BENEFITS OF FRATERNITY AND SORORITY LIFE

Zoe Sweet

Here at Widener we have four governing boards which oversee all of our Greek Life on campus. The first is Interfraternity Council which oversees Phi Delta Theta, Kappa Sigma, Tau Kappa Epsilon, Theta Chi, and Alpha Tau Omega. The College Panhellenic Council is next and is responsible for overseeing Sigma Sigma Sigma, Delta Phi Epsilon, and Phi Sigma Sigma. National Pan-Hellenic Council governs Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Delta Sigma Theta, Inc., Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., and Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. The last council is the Council of Independent Organizes, although newer to Widener, they oversee Phi Sigma Pi, Alpha Omega Epsilon, Alpha Phi Omega, Chi Eta Phi, Pi Sigma Epsilon, and Alpha Chi Sigma. 

The Widener FSL community is incredible. At Widener University, 23% of students are members of a fraternity or sorority; the cumulative GPA is 3.23; 28% of FSL members are on the dean's list with a 3.5 or higher; and 43% of FSL members are leaders in other clubs or organizations. They volunteer more than $12,000 each semester for philanthropic and civic engagement opportunities, and they have logged more than 5,000 hours of community service. An undergraduate student must be enrolled full-time, have at least 12 credits, have a cumulative GPA of 2.5 or higher, and successfully finish the online course in order to join a Greek lettered organization. 

What are the benefits though? Why would one go through this process? Joining a Greek lettered organization has five key benefits - academics, leadership, community service, friendship, and social events. The fact that academics are so crucial to FSL organizations makes it advantageous for students to maintain high academic standards. Additionally, a lot of organizations offer national scholarships that are awarded based on academic achievement. The next advantage is the leadership opportunities. A person can run for the council or a post at the national level in addition to the executive board of their own organization. No matter whatever chapter a person belongs to, they will have several opportunities to give back to the community because community service is very important to each chapter. Furthermore, these organizations promote long lasting friendships, and the bond that one forms is strong. Finally, because of their organization, there are several social events that one can attend for the university. 

Overall FSL is an opportunity that most people miss out on due to prior ideas of what it is, however, the opportunities are endless for students, and truly allows for people to grow out of their shell and try new things.