Evan Freedman | Student Life

Of the 376 women who participated, 345 in recruitment received bids. The total number of women participating has expanded by about 20 to 40 people for each of the past five years.

Washington University’s Greek Life Office is currently working to figure out the causes of the increases through pre-surveys and follow-up surveys about the recruitment process, according to Lucy Morlan, coordinator of chapter development for Greek Life.

“We still need to analyze the data,” Morlan said. “We’re obviously excited about it but are curious to know what’s changed in the course of the past five years that’s gotten interest much higher than it’s been in the past.”

She noted that one possible factor for the elevated interest could be that students who have positive sorority experiences promote Greek life to their friends.

Morlan added that sorority recruitment has begun to see greater involvement from athletes due to a more flexible rush schedule.

Previously, women participating in rush had to attend all of the activities for the full amount of time. But for the past couple of years, recruitment has become more accommodating to athletes’ practice and game schedules.

“We do more individualized schedules to allow them to still be able to participate,” Morlan said.

While about 100 more girls rushed than four years ago, she said that sororities are not more selective in their bids.

“When you look at the percentage of people that go through versus the number of people that actually receive bids, the numbers are about the same,” Morlan said. “The way that recruitment is set up is to maximize the number of people that actually get bids. The goal is to put you someplace in our Greek community that matches up with you.”

She said the increase in recruitment numbers is causing chapter expansion as well. For this semester, the average chapter has 158 members.

Morlan noted that the larger numbers are pushing chapters to find new ways to make sorority involvement a special experience.

“If these numbers are going to increase, how do we still make this an intimate setting and experience [so] that it’s not just this really huge group there?” she said. “It will be interesting to see where the women take that. I think it will be fun for them, but I think it will also be challenging at times.”

Freshman Emi Tagashima, who accepted a bid from Alpha Omicron Pi, explained the efforts of her chapter to introduce new members to the rest of the chapter community.

“It will probably be hard to know all [members], but they do a really good job of introducing you to a lot of people. But there’s a lot of people and a lot of names,” Tagashima said.

The Women’s Panhellenic Association and the Office of Student Involvement and Leadership (Greek Life) have announced the addition of a new sorority to the Washington University campus.

The decision was prompted by the steady increase in the number of women registering for formal recruitment and the need to compensate for growing chapter size, said Coordinator for Student Involvement and Leadership (Greek Life) Lucy Morlan.

“Having 150 women in a chapter makes it difficult to get to know people—having numbers come down would make it more intimate for members,” Morlan said.

She says that it has also become difficult to find rooms large enough for sororities to hold chapter meetings.

A Panhellenic extension committee has been formed to review the applications of interested sororities and narrow it down to one organization to recommend to the Panhellenic board, which will vote on whether or not to accept the addition. The University will sign off on the final decision.

The committee is made up of one delegate from each of the University’s seven sororities, a fraternity male, a non-Greek University student, the Panhellenic president and one staff member.

According to Morlan, the reason for the diverse committee is to make sure that all opinions on campus can be heard, not just those from the Panhellenic community.

She said that having the chapter representatives is important because the addition of a new sorority will have the most impact on the existing chapters on campus.

“The sororities here rely on and work closely with each other” Morlan said. “We want to bring in someone who will work with the others, not just compete and be a stand-alone chapter.”

The non-Greek member and the male fraternity member were chosen to provide different perspectives.

Morlan emphasized the importance of finding an organization that will not only contribute to and improve the Panhellenic community, but also to the Washington University community as a whole.

“The impact will not just be on the Panhellenic community but also on the fraternity community and the larger community in terms of the non-Greek student,” Morlan said. “It’s important to take into account the academic standpoint or things that are important from the University’s mission standpoint.”

The committee reviewed applications from eight different sororities and graded them based on elements like programming, future national goals and alumni strength.

It focused on whether the organizations would bring programming that is relevant to members and to the larger student community and whether their policies would mesh with the religious and cultural diversity on campus.

The committee also investigated the organizations on the national level, looking at what their decision-making processes and officer structures are like, which Morlan said can provide a lot of insight into how the sorority would operate on campus.

