The following article was written by Mat Greer, Program Coordinator for Fraternity & Sorority Life at Temple.
Membership in a fraternity or sorority is a life-changing experience for the men and women who choose to join. Chapter members develop a unique bond of brotherhood and sisterhood while sharing their values and goals. These friendships last beyond the collegiate years and are nurtured by alumni activities and networking programs that provide opportunities for continued camaraderie, service, and personal development.
The fraternity and sorority community offers a home away from home and encourages individual development within a smaller group of friends in the larger university environment.
Fraternity or sorority involvement can benefit a student in a number of ways. Greek letter organizations are guided by a creed, ritual, and history unique to each individual fraternity or sorority. However, our community is united by the common values of Leadership Development, Community Engagement, Academic Achievement, and Friendship for Life. These values represent some of the shared benefits of fraternal involvement. When your student’s college experience is finished, his or her fraternity or sorority affiliation continues for a lifetime. This lifelong bond encourages continued involvement in the organization at the campus level and across the nation.
Fraternities and sororities are values-based organizations and are committed to worthwhile endeavors. Members are expected to maintain the high standards set by their national organization, the university, and their chapter.
Fraternity or sorority life can provide your student with an invaluable experience during his or her time at Temple University. Fraternity and Sorority Life is a Temple tradition dating to 1906 when the first national fraternity was founded on campus. Today, approximately 1,800 undergraduates are members of 16 fraternities and 15 sororities.
Today’s fraternity and sorority members not only serve their organization and governing council as elected and appointed leaders but share their leadership skills with the campus. Some of these roles include serving as an Owl Team Leader, Resident Assistant, Temple Student Government leader, Teaching Assistants, Main Campus Programming Board leader, and many other leadership positions on campus. We also believe in leadership through action, not just position. Members of Fraternity and Sorority Life are leading the community in informal roles to help create a safer campus environment.
Fraternity and sorority members perform hands-on service and raise money alongside other student organizations, in the greater Philadelphia area and on behalf of national philanthropic causes. Support of campus events like Day of Service, Relay for Life, and Hoot-a-thon allow our members to serve others year-round. During the 2017-18 academic year members of the Fraternity and Sorority Community performed 53.946.75 hours of service and raised $152,755.89 dollars! In 2015, Fraternity and Sorority Life started their own Service Immersion Program to Mobile, Alabama. SIP Mobile is twofold. First, the trip immerses members of the Fraternity and Sorority Community into the history and culture of Mobile, Alabama thus strengthening their ideas and understanding of social justice and the civil rights movement. Second, the experience is paired with a service experience at L’Arche. L’Arche is a community in which people with an intellectual disability and those who help them live, work, and share their lives together.
Academic excellence is a priority for members of the fraternity and sorority community and it shows in our statistics. For the last four years fraternity and sorority members have outperformed their non-affiliated counterparts in the classroom as our all Fraternity and Sorority grade point average is consistently higher than the university average. All members participate in chapter academic programming throughout their time at Temple and have opportunities to be recognized individually as a whole for achieving academic success.
Learning, working, achieving and hanging out together create lifelong bonds that distinguish fraternities and sororities from other kinds of student organizations. Membership in a fraternity or sorority is granted for life, and collegiate membership prepares students to contribute to the organization, and their community, well after college.
Families can support their student by encouraging him or her to research fraternity or sorority options. Joining a Greek letter organization is a lifelong commitment and the decision to join should only come after careful consideration. Local chapter and national websites are a convenient way to gather information about each fraternity or sorority option. Additionally, feel free to contact the Student Activities office to learn about the fraternity or sorority experience.
Membership in a fraternity or sorority is a living and learning experience with shared values and objectives. Members learn to work together to develop and accomplish group goals. A common bond of brotherhood/sisterhood is developed among chapter members — a bond that extends to all who share the same heritage, traditions, and ritual and who wear the same badge. These friendships last beyond the college years and are nurtured by alumni activities and networking programs that provide opportunities for continued camaraderie, service, and personal development.
Temple seeks to promote a safe environment in which students may participate without compromising their health, safety, or welfare. All student organizations are accountable to the policies of the Undergraduate Student Code of Conduct. View our hazing information page for more.
However, the University cannot address issues they do not know about. If you suspect your student is being hazed, please contact us immediately at 215-204-9264 or tufsl@temple.edu. Please provide as much information as you can (i.e. who, what, where, when, how) so we have as a place to begin an investigation. A general complaint without divulging your son’s/daughter’s fraternity or sorority is not helpful.
If your student decides to join a fraternity or sorority, ask them the following questions to help this process:
- What has made you want to join this group?
- How will you balance your academic/personal requirements?
- What will the financial commitment be?
- What is the accreditation status of the organization that you would like to join?
