<p>any input on greek scene at washington and lee?</p>
<p>My main concern with Washington and Lee is that you are a real outsider if you don't want to participate. Almost 80% participate. Townspeople were not too thrilled with the condition of some of the frat houses when my parents lived in Lexington. </p>
<p>However things may have changed
[quote]
At Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Va., the university bought all fraternity houses and built five sorority houses in the mid-1990s. University-hired security guards are required at all registered campus parties. "These initiatives ... have driven much of the partying off campus. Many of the greek organizations have country homes or 'pole houses' by the river where the large parties are taking place.
[/quote]
from Drawing</a> a new greek blueprint - News</p>
<p>I have a kid at W&L. My student is affiliated with a national Greek org although of course has many acquaintances who chose to remain independent.</p>
<p>The 5 Panhel houses are all in a row on Frank Parsons Way. Washington</a> and Lee Panhellenic Council
I have been in all 5 and they are truly stunning. W&L is building a 6th house for ADPi (they are colonizing in '09) to the left of the Kappa House on that street.</p>
<p>The fraternities live on Red Square and on Davidson Park.</p>
<p>In terms of off-campus housing, there are 6 Pole Houses and many other Country Houses. Prospectives must realize that Lexington is a very small town as compared to urban areas and a country house might be 3 blocks away from campus as opposed to abutting properties. There are upperclassmen who live in both the dorms and the Greek Housing.</p>
<p>How would one find out the culture of Greek life at a particular university? I was a member of a sorority in the late 70's. It was at a non-flagship state u. Not only the fraternities were keggers...the sororities were, too. </p>
<p>Though I enjoyed being in the sorority at the time, I now think that it was not the best decision. I saw girls (several of them) become alcoholics. I saw girls' grades go down the toilet so that they ended up flunking out of school. I saw girls make really stupid mistakes with guys due to drinking too much. I went to one sister's funeral when she died in a drunk driving accident. </p>
<p>I liked the other girls and had fun doing things with them, but within a year of graduating, I had lost touch with every one of my sorority sisters (no Internet to keep in touch back then, but still...). It's hard for me to see that much positive came out of it.</p>
<p>I guess I have always assumed that all sororities/fraternities were like that. My S will be attending a university with 25-30% participation in Greek life, and that makes me very nervous. After my experience, I'm sure you can understand why I don't want our S to be any part of it.</p>
<p>Every frat will say that their focus is on service, being men of character, or whatever, but that doesn't mean a thing. All of that stuff just comes from their handbook. How do you know the real story?</p>
<p>Did you see the story about the huge party at Michigan State recently? Those were NOT greek students who participated in that mess. Kids get drunk & do stupid things in college. They might be greek, they might not be greek. Going greek does not necessarily result in bad behavior, and eschewing the greek life does not keep one from engaging in bad behavior.</p>
<p>If your daughter is at all interested in checking out the Greek side of her campus, it would probably be a good idea to encourage her to go through formal recruitment. Many schools do formal recruitment at the beginning of either fall or spring semester, and what many people fail to realize is that if you don't take advantage of formal recruitment as a freshman, it can be very hard to get involved later down the road. Rush week is hell, but it's also an incredible bonding experience and a great chance to get to know a new part of campus and make some new friends. If she's at all interested, I for one think she should at least give it a shot. It's not like she'll have tons of opportunities to be in this unique position ever again.</p>
<p>I'm somewhat partial because I'm Greek, but I'll go ahead and give you my pros/cons anyway.</p>
<p>CONS: Chapters get reputations for a reason. Heard that tri-delts are slutty? There are probably some that sleep around. DGs have a reputation of being "Daddy's Girls?" You can bet there are a few beemers parked in that lot. "Think it's a coincidence that spike rhymes with Pike?!" probably began with some brothers roofie-ing some unsuspecting girls. I can guarantee you that every chapter has drank to excess at some point, has hazed their new members beyond belief, did things against nationals, got into legal trouble, and has been on social probation. There are cliques, there are codes, there are secret meetings, handshakes, passwords, rituals...you name it, I've probably worn a toga and made an oath about it. Some Greek stuff is downright strange, creepy, foreign, and possibly illegal and I'm not even thinking too hard to come up with these either. </p>
<p>With that, why would anyone, much less a new college freshman, want to join a sorority or fraternity?</p>