Sophomore Reyshma Cragg, the committee delegate from Delta Gamma, is excited to be a part of the decision-making process.

“We may need another sorority to control numbers, but adding a new chapter will add so much more to our community through philanthropy and their energy,” she said. “It’s exciting to have a say [in] how Greek life is going to be shaped for the future.”

Morlan agrees that the decision making process is important for the sorority delegates not only because it will greatly impact them, but also because they get the chance to learn about how other organizations work.

“When they see what other organizations are doing, they can maybe take some of those ideas back to their own chapters,” Morlan said. “The process infuses some really cool ideas.”

According to Morlan, the process will differ from the colonization of Alpha Omicron Pi in 2009, because the new sorority will have over a year to prepare before doing any actual recruiting. AOII had much less time.

“After Formal Recruitment in 2013, they’ll bring in a lot of volunteers and do info sessions about philanthropy, programming, etcetera,” Morlan said. “Their alumni and national office staff will be doing one-on-one interviews to start with their initial class.”

According to Morlan, after the sorority’s initial class is chosen, its members will be eligible to participate in formal recruitment.

The committee has narrowed the pool down to three organizations: Kappa Alpha Theta, Alpha Delta Pi and Kappa Delta. Each will be coming to campus for day-long presentations about their respective organizations. The presentations will be open to all students.

“The Panhellenic community the past couple of years has focused on not resting on the fact that we’re a solid community, but really trying to push ourselves,” Morlan said. “Bringing a new chapter brings new people, new ideas and new perspectives, something that’s important to the community as a whole.”

Interfraternity Council (IFC) advised the fraternities not to hold any evening events after Rock the Row on Monday. The annual event marks the opening of Greek Life on campus to new students.

In past years, the night of Rock the Row has been an active night on Fraternity Row, allowing freshmen their first access to parties held at the fraternity houses.

This year, after an informal meeting of the Interfraternity Council, the governing and coordinating body of all 12 fraternities, members of the council sent emails reminding the fraternities that there were no registered parties and advising them not to host parties.

According to IFC Internal Vice President, Jeff Shevach, the decision not to hold events on Monday night was made based on several factors, including the beginning of the fall recruitment period. IFC decided it would be in the best interest of the fraternities not to hold events Monday night.

“Certainly fraternities are being a little more cautious because right now we are going through fall recruitment, so you don’t want any sanctions to hinder your recruiting process and maybe not get a fall pledge class. So maybe they were being a little more cautious on that end. But we weren’t telling them explicitly ‘Don’t have any events,’” he said.

IFC President Eric Salzberg, a senior, said the email was entirely motivated by concern for the safety of students.

“We have registered parties for safety. We have B&D there for safety reasons. Rock the Row is externally perceived to be a day where unregistered social events might occur,” Salzberg said. “Any time a fraternity has had an unregistered social event that has been broken up it has gone through our formal standards process.”

Some freshmen felt that they were missing out on a college experience and an opportunity to bond with fraternity members.

“I was looking forward to it. I’m thinking about going Greek so it would have been a nice introduction,” freshman Jordan Nick said.

Other freshmen were less concerned.

“We have a whole year to go [to the frats],” Aubrey Richards said.

David Wallace, the coordinator for Greek housing, thinks that keeping the unregistered parties at a minimum will help enhance the Greek Life community.

“I’ve had several leaders of the past couple years get really frustrated by the fact that people knock on the door and demand entry to a place carved out for members,” Wallace said. “The fraternities are not the place that should be designated as freshmen taverns.”

This coming weekend will be the first opportunity for any of the fraternity houses to register a party. They are each required to hold one registered, open house event each semester.

With additional reporting by Emily Sybrant.

David Wallace, the University’s Coordinator for Greek Housing Programs, said that fraternities across the nation have been progressively growing since 2006, after shrinking between 1992 and 2003.

Wallace believes that the increasing interest in Greek life at the University is due to both an evolving mindset and a larger freshman classes.

This spring, 504 male students registered for fraternity recruitment and 253 bids were accepted across the school’s 12 fraternities. In 2010, 342 students registered and 220 bids were accepted.

