Jakob Kane Loukas
jkl001@marietta.edu

I am Alpha Tau Omega. I am part of its legacy, brotherhood, and traditions. I have more than a group of friends, I have brothers. All of the Greek organizations on campus have rich histories and traditions. They encompass a diverse range of people and each fraternity and sorority has a unique character. There is a house that will fit any personality and each house shapes the character its members. Greeks take pride in their institutions and in themselves.

When you act as a representative of your brothers and sisters, you have an obligation to represent yourself well. Greeks learn to take pride in themselves and support each other unconditionally. Students who join a Greek community leave Marietta as better people because of it.

The benefits far outweigh the sacrifices. Though it can be expensive (but still a pittance compared to tuition), it is an investment in yourself. The time commitment can be a concern for athletes and others, but it is time spent with friends. Not only is this time spent with friends, but you are doing community service, taking on leadership roles, and enjoying social events. Few organizations allow for such intense leadership development. The officers of a Greek organization run an independent, non-profit organization that needs to earn enough money to sustain itself, donate more money and time to charity, and fulfill national scholarship, service, and membership standards. Other organizations have much less responsibility and are often mostly controlled by college advisors. Greek life is an opportunity for new experiences: taking a leadership role and serving the college and the community.

The problems in Greek life have recently been visible on the Marietta campus. However, Marietta College illustrated that they will severely punish any infractions by its Greek community. The college holds its Greek community to a level of accountability much higher than that on most other campuses. The other fraternities and sororities take pride in responsible alcohol management and the elimination of hazing.

Greek life is a decision that builds a wonderful and memorable college experience. As a Greek, you represent an institution greater than yourself, you have a group of friends who will support you and give you memories for the rest of your life, and when you bear your letters, you can take each step with an extra swagger of pride.

Against

Adam Hintz
ajh001@marietta.edu

Before I get started, I want to state for the record that I like Greek Life. I think it can afford those who take part in it many great opportunities, and it can lead to the development of many great, lifelong friendships. I also think, however, that Greek Life has many problems that can detract from the overall experience.

The first of these problems, as I see it, is a sense of faction among students who are in the Greek System. This may be surprising to some, as schools like to try to create a sense of “Greek Unity,” but in my experiences inside and outside of the Greek system, the only true unity among the houses is in the belief that Greek Unity is not generally wanted.

This is not to say unity is an undesirable thing, but it does speak to the fact that the houses are factionalized and, in general, would like it to remain that way.

The second problem is an issue that is almost a characteristic of Greek Life, and may be one of the root causes of the sense of faction that seems to permeate the system: the rushing process.

In essence, what rush week amounts to is little more than a tryout for the houses. You go to the houses’ events and meet some of the current members of the chapter, and at the end of the week, they get together in a meeting and decide whether or not you’re worthy of receiving a bid and being invited to join their circle of friends.

So, while you may decide whether or not to actually pledge, the members of the organization are the ones who have to deem you worthy enough first.

The third and final problem is the one issue that administrators don’t like to think about and the individual houses don’t want to acknowledge: hazing. Hazing happens in the Greek system at large and it happens here at Marietta College, as well. You can send the Greek community to as many seminars as you want and make them listen to enough speakers to bore them to tears, but the fact remains that hazing is still very real.

I know this not only because I’ve seen hazing first-hand, but because I myself was subjected to it. Hazing can obviously be a very damaging thing, both physically and especially mentally, but I like to think that it is on the decline, and that active members and new pledges alike are realizing it doesn’t play a role in the building of a healthy, trusting relationship.

Again, to reiterate, I don’t want to take away from all the positive things that Greek Life can do for an individual or all of the opportunities being affiliated with a house can afford, but it goes without saying that there are some serious flaws within the system. I believe that as time goes on, these issues will be acknowledged and addressed, and Greek Life will be all the better for it.

Mailing address: Marietta College Box A-20, Marietta, Ohio 45750-4000
Physical address: McKinney Media Center, 508 Putnam St, Marietta, Ohio
Phone: (740) 376-4555
E-mail: marc@marietta.edu