Since joining a sorority back in the fall of this year, I have come to hate the term 'sorority girl'. I have never heard the term used in a way that wasn't either heavily coated in sarcasm or tinged with slight disgust. Somehow, in the year 2016, people still haven't quite caught up with the idea that sororities aren't all full of carbon copies of the same type of woman, and that they actually do more than party.

The idea that all women in a given organization are the same is something that I, quite frankly, find disgusting. I'm not entirely sure where people got the idea that every woman that has ever joined a sorority must have been vapid, wealthy, and bought her way into college only to party and sleep with entire fraternities. I'm also not entirely sure where everyone picked up the idea that partying and sleeping with a lot of men are bad qualities for women to have anyway, but I digress.

Since joining a sorority, I have found myself consistently surrounded by a number of diverse, confident women. The members of my chapter have a variety of goals, aspirations, and personalities. They have taught me that I am capable of so much more than I realize. I have learned that I can plan events, run meetings, and interact with a variety of people. Most importantly, I have realized that I am capable of doing all those things well. My sisters believe in me and support me in everything I do. My self-confidence is higher than it ever has been because of the women I have the absolute privilege of associating with every day.

Besides the amount of personalities and different interests, sororities do a lot of good. They all have philanthropic focuses with values that they uphold and fight for. They raise money for organizations such as Girls on the Run and the Court Appointed Special Advocates (or CASA). The amount of money Greek organizations raise for a variety of nonprofits is astounding. Over $7,000,000 is raised annually by Greeks, along with the completion of 10 million hours of volunteer service annually. Even if every single one of us partied, and every single one of us slept with the entire campus, or failed all of our classes- which statistically, we aren't, by the way- those number should be enough for those 'sorority girls' and 'frat guys' to have a better reputation.

I love being in a sorority. I love what it represents to me. I love the sisterhood I have had the privilege of being involved with, and the community service I get to do. I have become more social, more outgoing, and more confident in my own abilities. I can't speak for everyone in a Greek organization, but I know that for me, being in a sorority has made me a better person. Because of that, people can only begin to call me a 'sorority girl' when they take the time to learn what that actually means.