Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by one of Phired Up’s interns this semester — Becky Cohen. She and a team of undergraduates are collecting stories to help our readers gain insight into the fraternity/sorority experience, and how we can help share the gift of Greek Life with more deserving people.
A Kappa Delta found her way to becoming University of Nebraska-Lincoln Phi Mu’s house mom after her short-lived undergraduate year in Kappa Delta. I sat down with Erika Kirkland, Phi Mu’s house mom, and some of her girls that have welcomed her into their home with open arms: Frae Binder, Rachel Hruza, and Aly Lerman to hear all of their stories on how they found their way to a place where they all call home. All from different states these women have found themselves all under one roof.
Aly Lerman, originally from Chicago, decided to go through the formal recruitment week to help her with the transition to Nebraska. Formal recruitment at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln happens the week before school starts, and is a week long process where the women get a chance to visit each sorority on campus and talk to those women in the sororities.
When the long week was coming to an end on preference day, Aly dropped out of recruitment after visiting just one sorority and deciding this wasn’t the thing for her to do. As Aly started school, Greek life was completely out of her mind, until one of her friends introduced her to Rachel Hruza, the current Phi Mu president. Aly started thinking that Greek was something she could see herself doing, so she signed up for informal recruitment. Informal recruitment at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln happens during the school year and is a much more casual experience where the women simply hang out with one another in a more relaxed environment. She was offered a bid to Phi Mu and accepted. Rachel soon became her big. She had a rocky first few months and found herself not really being into the sorority life, but she wanted to stick with it. She was later given the opportunity to become a leader in the sorority by first being historian and moving on to academic chair. Through her leadership involvement she found her way to becoming a dedicated Phi Mu member and now she can’t picture herself without it.
Aly’s big Rachel is originally from Minnesota and always knew she would go through recruitment so she could join a sorority. During the formal recruitment week she was constantly told to “trust the process.” She had no idea what that meant and also no idea what sorority she felt that connection with to join. Her recruitment guide, which is an active member of a sorority that guides the incoming women through recruitment, sat down one night and asked all the girls in the group to guess what sorority she was in. Every girl had a different answer. It wasn’t until this exercise that Rachel realized that there is every type of girl in each sorority, and she could be happy in any sorority. When the week ended Rachel found her way to Phi Mu, but she never had that aha moment during recruitment that made her feel truly connected to Phi Mu. On the following Monday a women in the sorority got engaged and had a candle passing after dinner. It was during the candle passing that she finally saw the sisterhood. She saw that the women were truly happy and supportive of their sister becoming engaged, many were even crying from happiness. During this candle passing Rachel knew she found herself a new home.
Like Aly and Rachel, Frae Binder was also coming from out of state to college. Frae is originally from South Dakota and had no idea what to expect going through formal recruitment. On preference round she ranked Phi Mu second, and when she got her bid into Phi Mu she was devastated she didn’t receive her first choice. Her recruitment guide wasn’t going to let her go through the week only to be upset on bid day and give up, so her recruitment guide talked her into going to bid day at Phi Mu and introduced her to Hope, who later became her big. Hope was the philanthropy chair and later Frae found herself following in her big’s footsteps and becoming philanthropy chair. With the help of her recruitment guide and Hope she found her way to Phi Mu. Each of these women from Phi Mu that I had the opportunity to talk to didn’t necessarily get the sorority they would have pictured themselves in, but throughout the years Phi Mu has become more than they couldn’t have ever imagined. It truly goes to say that each sorority has something to offer to a woman, and brings out the best version of their members.
Unlike Aly, Rachel, and Frae, Erika Kirkland, the house mom at Phi Mu, found her way into her first choice sorority, Kappa Delta. Erika is originally from Lincoln, Nebraska and never thought she would need Greek life, but later on she decided to try out informal recruitment where she joined Kappa Delta. However, her active member status was not long-lived. Erika had a rough start to college and after being a survivor of date rape she found herself needed a break from college so she could focus on her healing. Her friends in Kappa Delta helped her through this rough time and made her feel wanted. Erika believes that sorority helps to enhance your life, even if it is for a short time. The girls in Kappa Delta gave so much to her that she knew when she could she would give back to them. Later on she has now become one of the most active alumni of Kappa Delta and through her alumni involvement in Kappa Delta she found out about the opportunity to be the Phi Mu house mom.
Everyone has a different story about why they decided to join their sorority, and as you can tell from these stories not everybody has an easy recruitment where they get the sorority they thought they wanted. Like Erika said, Sorority help enhances. Each sorority has something to offer, and even though it may not have been the sorority you thought you would end up in, you will eventually realize why you did. In each sorority you will find a variety of women, women from various states, women with different talents and hobbies, and women with different likes and dislikes, but even with all their differences they find themselves all under one roof.
Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by one of Phired Up’s interns this semester — Adrianna Czostkowski. She and a team of undergraduates are collecting stories to help our readers gain insight into the fraternity/sorority experience, and how we can help share the gift of Greek Life with more deserving people.
