I've got that summertime sadness thinking about how summer is halfway over. On one hand it feels like summer has flown by, but on the other hand it feels like it has been going on forever. I'm super excited to move back and into the sorority house with my amazing pledge class, but I'm also not ready to give up having very little responsibility yet. So basically I'm just a mix of emotions currently.
One emotion that isn't mixed up though is my utter excitement for Fall Formal Recruitment. It makes me happy knowing that by the FFR registration deadline, which is July 31 at 11:59 PM, my future little will have signed up!
Maybe you're unsure whether or not you want to go Greek though, and that's okay! For the next couple of weeks The Odyssey at The University of Kansas is going to highlight a few KU women who feel that going Greek has made a difference in their lives in hopes that it will show all of the amazing things about going Greek!
Meet Gina Westerhaus, a sophomore Gamma Phi Beta, and fellow Odyssey writer Madeline Nave, who is a junior Sigma Kappa. The questions asked are in bold and their answers are in quotations, prefaced by their initials.
1) How has being Greek helped you either professionally, academically, or socially?
GW: "By going Greek I was provided with an academic standard that I had to live up to in order to maintain in good standing with the group. I am also pushed to participate in positions that require a more grown-up outlook, hopefully advancing my growth towards a professional outlook. It's also given me social connections that will eventually benefit my career and allow me to achieve my goals."
MN: "If I weren't in the Greek community I wouldn't know more than half of the people I know. Because I went Sigma Kappa, I have sisters and even people who aren't in my sorority as best friends. Also, if it weren't for Sigma Kappa I wouldn't be writing for The Odyssey."
2) When was a time that you really realized that you made the right decision going Greek?
GW: "On bid day I think was the first time that I completely realized I was apart of something more and bigger than I had ever imagined. Everyone told me how amazing Greek life could be and how these people truly become your sisters. I had never really imagined this being true until that day. From then on my place in Greek life became more and more surreal."
MN: "Honestly, I'm hardly an emotional or sentimental person. When I got my bid card on bid day I wasn't necessarily excited because I didn't know what to expect! Once I moved into the house I became way happier to be apart of the Greek system."
3) What is your favorite part about being Greek?
GW: "My favorite part definitely would be all the friendships that I have developed both in my pledge class and sorority, but also the strong relationships with people I have met in other sororities. It's totally evident that these friendships are far beyond being convenient and are more about actually caring to spend time with the people that make you become the best you!"
MN: "My favorite part of being Greek is the T-shirts. Go Greek and you're guaranteed to have a pretty good T-shirt wardrobe."
4) What is your favorite Greek-related memory so far?
GW: "My favorite Greek memory would definitely have to be running down to Memorial Stadium on Bid Day, finally feeling apart of something bigger. The adrenaline and happiness I had on that day was irreplaceable."
MN: "My favorite greek related memory so far would probably have to be Derby Days my sophomore year. It was my first time participating and I really understood how much of a community all the chapters make."
5) What is a piece of advice you would give to the girls about to go through recruitment?
GW: "Definitely to go in there and be themselves because you don't want to have to pretend to be someone else for the next four years. The house with the best fit for you will choose you, too."
MN: "If you get cut from a house you love, there are way worse things that can happen. Trust the system; everyone ends up where they're supposed to be!!"
