regulations are also followed. The Office of Student Affairs also covers the violation and, if it is serious enough, legal action may be taken. It is a really severe process, Dodson said. Yet with all the negative aspects Greek life can see, thousands of students are joining Greek organizations every year. Greek life is even growing on campuses. SRU is considered a small state school, and Greek life on campus is small as well. Only 5.6 percent of students are a part of a Greek organization on campus. This statistic only covers social fraternities and sororities. The average size of a fraternity at SRU is 29 men, while sororities have a slightly higher average with 42 women. According to Dodson, over 130 students came to a Meet the Greeks, event which featured Panhellenic Council sororities, Interfraternity Council fraternities, and other social Greek organizations. From these 130 students, 70 women went through the rest of the recruitment week the Panhellenic Council set up. Forty-seven of these women received bids to

the six different sororities on campus, leaving only 23 who had not signed to a sorority. The recruitment process for fraternities is a bit different. Stanley reported that 75 men came to Meet the Greeks and of these men, 50 signed to the seven fraternities on campus. The Greek organizations at SRU are committed to giving back to the community and the campus. Each organization has a national philanthropy that it supports through various events hosted on campus. These organizations support each other in their philanthropic endeavors. Stanley, Dodson, and Wodarek all beamed with pride as they each explained how SRU Greek life as a whole was able to grant a wish through the Make-A-Wish Foundation with the money raised during Greek Week. Stanley also explained the idea for breaking a world record next spring while also raising money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. The event doubles as a fundraiser for the Make-A-Wish Foundation and also a celebration of Slippery Rocks 125th anniversary, Stanley said. The world record were trying to break is the record for the most people spooning, Stanley said. The record was set by college students before, and it is something fun to get the entire community involved. Were hoping to become a Make-A-Wish campus with this event, Stanley explained excitedly. Like any other student-run organization, Greek life has seen its ups and downs on campus. Greek life offers its members a home away from home as Stanley, Dodson, and Wodarek all smile warmly when they think about the brothers and sisters they have supporting them throughout their college years.

Its a sisterhood or brotherhood that you will have not just for four years, Wodarek said thoughtfully, its for life.