<p>So, I should preface this by saying that I'm pretty strongly leaning towards attending Lehigh this fall. </p>
<p>There are some aspects of Greek life that I find highly appealing (sense of community/brotherhood, lifelong bonds, etc.). There are as well, of course, other aspects of Greek life that I don't find so appealing (drug/alcohol abuse, excessive partying). </p>
<p>However, if I'm not mistaken, Lehigh has a huge number of Fraternities, and thus a good deal of variety within them. So my question to you (preferably current students or recent alumni) is:
<strong><em>Honestly speaking, are there any fraternities at Lehigh that are focused on the brotherhood/community/bonding aspect of Greek life, rather than the getting-drunk-and-partying-all-the-time aspect?</em></strong> </p>
<p>'Cause if there are, that would be pretty damn sweet. Thanks in advance for your help!</p>
<p>Below is the link to the Accreditation Reports for the Fraternity and Sororities at Lehigh. It is pretty obvious they focus on so much more than partying. Over and over again students have said you are interested in getting to know the houses you need to go yourself and meet the members and make up your own mind. </p>
<p>If you are interested in an alcohol free experience at Lehigh why don’t you start a CHOICE fraternity? They do have non-residential Greek organizations that once are eligible to earn their own residential house someday. Lehigh is a school that encourages students to pursue their own interests. Go for it!</p>
<p>I am a current freshman at Lehigh. I can tell you first that Lehigh’s Greek life is incredibly prominent on campus–and there are many, many different organizations. Naturally, there are some fraternities that “party hard”, but that’s just intrinsic to what Greek life has become on college campuses. However, I can tell you as a fact that not all Greek organizations at Lehigh go crazy. If you are looking for the “friendship/brotherhood” experience without the partying, there are still many different options. These options include many of Lehigh’s “non-hill” (Greek organizations that don’t have a house on the hill) fraternities, such as the Honors Fraternity, Engineering Fraternity, and other academic/service societies. They all have a reputation for being more “tame”, but still retain the same long-time friendship building mentality.</p>
<p>As someone who is in CHOICE and not really a partier, I would say that I would still feel comfortable in any of the organizations, etc. that I stated above. </p>
<p>Thanks @luian217! That was extremely helpful. Obviously I am aware that many (most,even) fraternities do “party hard,” it’s very reassuring to know that I could find a more tame one that can still prove a valuable experience. Do the non-hill ones still have their own housing, or do their members just live in the regular dorms? </p>
<p>Also, I’ve read a little bit about the CHOICE thing, how are you liking it? How many (few) people live in the CHOICE housing, and is it truly what it claims to be (both enjoyable, and totally drug-free)? </p>
<p>“The problem with college drinking is not necessarily the drinking itself, but the negative consequences that result from excessive drinking.
College drinking problems College drinking is extremely widespread:
• About four out of five college students drink alcohol.
• About half of college students who drink, also consume alcohol through binge drinking.”</p>
<p>So sorry, the Greek system at Lehigh is not to blame for a NATIONAL trend. </p>
<p>I don’t see anyone BLAMING the Greek system at Lehigh for anything - I see a student asking if there is a subset of the Greek system at Lehigh that would be a good fit for a student who is not interested in participating in that particular national trend, that seems to be (on a national level) somewhat strongly correlated with Greek life on many campuses.</p>
<p>There has definitely been some awfully unfair Greek bashing in the past, and very one-sided and vile at times. A couple of the posters making nasty, inflammatory, and false accusations have never given proof when pushed. If they did have proof, what are they doing on CC instead of going to authorities if even half of what they write is true? The answer should be obvious to anyone. </p>
<p>To be extremely clear, I’m NOT referring to this OP or his query. It’s very nice for a change to see your genuine interest in a fair assessment, mrkawa. Hopefully, you’ll feel more comfortable that you have a good idea of the Greek system at Lehigh as more people respond. </p>
<p>Hope you enjoy the rest of your senior year, mrkawa. My son loves Lehigh, from the moment he set foot on campus during his college search. If you do decide to attend Lehigh in the fall, you’ll have the opportunity to meet people in the various houses and get a feel for whether or not you find a good match, or if you even want to rush in the spring. My son formed great friendships on his dorm floor that will likely be lifelong friends. Most of his friends decided to not rush, but that has not had any impact on their friendships. He went into the decision to rush or not with an open mind. He decided to pledge when he found a fraternity with brothers that he really likes, but that is just one aspect of his Lehigh experiences. Academics come first. Of course, each house will have its priorities, and just like every fraternity at every college, some will party more than others. From what I’ve heard and seen, there is a good bit of variety. </p>
<p>Whatever you decide, best wishes for a great college experience!</p>
<p>Also, at the top of the Lehigh College Confidential page their is a thread titled Social Life. I really enjoy the thread. One of my favorite posters, MrMountainhawk gives a lengthy description of things to do around the Lehigh campus. </p>
<p>For trips Lehigh has a wonderful program with Enterprise Car Rental where you can rent a car for $10-$12 an hour. Great for a group of friends to travel a little trip for an afternoon or a day. </p>
<p>Have you found your place somewhere, mattyice10101? Isn’t that nice of kikkydee to have given you all sorts of REAL information about what there is to do at Lehigh? So much to do at Lehigh other than drink, so much working and studying hard and being awesome at Lehigh that their graduates are in such high demand because they’re so well-rounded and intelligent. Lehigh is amazing, quite honestly.</p>
YES. YES. YES. There are so many frats and this is actually a really great thing. There is really a fraternity for everyone at Lehigh and you’ll see that right away when you get here.
There are MANY fraternities at Lehigh, and that greatly increases you chances of finding one with “your type of people” in them. Yes there are more laid back fraternities. (never called “frats” there, though) Some party harder than others, but you will definitely get a feel for the personalities of the individual houses once you’re on campus. The known sports houses tend to be the bigger partiers. I think you can definitely find your niche!