A total of 349 female students registered for recruitment with the University’s seven sororities this year, versus 324 last year, 309 in 2009 and 274 in 2008.

“The main question to address here is whether more people are going through recruitment for the activities or if there is actually an increase in the desire to join fraternity life,” Wallace said.

Overall, members of the Greek community at the University believe that students are genuinely interested in becoming part of Greek life.

“It’s got to be something in the mentality of it all,” said junior Sam Barnes, external vice president of the Interfraternity Council (IFC). “The [rush] activities at Wash. U. have not really changed each year as far as I know.”

According to Wallace, IFC is considering the addition of another fraternity in response to increased interest in Greek life. Wallace emphasized that this may not be a viable option to consider, primarily due to lack of housing space, but it is still one that must be considered in the future.

IFC plans to create a survey investigating the growth of interest in fraternities in the next few weeks.

Fraternity members are attempting to emphasize values that students often overlook when evaluating Greek life, combating stereotypes that have come from films portraying college life.

“Looking at fraternities in general as well as the scope of what we personally have tried to do with rush over the past few years—we are separating ourselves from the stereotype of fraternities and what is portrayed in ‘Animal House,’” junior Zachary Cupkovic, recruitment chairman for Sigma Alpha Epsilon said.

Students outside of Greek life believe that fraternities on campus are doing a successful job building up positive images.

“Greek life is a way for a lot of people to get involved and meet new people,” freshman Jeremy Davis said. “I realized that I didn’t need to go Greek to make other friends, but I do see why a lot of my friends joined. I’m definitely not anti-Greek, I just am doing a lot of other things and didn’t need it.”

“I know Wash. U. is not as bad as other campuses. I think that it’s more toward the friendship side than the ‘Animal House’ side at Wash. U.,” junior Sunjoo Cho said.

Greek life members at the University have been working hard to create this positive image.

“We have been emphasizing more and more things that you experience in an organization that differs from things you experience in a classroom: leadership opportunities that help you grow and plan, participation in a working organization before entering a workplace and the ability to plan and carry out events of your own,” Barnes said. “It’s just a different type of education.”

The storm that blanketed the eastern U.S. with more than a foot of snow disrupted air traffic nationally, raising significant difficulties for students attempting to return early to the University.

According to Lucy Morlan, coordinator of student involvement and leadership for the Greek Life Office (GLO) and adviser to the Women’s Panhellenic Association, the snow only prevented three of 344 students from going through the formal recruitment process, and delays weren’t significant.

“I think there were only two who were delayed; they just started in the next round. Some of them were just delayed in the morning, but they didn’t have to miss any events for it,” Morlan said. “Overall, everything went really, really well.”

Freshman Amanda Whalen was one of the students unable to attend formal recruitment. She spent her week in Chattanooga, Tenn., where all flights were canceled for the entire week.

“Delta decided that since it was such a small airport, and there was snow and no plows, just to cancel all their flights indefinitely,” Whalen said. “By the time they moved the flight to Thursday, I decided that since I’d completely missed rush, I would just drive up over the weekend.”

Whalen says that her Gamma Chis—sorority members who help freshmen through the recruitment process—did their best to help her, but ultimately there was little that they could offer.

“I called my Gamma Chi because I was going to try to buy a new plane ticket with a different airline, but the earliest thing I could get was Wednesday morning. She said I could come but [that I] would definitely be at a disadvantage,” Whalen said. “I just decided not to bother.”

Although she did not attend any part of formal recruitment, Whalen was unable to get her $90 fee back from the GLO.

“They didn’t say anything about refunding me,” Whalen said. “But I understand if they won’t because it’s mostly for food and stuff which they’d already have gotten.”

Several students who went through the formal recruitment process noted that the Gamma Chis did an effective job of making the process smoother, even as some pledges arrived later in the week because of flight delays.

“I was texting my Gamma Chis the whole time at the airport,” freshman Neha Mukunda said. “They were so nice; they told me they’d figure something out, and it would be fine if I came late.” Mukunda’s flight from Newark, N.J. on Jan. 10 was canceled because the plane couldn’t arrive from Atlanta.

