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True Life: I was a Sorority Executive Member
For many of us, being in a sorority or fraternity requires going to weekly chapter meetings, participating in philanthropy events, competing for spirit points, and going to socials or formals. However, there is a ton of behind-the-scene work done by a select group of individuals that make all of those things possible, and that group of individuals is the Executive Council. I always knew that being Greek was more than just partying, socials and meeting an amazing group of people, but it also involved developing leadership skills that would benefit you for a lifetime. With that in mind, I decided that I wanted to serve my sorority and give back to an organization I loved so much, and that had given so much to me. Last year, when I was elected to serve on the executive council of Sigma Kappa as Vice President of Scholarship, I really had no idea how much work actually went into running a Greek chapter and ensuring its success or how rewarding my experience would be. An Executive Council usually is made up of 8-10 members, depending on the chapter. These individuals are all under direction of the chapter President, and have specific duties such as Standards, Membership, Scholarship, Communication, New Member Education and Finance. Being on exec is like having a full time job on top of going to school- you have to attend weekly meetings, meet with advisors, write extensive reports, communicate with nationals, get paperwork approved, plan events, attend other chapter's events, and the list goes on and on. I remember sitting in exec meetings for four or five hours some nights, ensuring that everyone in the chapter was doing their job and that all issues were being resolved. Each position has their own specific responsibilities as well. As Vice President of Scholarship, I was in charge of tracking every single member's GPA, implementing a study hours program, and making sure members followed our scholarship requirements per our code of conduct. Also, many chapters require that members of executive council live on the sorority hall or house. You eat, breathe and live your organization. While all of that work sounds daunting and miserable, you're probably asking why someone would ever want to serve on a Greek organization executive council. Well, I'll tell you one thing, if you are doing it just to add to your resume, you will be miserable. Personally, I chose to serve on exec because I love my sorority so much, and wanted to give back. By serving on exec, it made every single event, even something as small as chapter, so much more significant because you know how much work went into it. I also grew so close to the other exec members. We became each other's support system, and bonded during those late night meetings. We all helped each other, celebrated together, and worked together to make our chapter the best it could be. Serving on Sigma Kappa exec was one of the most rewarding experiences I have had so far in my life. I will take all the lessons, leadership experiences and friendships I gained from it with me for the rest of my life. Alexandra is a junior studying secondary English language arts education. You may contact her at abd0006@tigermail.auburn.edu.
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