When you see me wearing my letters, you do not see me. You do not see my academics, athletics or civic engagement within my community. You see "Animal House," "Old School," "Neighbors." You see what the movies want you to see and think what they want you to think. You see a
My letters do not make me better than you, but they make me better than I used to be.
I was told this by a senior during my freshman year; I brushed it off and laughed. I was not interested in Greek life coming into college. I couldn’t tell you what the letters meant. Everything that I knew was from movies.
Fraternity men are picked based on their values and beliefs. Quality over quantity. A common phrase used when determining who will become a brother. It is guided by four pillars.
1. Fellowship
With more than 50 men by your side when something comes up, you can count on them to be there for you. As someone who loves food, who wouldn’t want to board the “cafe train” everyday at 11 a.m. for lunch and 5 p.m. for dinner? When it is nice out and you want to go out and toss the pigskin around, you have 50 people in your back pocket to ask. Possibilities are endless, and the bond is what makes you friends and brothers to one another. This bond that you have with these guys who you get to know over your three years in the fraternity isn’t only for a day or a college term but for life.
2. Scholarship
I would like to think that not all fraternity men follow the stereotype that we are dumb and all we do is drink. In our case, we exceed in not only our GPAs but also with on campus activities. Being proud of grades within a fraternity is something to boast about. Especially when you hear alumni brothers from the 70s say, “Me and my three friends didn’t add up to a 4.0 one semester.” It helps when your school requires you to have a minimum GPA to be in a fraternity, because like I said earlier, you want quality over quantity.
3. Leadership
Being a leader on campus is something that many in Greek life take great pride in. When you hear about the president of a club, a fundraising event or community service, it is ran by a Greek affiliate estimated at almost 90 percent of the time. Greek life breeds leaders. It gets the best of the best and uses their talents in ways many of us didn’t expect when we joined our organization. Personally, I would not be the leader that I am today if it was not for my fraternity or my coach who push me everyday to be better, and to be a better leader.
4. Service
Last, but not least is service. On my campus, it is estimated that more than 80 percent of the community service and fundraising money that is received is from Greek life. We do it because we want to be engaged within our community. We do it to break away from the stereotype that surrounds Greek life every day. Seeing the joy on the faces within the community when we help out or donate money to their cause is second to none. It is a great feeling to give back to your community.
The standard fraternity men are leading campuses all across the country. Encompassing the four pillars: fellowship, scholarship, leadership and service. By using them to guide our actions, we break away from the stereotypes surrounding fraternities. I speak for all fraternity men when I say we are much more than our letters, we are the leaders of not only today but tomorrow.