As President John F. Kennedy once said, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country”. When looking at joining a Greek organization, I know one thing many people look for is what organization and chapter will give them the most “bang for their buck”. Whether the list includes the connections, the socials, the philanthropy; it all varies to what each person expects to get out of going Greek. But why not think of it as finding the chapter where your talents can be utilized to the highest and best purpose by the organization and greater Greek community as a whole?
This week, I had the opportunity to talk to my supervisor at my on campus job, Tiffany Elliott, about her experience of being Greek. Tiffany is a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. Tiffany joined Delta Sigma Theta in 2006 at Michigan State University and is now an active alumna member. The sisterhood, the focus on academics, and the fact that Delta Sigma Theta brought so many women from different backgrounds together to share the same beliefs are just a few of the reasons why Tiffany fell in love with Delta Sigma Theta. Tiffany’s favorite part of being an alumna of her organization is representing Delta Sigma Theta in her day to day life and show young women what a positive impact being Greek can have on their lives. When talking to Tiffany one thing she said really moved me, to the point where all I had to say in return was, “Wow!”
When I asked Tiffany about what she expected out of joining her organization, she replied, “I went in not looking to get anything out of joining my organization; I went in wanting to give back to an organization that was something greater than me.” Wow. Immediately after I heard that, I was at a loss for words. It was so moving to hear a different answer than the usual ones of sisterhood, connections, a family, I bet you fill in a couple in that list, too.
If everyone joining a sorority or fraternity looked at where their talents can be best utilized, rather than finding the organization who has the best mixers or the best t-shirts, think of the leadership that our organizations would be able to establish. These leaders will be able to carry on our organization’s values and recruit people of the same caliber.
The potential for growth and success for the Greek system, and the individuals within that system, would have a dynamic and profound impact on our campuses, local communities and world, now and in the future. Just as President Kennedy said through his insightful words over 50 years ago: ask not what your organization can do for you, but what you can do for your organization.
Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by one of Phired Up’s interns this semester — Becky Cohen. She and a team of undergraduates are collecting stories to help our readers gain insight into the fraternity/sorority experience, and how we can help share the gift of Greek Life with more deserving people.
My name is Becky Cohen, and I am a proud member of the Delta Zeta sorority. I am currently a junior at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale and am currently geeking out about the opportunity to help Phired Up an intern.
People ask me all the time, “Why did you go Greek?” For the population of students on a college campus, this concept can be hard to grasp. They are already going to college and working to get good grades, and having a social experience. There seems to be no need for anything more than that.
I thought to myself, why do people go Greek? What other reasons do people have for joining this massive community? So, I decided to take my questions to the Greek leaders on my campus at Southern Illinois University, and dig for the stories that continue to motivate me to be the best member I can be.
First, I talked with Hannah Vercelote, a Sigma Kappa. When I asked her why she went Greek, her answer flew out. She told me that the philanthropies really hit home with her. “My grandpa has dementia, and when I found out that Sigma Kappa’s philanthropy is Alzheimer’s it was like ‘wow, people really care’ and I could finally do more than just watch this happen.” This passion for philanthropy really shows when talking to Hannah about her Panhellenic experiences. She is dedicated to making a change.
When I heard Katie Gutierrez’s story about deciding to go Greek, it inspired me. Katie is a founding member of Delta Phi Epsilon, the sorority that just chartered on our campus in the fall. I actually knew Katie my freshman year and she was not about Greek Life at all, now we can laugh as we talk about that. The story she shared with me was, “I’m so glad that I decided to go to recruitment last fall. I definitely found my home away from home through this organization. Everyone was so welcoming and genuine that I knew right away I made the right choice. I have met so many amazing women that I’m so glad to call my sisters and have already made so many unforgettable memories. In a short amount of time we have done so many fantastic things and I’m so excited to see what we will do in the years to come.” From not wanting to join a sorority, to becoming a founding member it has been such a wonderful experience being able to watch her grow and be a part of this incredible change on our campus.
When I talked with fraternity man Gerard Dudzinski, brother of Delta Chi, I sensed his drive immediately. He told me about how he rushed a few fraternities, but struggles with a low GPA. Gerard was drawn to Delta Chi because they were so open to rushing him for his personality. “I met great brothers that I would do anything for and they would do the same for me. They support me when I’m down and I wanted to be a part of something bigger than myself. After that, my grades went up and I was a part of making this chapter skyrocket to where it is now. We’re getting better and better and I know I’ve been part of this change.”
Now, if these stories don’t warm your heart I don’t know what will. When people talk about their reasons for going Greek, it’s like they are giving you a little piece of who they are. You get a glimpse of what they value and the changes they want to make. I don’t doubt for a second that these three members are going to do wonders for our world.
Being a member of a Greek organization connects you with this community that is larger than one could ever imagine. I never thought for a second that by going through recruitment in the fall of 2012 I would end up with this love for what greek life has to offer. It moves me. It drives me. I geek out about it all the time. I’m so thankful for the doors in my life that have been opened for me from being a sorority woman.