As I was going up, I have always been told by people around me that when I go to college, I should never join a sorority. I’ve been told that they’re crazy, they haze, and they party really hard. But, is this really true of Greek life?
This past summer, I got to taste a bit of not only what it means to be Greek, but most importantly, what it means to be apart of a sorority. I had the opportunity, while on my trip to China, to hang out with three Alpha Xi Deltas from the Embry-Riddle Florida campus for about a month. Granted that I also have hung out with a lot of the Alpha Xi Deltas here from the Prescott campus and am friends with most of them, I got a whole different view of how much they stick together and support each other away from the comforts of home and school. Like many of the Greek organizations we see around campus, these Alpha Xi Deltas displayed their pride for their sorority by wearing their jerseys and letters around China, including on their hike on the Great Wall of China.
There were two other representatives from two other Greek organizations: Sigma Alpha Epsilon & Sigma Chi. They also wore their letters to show their pride. The Greeks stuck together for a lot of the trip, much like a close family that they relied on while they were away from home. Now you must be asking yourself: why am I telling you this story? Well, hold on a bit…you’ll soon get your answer.
I’ve been here at Riddle for almost four years, and have been apart of the Women’s Volleyball team, which I had considered as my sorority. I told myself and the people around me that I would never join an official Greek organization. Now that I am officially done with my eligibility for volleyball, I really don’t see or hang out with many of the girls. I’ve been concentrating on school, work, and the other organizations that I am apart of. However, thanks to my experiences in China, I have decided to finally go Greek. Better late then never, eh?
I must say, however, that there are a lot of misconceptions about the Greek system in general and I have learned a lot in the past month and a half about the sorority that I am a New Member of, along with what Greeks really do. I’ve learned that all the Greek organizations on this campus have their own Philanthropy programs, which basically where a lot of the Greeks do volunteer work and raise money for charitable causes, such as Big Brothers Big Sisters or the Huntsman Cancer Institute. I believe that this is one quality that Greeks has always been overlooked by everyone who looks down on them.
I have also observed, especially in girls here in Alpha Xi Delta, a lot of them hold leadership positions and are very much involved with other aspects of school besides just doing school work. There is a strong bond between all of them, and even if they bicker over something, they always come back together because they are family. One could go all over the United States, and find another Alpha Xi Delta sister and instantly create a bond because of the bond they already share through their sisterhood. They Alpha Xi Deltas here are very helpful to each other, open, and supportive of what ever they do.
I have learned a lot in a short amount of time about what Alpha Xi Delta is about and how it can help me to grow and find my potential in whatever I want to be in, and so this is why I am now a New Member. All I ask from my readers is that you keep an open mind about the Greek organizations…what you may hear or see them as portrayed on television isn’t what is real.