*I would like to start with a disclaimer that I have NOTHING against sororities or Greek Life in general. Most of my very best friends are involved in Greek Life, and I almost joined! The purpose of this article is just to point out why it is OK if you are not in one.*
As recruitment comes to a close, everyone's social media feeds are flooded with glitter-filled bid day pictures and "Welcome home!!!" Facebook posts. For girls in sororities, it's like Christmas. There is constant fun and excitement in the air, and you get tons of new clothes! However, for those of us not in sororities, it can be a little annoying (OK, VERY annoying). Though we may feel left out of the glitter and girl-flirting, let us take a moment to remind ourselves why it's OK, and maybe even great, to not be in a sorority at the University of Dayton.
1. You just don't need it!
We are lucky enough to go to a school where Greek Life doesn't run the social scene. If you choose to join a sorority, your friends aren't refined to just girls in your sorority! With limited Greek events like date parties and socials, weekends are spent with people in all sororities, frats and even non-Greek Lifers.
Don't get me wrong, sororities offer some great things like the opportunity to meet hundreds of girls similar to you, countless service opportunities including a close tie to your specific house's philanthropy and fun social opportunities (and most importantly, in my book, so many fun new shirts!) But if you choose not to go through recruitment, you can still join in the fun with all your fellow Flyers.
2. You get to go out two whole weeks of the year that your sorority friends have to stay in.
That's right, I'm talking about recruitment! Two weeks a year, both girls trying to join and girls already in sororities have to stay in and miss out on the fun, which you, of course, will rub in their faces for the whole two weeks.
3. You don't have to pay dues.
Joining a sorority requires paying a fee every semester to be apart of the chapter. No, this does not mean they're paying for their friends. These fees are for the fun social, philanthropy and sisterhood events the sorority takes part in every semester that cost a lot of money to put on.
But for those of us not in sororities, that's an extra couple hundred dollars every semester we can spend however we please! And feel free to tell your parents you deserve this extra spending money since you made the thrifty decision not to go through recruitment. It's worth a shot!
4. There's no standards board for GDIs.
It happens to the best of us, we have a rough weekend and get a little out of hand. We do something downright embarrassing and have to live with the shame of being on 50 people's Snap stories, reliving our lowest moment over and over again. That in itself is pretty brutal, but what if on top of this self-loathing we had to go in front of members of our sorority to be confronted for our actions!
Now, they don't do this to be mean girls or make their sisters feel bad about themselves. Members of sororities represent that organization and need to act in an appropriate manner that reflects the organization the way they choose to be represented. But that doesn't make getting punished any more fun.
5. You don't have to miss prime time TV to go to chapter.
I can barely keep up with my minimal responsibilities in life. Now you want to tell me I need to dress up for formal chapter on a Monday at 8 p.m. while the Bachelor is on? Sorry, that's a hard no.
I have created an incredible sisterhood with the women I have been so fortunate to meet at UD. We stand by each other's sides through good times and bad, and love each other like family. No matter if you join Greek Life or not at UD, you will find close friends for life and make memories that will last a lifetime.