Mukunda was able to get onto another flight as a standby passenger. Although she arrived in St. Louis after the week’s events began at 5 p.m., she still made the end of the introductory dinner and was able to participate in the rest of formal recruitment.

“Some girls who came late did all seven [sororities] in one day, instead of three one day and then four the next. They were really accommodating; they never told any girl that she couldn’t rush just because she came in late,” Mukunda said. “I don’t think anyone had any serious problems making it.”

Christina Kelley

Ben and Jerry’s on the Loop often partners with campus organizations for charity. This partnership has been called into question after Dance Marathon heard that they would not receive money for their October 12 fundraiser.

Jacob Lenard, the co-fundraising chair for Dance Marathon, had originally scheduled a benefit night at Ben & Jerry’s for Oct. 7, but Ben & Jerry’s moved the event to Oct. 12. After the benefit happened, Lenard said that he did not receive money for either night.

“We called the manager a couple times to get the money. He finally called us back three weeks later and basically told us that he wasn’t writing us a check,” Lenard said. “He told us that we didn’t publicize correctly and that we didn’t know how to do a benefit night.”

The event would have benefited the Children’s Miracle Network, the charity supported by Dance Marathon.

According to Lenard, Max Bierman, the owner of Ben & Jerry’s, told him that the event hadn’t been publicized sufficiently. Lenard also said that Bierman claimed that not enough people had mentioned Dance Marathon while purchasing ice cream.

Lenard said, however, that Ben & Jerry’s management told him that customers did not need to mention Dance Marathon in order for the money to be sent to charity.

Many other student groups have partnered with the franchise for philanthropic events in which the store donated a portion of ice cream sales from an agreed-upon night to charity.

According to Lenard, some of these groups,—such as Delta Gamma, Sigma Nu and Alpha Phi—have experienced similar problems with Ben & Jerry’s management when trying to organize fundraisers.

Following Lenard’s dispute with Ben & Jerry’s, Mike Hayes, executive director of campus life and director of Greek life sent a letter to Bierman expressing concerns about the incidents.

Hayes said that there appeared to be miscommunication on both sides.

“When I talked with Max, I got the impression that it didn’t go down the way it was supposed to,” Hayes said. “They are very philanthropically involved, and they still want to be.”

According to Bierman, the management involved with the fundraiser no longer works at Ben & Jerry’s.

“We want to partner with all facets of the University for a mutually beneficial experience,” Bierman said. “Since 2004, we have given back over $50,000 to charities, non-profit organizations and student groups and have had the opportunity to help raise money for families that are in need of funds related to medical care.”

In order to prevent future miscommunications, Bierman said that Ben & Jerry’s is working on a protocol for both Ben & Jerry’s and student organizations that he will send to Hayes to review.

“We are in the process of developing a ‘Benefit Night Guideline’ document for Washington University,” Bierman said. “I will be sending the document to Mr. Hayes. All groups wishing to host a fundraising event will be required to review the guidelines and discuss expectations and other information required.”

Hayes stressed the need for responsibility on both sides involved in fundraisers.

“There’s a responsibility on Ben & Jerry’s’ side and on the student organizations’ side,” Hayes said. “Students used to stand outside Ben & Jerry’s and tried to draw people in, but this doesn’t happen anymore. My understanding from Ben & Jerry’s is that they only had three customers come in that night.”

Despite the franchise’s attempts to facilitate collaboration with University students, Lenard has no plans to work with Ben & Jerry’s in the future.

“We aren’t working with Ben & Jerry’s again,” Lenard said. “Even if organizations do get the money, it’s not an easy business to work with. It was sad to see someone in our community denying money for [the Children’s Miracle Network].”

Despite these past problems, Bierman is optimistic for future successful fundraisers with the University once the protocol takes effect and communication is eased. He stressed the need for full student participation in all future events, including active promotion of the event and distribution of materials about the charity in the store while the event is occurring.

