The title really says it all. Suffice to say, it's hard to imagine Northwestern without Greek life. She says she had to beg a relative to help pay her dues. ©2020 Chicago magazine / A Chicago Tribune Media Group website, call for the abolition of Greek life at American universities. Northwestern University Greek Life Is Imploding. NPHC Vice President Derick Wallace, a Weinberg senior, said their chapters tend to be a lot smaller than those of IFC or PHA but still maintain a strong campus presence. Others include pre-med and service organizations, which also host formal recruitment processes. In more than the physical sense, Greek life is the sprawling suburban college's keeper. “It was another little reminder of like, ‘Oh gosh, what did I get myself into joining this place? IFC is responsible for 18 of the fraternities on campus: Alpha Epsilon Pi, Beta Theta Pi, Delta Chi, Delta Tau Delta, Delta Upsilon, Lambda Chi Alpha, Phi Delta Theta, Phi Gamma Delta, Phi Kappa Psi, Phi Mu Alpha, Pi Kappa Alpha, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Sigma Chi, Sigma Nu, Sigma Phi Epsilon, Theta Chi, Zeta Beta Tau and the Evans Scholars. Greek life, as well as pretty much everyone at Northwestern, doesn’t really care if you’re a minority. All fraternity and sorority houses are closed. Northwestern University has a total undergraduate enrollment of 8,327, with a gender distribution of 49% male students and 51% female students. However, Epsilon felt that the council did not fully support their ideas. The Northwestern University Academic calendar runs on a semester basis. These two councils each consist of both fraternities and sororities, and they’re set apart from IFC and PHA for their focus on culture. Check out the full digital publication available onIssuu. And on September 1, the school's Xi chapter of Chi Omega — the largest sorority in the United States — published an open letter calling on the national organization to explicitly promote diversity, inclusion, and anti-racism, providing a deadline of September 22 to respond. Posted on December 1, 2015 September 21, 2017 by AdmissionBlog. Cesar Chavez is one of the most revered civil rights leaders in the history of the United States. Alumna Erica Aultz says such a scale would have been a relief during her time at Northwestern. “We wrote it from our perspective at Northwestern, which definitely isn't the same as another school's.”. The latest discussion forum topics for Northwestern University - NU. The most common type of Greek life portrayed in the media is a social frat. “We thought it was more realistic for us to say, ‘OK, Greek life is still going to exist; Chi Omega is still going to exist.’ But we can standardize changes that will hopefully make recruitment less harmful to people.”. She points to Chi Omega's 2019 Firesides convention (an annual leadership conference that takes place around the country) as a recent catalyst. These are Alpha Chi Omega, Alpha Phi, Chi Omega, Delta Delta Delta, Delta Gamma, Delta Zeta, Gamma Phi Beta, Kappa Alpha Theta, Kappa Delta, Kappa Kappa Gamma, Pi Beta Phi and Zeta Tau Alpha. If Chi Omega leadership refuses, most current Xi members will deactivate, effectively ending the chapter's nearly 120-year-long run at Northwestern. Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life 847-491-2350 [email protected] Student Engagement If Chi Omega leadership refuses, most current Xi members will deactivate, effectively ending the chapter’s nearly 120-year-long run at Northwestern. Twitter: @ruiqi_ch. The more students who live in Greek houses (of which there are — wait for it — 28 on campus) the fewer students are dependent on Northwestern’s residential and dining halls. While the Xi chapter can’t vote to formally disband — Bernard notes that would revoke students who voted against the measure's membership without their consent — most are planning to deactivate if the Supreme Governing Council doesn’t concede to their demands. The conversations that have arisen in the past few months are impacting first-year students' perception of the status of these organizations. MGC has eight chapters, including Alpha Iota Omicron Fraternity, Kappa Delta Chi Sorority, Kappa Phi Lambda Sorority, Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority, Lambda Upsilon Lambda Fraternity, Omega Delta Phi Fraternity, Sigma Lambda Gamma Sorority and Sigma Psi Zeta Sorority. Sure, your fraternity or sorority is home to some of your best friends. If you look a little deeper you’ll find that the school has stellar journalism and theater programs, a huge endowment, and a flexible quarter system. As for Greek life, 41 percent of students are members of six Greek organizations. Commentdocument.getElementById("comment").setAttribute( "id", "a9ad03bed326c25d2736fc8bec9b734c" );document.getElementById("jc81afb72c").setAttribute( "id", "comment" ); Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. The open letter is signed by current and alumni Xi chapter members, as well as members of other Chi Omega chapters. She says Chi Omega places particular emphasis on recruits’ social media profiles, a practice she calls problematic. The current Greek life climate on campus is part of a national movement towards reformation, with colleges including Mississippi State University, Vanderbilt, and Lafayette all reckoning with injustices within their own Greek communities. I'm kind of shocked at the declining membership numbers. Then, last year, Chi Omega was roiled again when a group of new members learned of the sorority’s "ranking system" for potential pledges. ... Greek Life. PHA serves as IFC’s largest counterpart with 12 nationally recognized sororities. Even some of the largest state schools in the South report around 25% of students to be involved in Greek life, but who knows how the number at Northwestern could change in … As for Greek life, 41 percent of students are members of six Greek organizations. SAE is returning back to campus in the fall following their suspension in April 2017. I can't afford to do this,’” Aultz says. Life at Northwestern in our students' words. What students are not as familiar with is what life looks like for those involved in Greek life at less heavily Greek-dominated universities. All fraternity and sorority houses are closed. "Out of the University’s 8,000 plus student population, about 20 percent of undergraduates participate in Greek life, according to the most recent Associated Student Government analytics survey." “There were a lot of pictures of her in promotional materials, and [Chi Omega] would be reusing the same photos. 12 Illinois 81, Northwestern 56, Northwestern political scientists call for Trump’s removal. The Greek life bubble Some Greek life members get so caught up in their chapters that they miss out on opportunities to spend time with the world beyond the bubble. Comparing Northwestern vs. Northeastern Greek life is another notable place where the two schools differ. Some of the other popular groups are Wildside and Homecoming, both of which work to bring a lot of student pride and involvement in Northwestern Athletics. Greek life at WWU is safe and positive; there have been few issues in comparison to other schools. I loved it, but you definitely have to be comfortable being your own person if you don't want to go Greek. The letter also advocates for “mandatory, monthly programming that confronts the intersection of Greek life and race, class, sexuality, religion, etcetera.”. A group of students at Northwestern University, including fraternity and sorority members, want to see the abolition of Greek life on campus.