OPINION: 𝚻he υps & dΘwns Ωf GrΣΣk Lifξ
Photo via: The Gamma Omicron chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha
Greek Life has a long and somewhat complicated history. The first fraternity, Phi Beta Kappa Society, was founded in 1776 at the College of Willam & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. According to the chapter’s website, the organization was founded by a group of white men during the American Revolution, and the society was kept in secrecy. The focus of the organization was devoted to liberal education and the pursuit of knowledge. The society’s motto is “Love for learning is the guide of life.” The society was the first to use Greek letters and, therefore, was the beginning of Greek Life itself.
When Greek Life was first established, there were only fraternities that included wealthy white men who had the opportunity and privilege to attend college. Now, Greek Life includes not only white men, but also women, people of color and people of different cultural backgrounds. Greek Life revolves around brotherhood and sisterhood. The point of chapters is to create a community of students and bring different people together. Most sororities and fraternities have philanthropic organizations they sponsor and intend to give back to.
At Ohio University, Greek Life encompasses 10% of the undergraduate student body, according to the university’s Greek Life website. There are 17 fraternities, one being co-ed, 13 sororities and 4 governing councils. Although Greek Life at Ohio U is quite small in comparison to other colleges, it used to be a big part of the culture at Ohio U. The first fraternity here, Beta Theta Pi, was established in 1841. The first sorority, Pi Beta Phi, was founded at Ohio U in 1889.
In 1919, Ohio U began to see diversity within the chapters, as the first African American organization was founded at Ohio U, known as Alpha Phi Alpha. This was the first chapter here that allowed black men to join fraternities. This chapter remained the lone organization to allow people of color up until the Civil Rights movement, when the sorority Delta Sigma Theta, which is a historically black chapter, was established at Ohio U. This opened the doors for black women to join Greek Life.
These two chapters paved the way for many other culturally-based chapters to make waves at Ohio U. Now, there are six active chapters here that are historically black. There are also many other cultural chapters here, including Alpha Psi Lambda, which was the first Latino fraternity at Ohio U. Alpha Psi Lambda is also co-ed.
When the chapters based on cultural and ethnic background were first established, there wasn’t much interaction between them and the predominantly white chapters. In the Athena yearbook from 1980, the Greek Life section says, “Black Greeks pledge new members in a very individual and selective procedure. They organize their own time of rush, which usually is not during a specific week. When they need new members, they set up a reserved room in Baker Center and send out flyers to the men and women on campus. There, the fraternity or sorority meets the rushees in a relaxed but serious atmosphere.” One reason the chapters may have seemed divided is because of the difference in size. Historically, black chapters are typically smaller in size than historically white chapters.
Chris Medrano-Graham, the Director of Sorority and Fraternity Life (SFL) at Ohio U, said, “Acknowledging the impact, presence and work that culturally-based organizations do on campus is often overlooked because of the size of the chapters.”
She goes on to explain that, in recent years, “We include everybody for opportunities to work and play together. During homecoming, we have a huge week of competition and in the spring, we have Greek Week, which is also another huge week of programs and competitions where all the chapters are paired up and compete against each other for bragging rights.” Events like these allow the different chapters to interact and create a community among each other.
Greek Life at Ohio U used to be a pillar in the student community. According to the Ohio U yearbook archives, in 1978, the Greek community began to see an increase in popularity. Later in the yearbook from 2000, 15% of the student body belonged to a Greek organization. In 2005, there were 32 active chapters and over 2,000 students involved in the organizations. In the 2005 yearbook, Michael Sprinkle, the Assistant Director for SFL, was quoted saying, “The Greek system is rich in tradition at OU, and it offers students the ability to network and meet other Greeks, and potentially enhance leadership skills to get when they graduate.”
The yearbooks in the early 2000s show pictures of recruitment, with the faces of excited students ready to begin their journey in Greek Life. Each organization has different mottos, goals and traditions.
Although Greek Life is still alive at Ohio U, there has been a decline throughout the years. The cause of the decline can’t be pinpointed to one particular reason, but there are a couple that could explain the loss. According to Medrano-Graham, there are many reasons a fraternity or sorority may leave a university. She said, “One reason is because they don’t have it sustainably. That could be sustainability in membership, they’re not good at recruiting, it just wasn’t their time.”
Another reason why Greek Life could have declined at Ohio U is hazing. For example, in 2018, a freshman at Ohio U, Collin Wiant, died due to substances he was given while being hazed by the fraternity Sigma Pi. After his death, the fraternity was expelled from Ohio U and multiple students were prosecuted due to their involvement. Wiant’s tragic death not only created a bad reputation for Greek Life at Ohio U, but also led to the discovery of other fraternities’ bad behavior.
In October 2019, Ohio U suspended all fraternities due to the influx of reports of hazing. According to the letter from the Office of the Dean of Students, after Sigma Pi’s expulsion, there were reports of hazing involving two more fraternities, and, later, they received reports of five additional fraternities that had hazed new members. The letter states, “It is deeply troubling that seven of our Interfraternity Council (IFC) chapters have been or will be under investigation this semester for possible violations of [the] University’s Student Code of Conduct. These troubling allegations, which will be thoroughly investigated, indicate potentially escalating systematic culture within our IFC organizations, and Ohio University will not put at risk the health and safety of our students.”
After the uncovering of the hazing that has been endured by many students at Ohio U, Greek Life hasn’t been the same. The actions of the students who engage in harmful behaviors have consequences. The consequences include not only their reputation being compromised, but also the reputation of Greek Life, the university and their chapter on a national level.
On top of the suspension of all 15 fraternities in 2019, less than a year later, the COVID-19 pandemic hit. This prevented the chapters from holding social gatherings.
Medrano-Graham said, “COVID really was a big punch in the gut to fraternity and sorority life. I think that because of the decisions of some students to engage in behaviors that are not appropriate, a lot of our fraternities and sororities’ reputations suffered because of it. I tell our students all the time it doesn’t matter which letters you’re wearing, because people can’t read Greek letters, so if one of your people makes a mistake or a foolish decision it reflects badly on everybody else.”
Although Greek Life is still alive here at Ohio U, it once was stronger, and celebrated on a much larger scale. The decisions made by certain students will have an impact on the university’s Greek Life for years to come. There is still a chance that Greek Life will eventually grow once again. According to Medrano-Graham, there are new and old chapters that are applying to be established or reestablished here.
Greek Life isn’t going anywhere any time soon, students will still join chapters and find community within them. Although the reputation of all chapters at Ohio U has been tainted, the traditions and practices of Greek Life will continue to carry on and possibly evolve.
This article was published in TNP’s Spring 2025 Print edition.