“I have several very creative ideas for taking our partnership with WU to the next level,” Bierman wrote in an e-mail to Student Life. “I would be delighted to meet with WU to discuss and to also understand what ideas WU may have for how to best leverage our global brand for their betterment.”

Courtesy of Corey Ciocchetti

Corey Ciocchetti will be speaking to the Washington University community tonight about how student leaders can deal with stress.

After only two weeks of school, students have an opportunity for advice on how to handle their stressful lives, thanks to the leaders of Greek Week.

Dr. Corey Ciocchetti will be speaking to students in Graham Chapel on Wednesday, Sept. 15, at 7 p.m. in a presentation titled “Under the influence of stress.” Ciocchetti was chosen to speak after several members of Washington University Greek life saw him at a conference last winter.

Ciocchetti stuck out in their minds as unusually insightful and funny.

“I remember really feeling like he wasn’t putting up a front and that he actually understood the kinds of things college kids deal with,” Emily McNish, the president of the University’s Panhellenic Association, said. “In other stress talks, the advice doesn’t feel realistic, or it’s cliche and I’ve heard it before, whereas with Ciocchetti, he makes you laugh, which immediately reduces your stress. He also gives really solid advice that’s applicable to a busy Wash. U. student.”

Other students who saw him speak felt this way, too.

“I was very stressed out at the time and it helped relieve some stress,” said Kurt Wall, president of the Interfraternity Council.

Instead of only talking at students, Ciocchetti tries to involve them. In the presentation Greek leaders saw, he asked students to write down their primary sources of stress and then what these sources should be.

His attitude is that “stress is part of our lives, but I’m going to approach it not in a doomsday sort of way,” said Lucy Morlan, coordinator of chapter development in the Greek Life Office.

The leaders of Greek Week picked Ciocchetti in part because they are trying to open the week up to non-Greek members of the University community. In the past, speakers have directly related to Greek life.

“It ties in with the message that we’re really trying to reach out to the entire Wash. U. community besides just Greeks, which is why many of our activities have been focused outwards to the entire Wash. U. community,” McNish said. “As a student group that is comprised of 25 percent of the Wash. U. population, we do see stress as a major concern of the majority of Wash. U. students.”

The Greek Olympics, Rock the Row, shifts at Campus Kitchen (a soup kitchen) and Greek Sing are among other activities offered throughout Greek Week.

“Greek Week is a lot about Greek unity and forming new friendships among chapters and individuals,” Wall said. “It’s a lot about exposing our community to the student body.”

Ciocchetti is an assistant professor of business ethics and legal studies at the Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver.

Genevieve Hay | Student Life

Psychology lecturer James Reid, Director of Greek Life Office and Executive Director of Campus Life Mike Hayes and anthropology professor Peter Benson discuss the status of Greek Life on campus.

For most students, Greek life happens outside the classroom, but on Tuesday night, professors, students and administrators gathered in Wilson 214 to discuss the role of the Greek system on campus.

Sponsored by Controversy N’ Coffee, a Student Union group entering its fourth year, this discussion panel—titled “It’s all Greek to me: A debate concerning Greek life on campus”—aimed to create critical awareness of a topic already familiar to students, according to the group’s president, junior Mariana Oliver.

“Greek life is a very big thing on campus, and people have big opinions on it, but a lot of times, these opinions are presented in casual conversations between kids. We thought it would be interesting to start the year with intellectual and sociological perspectives from the Wash. U. community, especially for freshmen, who may not know much about Greek life yet,” Oliver said.

The panel consisted of Peter Benson, an assistant professor of anthropology; Mike Hayes, executive director of campus life and director of the Greek Life Office; and James Reid, a senior lecturer in psychology. For thirty minutes, the panelists discussed topics posed by moderator Tim Bono, a graduate student in psychology, before taking questions from the audience.

Over the course of the discussion, Benson, Hayes and Reid delved into issues ranging from the sanctification of alcohol by the commercial media to the diversity observed in Washington University fraternities and sororities.