<p>PROS: Maybe for the first time ever, you will have the opportunity to pick a group of friends that is like you on more ways that you imagined. You will have a pledge class, a pledge mom/dad, socials to go to, philanthropies to volunteer for, and more commitments than you thought possible. The sisterhood and brotherhood that exists among members of a chapter is incredible and is something that an outsider cannot possibly begin to fathom. It's actually really eerie for me to walk into our house, not know one face in the kitchen, sit down, eat dinner, and walk away with five new friends that I have tons in common with--and a mix of all ages, majors, and backgrounds too. The social side of Greek life is really, well, fun. Frat parties are kind of a rite of passage for college kids; socials are a fun chance to meet new people; formals make it fun to dress up again. As for philanthropies, my school's homecoming blood drive, run entirely by our Greek community, holds the Guinness world record for largest Red Cross blood drive. Each chapter has a cause and a fundraiser, ranging from domestic violence to autism to Make a Wish Foundation to Girl Scouts to the humane society. Literally thousands of dollars are raised from corporate sponsorships and individual donations and most of it goes directly to whatever cause. On my campus at least, the all-Greek GPA is significantly higher than the all-campus GPA, with the all-sorority and all-fraternity GPAs being higher than the all-female and all-male GPAs. Greeks give back to our nearby town by volunteering at food banks, battered women shelters, high schools, and clinics. The Greek Alternative Spring Break to Jamaica and Habitat for Humanity's The House that Greeks Built are popular activities that gain campus-wide recognition. Free concerts, speakers, and panels are sponsored by Greek chapters with topics ranging from mental health to drug abuse to careers after college. All but 60 of our campus' 400+ student organizations are run by Greeks, notably our alcohol and drug abuse group, sexual health responsibility group, LGBT resource center group, student government, student senate, student judicial board, and leadership office--all Greek-run. Of all the graduates that received Latin honors (GPA 3.75+ for my campus) in 2006, 73% were members of a Greek organization.</p>
<p>Not bad for just a bunch of party animals who like to get drunk, make fun of each other, form exclusive cliques, and buy their friends.</p>
<p>Going Greek is a very personal decision--the letters you're given follow you around forever. I would encourage your daughter to look at her school's website, figure out what sororities have chapters there, and then visit national websites to learn more about what forms the heart and soul of these sororities. If nothing else, it's worth the time to learn about Greek life, and who knows--maybe she'll find a chapter in the process.</p>
<p>All the best,
Kristin</p>
<p>None of the female groups at my school ever did strange stuff, nor did we haze. I know that my sorority (the group on my alma mater's campus) does not do any of these things today. I have asked my husband about his fraternity. While he says there was some mild brotherhood bonding stuff (read: hazing), he says there was nothing dangerous (no forced drinking, etc.). Not all greek groups at all campuses do these things.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I can guarantee you that every chapter has drank to excess at some point, has hazed their new members beyond belief, did things against nationals, got into legal trouble, and has been on social probation.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Once again, this is different at every school and in every chapter. My society does not do ANY of these things (I mean, individual people sometimes drink to excess, but not any more than my non-greek friends), and have not done so in any sort of recent memory.</p>
<p>My d's sorority is strictly against any hazing. In her first few months at college her big sister was amazing. She took my d to get a pedicure, took her to lunch and brought her a care package during finals. :)</p>
<p>My d had an accident and badly scraped up both of the palms of her hands. Her sisters took turns helping her shower and do her hair until she was well. Two of her sisters rushed to the health center after the accident to be with her while her injuries were cleaned (painful experience). They took her to the book store (she needed to buy her books that day) and picked out and carried her new books back to the dorm for her. </p>
<p>The sorority she is in has mandatory study hours. The girls in classes together form study groups. The collective GPA is way above the school average. My d is director of philanthropy and is gaining some really valuable skills in her position. Being Greek is a great experience at her school.</p>
<p>I'll agree with Kristin5792's point in the con's (I think she was being sarcastic, but in case not...). If a chapter sticks around long enough, yes, I think it's probably pretty likely that they're going to have at least something happen on some occasion. My chapter will be celebrating it's 120th anniversary in September and though it's been in continuous operation since it's founding - pretty impressive if you ask me - I've heard plenty of stories about our past and things that would get us kicked off campus in an instant today occurred with regularity 15, 25, 50, even 80 years ago. And even now, we're one of the best (and have the hardware from the North American Interfraternity Conference to prove it) and yet we still have the occasional risk management violation occur. </p>
<p>But in general, Greek life has changed, and continues to evolve to the point where these misadventures are becoming less and less common. Certainly some campuses have a lot farther to go than others, but it's happening. And as others have very correctly pointed out, partying is not limited to Greeks.</p>