A Note from the Editor: On Greek Life
Nicole DeJacimo, Managing Editor (Photo Aly Leia Wein/The Gettysburgian)
For this magazine, we wanted to focus on Greek life, its impact on campus, and the relationship between Greek and non-Greek students. As someone who is not involved in Greek life, I felt like there was a lot I did not understand. How does recruitment work? What is values-based recruitment? Do Greek students feel the divide between Greek and non-Greek students that I and many of my non-Greek friends feel? What are they doing about diversity (or rather the lack thereof)? How many people actually feel safe going to a Greek house? How do gender and ethnicity play into these questions?
I had my own reasons for never joining: the cost, the assumed pressure of attending social events, and the feeling that I would never really fit in. Through a campus-wide poll, we learned that others, often women and non-binary folks, worried about joining Greek life or attending their social events for fear of sexual assault. Some are just too busy with other activities and classwork. Those who joined did so to find a family, be more involved in their community, and attend social events. All are valid reasons, but I don’t think many of us students take the time to truly understand the other side.
I always believed and will always believe that we, as individuals and a society, can continuously try to learn about and better understand the world around us, including those who are outside of our circles. While today I have a handful of friends and co-workers involved in a fraternity or sorority, there is still so much to learn. Some things people just don’t talk about openly. For these reasons, my team and I conducted a campus-wide survey to do just that: better understand our campus community.
The lead article analyzes the poll data alongside interviews with various sorority and fraternity presidents. We also reached out to students and faculty to hear their opinions about how they feel Greek life affects campus. This magazine also features an opinion piece from one of the founders of @gburgsurvivors, an Instagram page dedicated to sharing the stories of sexual assault survivors, and an opinion piece from a student who wishes she had joined a sorority for the sense of community. We hope this magazine helps bridge the communication gap between Greek and non-Greek students so we all understand each other a little bit more.
Nicole DeJacimo ‘22
Managing Editor
The Gettysburgian
This article originally appeared on page 2 of the November 1, 2021 edition of The Gettysburgian’s magazine.