Benson, who attended Vanderbilt University as an undergraduate, discussed the ways in which the Greek community at Washington University differs from his own college experience, where fraternities were often racially exclusive. He spoke about the contributions of any form of social allegiance to liberal democracy but voiced concerns about the potential for a lack of “critical self-reflection” as it applies to Greek life.

“As an anthropologist, I believe that saying people in the Greek system are self selecting is like saying that people in the military are self selecting. There are institutionalized boundaries that are supported by [a] university and enable certain kinds of social groupings to endure over a very long period of time,” Benson said.

All three panelists acknowledged the positive nature of Greek values—loyalty, honor and service—but they also acknowledged the potential for stereotypes and misbehavior to tarnish these ideals.

“At it’s worst, it’s bad stuff,” Hayes said. “A lot of times, it depends on the Chief Strom police reports, whether I can tell if [Greek Life] is a good experience or not.”

Hayes, who worked as an administrator at the University of Maryland before coming to Washington University, said that the Greek experience is fundamentally different for students here than it is for those at larger state schools.

“At Wash. U., Greek often is not the only identity a student has. My concern about Wash. U. is how [students] make meaning of all of their extracurricular experiences, and I try to help them find the intersections—where their Greek values inform their values about academics and community service and whatever else they may do on campus,” Hayes said.

Though the panel was scheduled for the same night as Greek Sing, a Greek Week event, it was well-attended by both Greek and non-Greek students.

“I think there was apprehension by students overall that this would be an anti-Greek event. In reality, it was a discussion among fair-minded people,” said sophomore Peter Birke, Coffee N’ Controversy’s external vice president. “For me, as a member of the Greek community, it was a process of critical self-reflection.”

Birke said that the group’s most well-attended discussions have been about topics that relate directly to the campus.

“With every convention on campus, you have to ask yourself why it’s here, what purpose it’s serving. That’s what we’re here to do.”

Juniors Becca Craig and Mike Hsu, heads of this year’s Greek Week, stressed the emphasis they are putting on unifying all of the campus’ Greek chapters.

“We want the chapters to work with each other rather than against each other,” Hsu said.

“There is definitely a huge shift in the dynamics this year,” Hsu claimed. “I can’t even describe how much of a 180 we’ve taken from last year.”

According to the two students, a negative image of Greek life has developed on campus. “I think [the Greek community] can be seen as a destructive force, and because of that, Greeks aren’t proud to be Greek,” Craig said. “It’s hard to get people to understand us and not stereotype. This is exactly what we’re trying to address.”

Greek leaders are looking outward to improve their image, rather than focusing on reforms within individual chapters. Craig believes that if Greek members open up more events to the greater community, it will help improve others’ perceptions of Greek life.

Greek leaders also hope to minimize competition between chapters, as all of the chapters’ creeds are fundamentally the same, according to Craig. The Greek Week leaders pointed out that every fraternity and sorority values the same characteristics: intellectual curiosity, loyalty, service and respect.

“It’s easy for people to lose sight of [our similar values], especially during recruitment. But that’s why we’re really emphasizing Greek Week programs—to reignite that flame in the community,” she said.

“The frustration we feel as a Greek community is that we can do a hundred good things, but when one bad thing happens, it spreads faster than the good,” Craig said.

“You can’t let one bad incident tarnish your view of the system, Hsu added.”

“I think Wash. U. students can relate to our dilemma,” Craig said. “It’s similar to what’s going on in U. City. There are a few people who make a lot of noise in the off campus apartments, but the whole Wash. U. student body gets blamed.”

Craig and Hsu, however, have had very positive experiences as members of the Greek community.

“When you pledge a fraternity or sorority, you pledge to them and they pledge to you. It’s a bond that’s not quite like any other organization. The benefit is more what you can feel, not what you can express,” Craig said.

Lucy Morlan, Coordinator of Chapter Development for the Greek Life Office, believes that one of the biggest challenges Greek leaders will face this year will be maintaining the momentum that Greek Week has started.

“It’s easy to talk,” Morlan said. “It’s easy to start the semester with lofty goals and lots of motivation, but then people’s lives kick in and you forget the goals you started off with.”

Morlan hopes that Greek leaders will continue to promote action in the greater Wash. U. community even beyond Greek Week.

