ZACH CARPENTER
STAFF WRITER
9/9/2022
With the start of the Fall semester underway, Fraternity and Sorority Life (FSL) is in full swing preparing for recruitment. This year will look slightly different though as both fraternities and sororities are allowing freshmen to rush during their first semester. Historically only sororities have allowed students to rush during their first semester.
Alma College currently has five social fraternities: Delta Gamma Tau, Phi Mu Alpha, Sigma Chi, Tau Kappa Epsilon and Zeta Sigma. Alma College also has five social sororities: Alpha Gamma Delta, Alpha Xi Delta, Gamma Phi Beta, Kappa Iota and Phi Sigma Sigma. All of them will host a variety of events in the upcoming weeks and the best way to stay up to date is by following social media accounts for the various organizations.
Two accounts in particular are worth following on Instagram, @ac_ifc and @acpanhellenic. On both of these accounts, updates will be posted about upcoming events as well as access to sign the rush list.
Some examples of events that have already occurred are the FSL Movie on the Lawn which was Aug. 26 and the Meet the Greek BBQ which was Aug. 28. Both of these events allowed for Alma College students to go out and get to meet some of the FSL members on campus.
“I think freshmen looking at going through sorority recruitment should look forward to the experience of it all,” said Madison Hall (‘23), and President of Panhellenic Council. “[Students] can learn about philanthropy and service, leadership, alumni connections, friendships, [and] DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion).”
For freshmen students hoping to join fraternities, the long debated topic of their ability to rush during their first semester of college came to an end following an Inter Fraternity Council (IFC) vote last April. The vote came one year after Panhellenic Council voted to allow students to rush sororities during their first semester on campus.
“I hope that letting freshman rush [fraternities] will be a net positive,” said Sawyer Hill (‘23), IFC Rush Chairperson.
“It used to take place in the second semester because it gave [freshmen] time to think about their place on campus, however, I think that by allowing them to rush the first semester, it will help them find their place on campus earlier,” said Hill.
A topic that many new students may be concerned about is the “cult-like” atmosphere that many have seen on apps such as TikTok. Trends such as ‘BamaRush’ have cast a bad light on Greek life on campuses across the country.
“There is ‘BamaRush’ on TikTok [but] the chapters on Alma’s campus are definitely not like what that side of social media shows,” said Hall.
Many members of FSL on Alma College’s campus highlight important factors when looking to join a fraternity or sorority such as leadership and networking opportunities. Alma College students also tend to highlight the importance of giving back to the community.
“[Students] thinking about rushing should look into the great ways [they] can hold leadership positions and also give back to the local and campus communities,” said Anika Ried (‘23), a sister at Gamma Phi Beta.
Anyone looking into FSL is encouraged to check all of their options by both IFC and Panhellenic Council. In the coming weeks more events such as house walkthroughs for potential new members and other events will occur for people to begin getting a feel for FSL at Alma College.
Signing the rush lists through Panhellenic Council and IFC will help potential new members keep informed about upcoming events as well.
“Listen to upperclassmen, especially upperclassmen that are involved in [FSL], they will help to answer all of your questions and point you in the right direction,” said Hill.
