MC’s Greek Corner

New Members Ready to Take On Stereotypes

By C.O. Varnes
Contributing Writer    

On Saturday, Nov. 19, the newest members of all the Greek Organizations on campus set off on the first annual Greek Life Retreat. 

The retreat was to build a stronger Greek Community on campus through all the individual organizations on campus. There were many team building activities, exercises teaching about Greek Life, and an activity speaking about stereotypes campus has of Greek Life and of each individual fraternity and sorority. 

This activity opened the eyes of many of the new members. As the stereotypes were read off for each individual organization, the room fell silent. There were many stereotypes that were positive, but they were outweighed by the negative ones that followed.

After the lists had been read off, the group broke up into their respected fraternities and sororities in order to come up with a mission statement confronting these stereotypes about their organization and what they plan to do as new members to eliminate these in the next three years here at Monmouth. 

Following the reading of each organizations mission statements, each chapter gathered their list of stereotypes and through them into the fireplace, a suggestion by president of Alpha Tau Omega’s president Jon Gorzkowski.

“Let the past be the past and lets focus on the future,” Gorzkowski said as he threw the stereotypes of ATO into the fireplace. 

As the new members returned to campus, the word spread quickly to the fellow Greeks on campus what stereotypes were labeled to each of the organizations and action has already began to take place. 

The women of Pi Beta Phi sent out an e-mail to the Greeks that attended the retreat confronting what had been said about their respected sorority. 

As the semester winds down and the new executive boards start to take office for each organization, the campus better be ready for a stronger and more unified Greek community when we return in the new year.