One of the Greek Week events that represented the newfound emphasis on cross-chapter unity was the Greek Olympics, which occurred on Sunday September 5th. Morlan explained that this year, the teams will be bigger to avoid pitting sororities against each other. In the past, teams consisted of two fraternities and one sorority, which caused tension between sorority chapters. This year’s Greek Olympics featured a tug-of-war, a volleyball tournament, a basketball tournament and an ultimate Frisbee game.

“It was amazing to see members of six different Greek organizations playing on the same Frisbee team.” Morlan said, “This year’s Olympics are all about building relationships and promoting teamwork within and between the chapters.”

Other Greek Week events, which run from Sept. 5 through Sept. 16, include a lecture by Dr. Corey Ciocchetti about the effects of stress on students, volunteering at the campus kitchen, Rock the Row, a town hall discussion on Greek values, and a fundraising competition.

“I think this year’s Greek Week really shows Wash. U. what Greek life is all about,” Craig said.

“I think the Greek leaders have definitely set great goals for themselves, and they’re off to a great start,” Morlan said. “These attitudes just need to be more natural so that they become something Greek members live by everyday. […] When you pledge a fraternity or sorority, you agree to be a particular kind of student—you stand for something. The Greek community needs to hold each other accountable. It might get uncomfortable at times, but that’s what needs to happen.”

Many people have experienced the elements associated with fraternity formals that I described in my article. Those elements, of course, are not always present, and some of the comments, e-mails and direct responses that have been stimulated as a result of the article emphasized this point. Reactions from both ends of the spectrum, including everything from outright anger to long-awaited excitement, further illustrate that this is a topic begging for discussion. Yes, some dates go as friends with no expectations of hooking up, others are in relationships and that changes everything, and many attend formals unsure of their intentions. These examples were obvious to me, and therefore, since my goal in writing this opinion piece was not to describe every element of formal but rather to bring attention to a very real issue, I didn’t feel they were necessary to include.

I was in no way trying to insinuate that all guys take girls to formal for the sole purpose of having sex with them. In fact, I explicitly stated in my article that I was glad to be going with someone I knew, because this was not my experience. To all the men whose egos were bruised by my article: There are many courteous gentlemen in fraternities. My date for the last formal I attended is a perfect example. Many of my friends are in fraternities, and these are friends whom I love and respect.

I never intended the article to be a commentary on Greek life. Since it was printed, however, I’ve been surprised to find that a mentality exists among some (not all) members of the Greek community here at Wash. U.: In more or fewer words, “You’re either with us or against us.” This logic is bizarre given the number of people in Greek life with differing outlooks and perspectives. Wash. U. Greek life, in particular, prides itself on involving many kinds of students, and therefore, the community shouldn’t be surprised that its members will have opposing opinions on the system and the traditions that make up sororities and fraternities.

I am not asserting that the expectations I spoke of in my article are more prevalent in Greek life, but rather that they exist and manifest themselves in different ways from the world outside of college. An individual can still be in support of Greek life even if he or she sees certain aspects of it as cause for concern. If criticism only came from outside the Greek community, it would be clear that Greek organizations weren’t examining themselves closely enough. I am a proud member of Greek life here at Wash. U., but like any organization at any university, it isn’t perfect. The discourse that has resulted can only strengthen Wash. U.’s Greek organizations.

Such public conversation about this topic has hit a nerve; I think that much is clear. The article I wrote is in no way broad or narrow enough to cover all the elements of this issue. The underlying mentality I described as being behind fraternity formals does not only apply to fraternity formals and does not always apply to fraternity formals. It does, however, apply. The article was just a starting point for greater discussion and examination. Anyone who says simply, “This wasn’t my experience and therefore it isn’t true and doesn’t exist,” is far too self-involved and concerned with image to give this topic the consideration it deserves. The pressure to hook up at formal poses a serious issue. The fact that such a debate has been stimulated only further emphasizes this point.

Alissa is a sophomore in Arts and Sciences. She can be reached via e-mail at arrotbla@artsci.wustl.edu.