Greeks sponsor a more unified community

The Collegiate Panhellenic Council (CPC) hosted its first All-Greek semi-formal on Thursday, November 19, in the Riverview Ballroom of the University Center at UW-River Falls.

“Greek organizations provide community service, social and academic support as well as professional networking opportunities within their network of alumnae nationwide,” Matt Levine, Greek coordinator said.

There are currently five sororities on campus: Phi Mu, Alpha Sigma Alpha, Sigma Sigma Sigma, Alpha Omicron Pi and Sigma Alpha, as well as three fraternities: Theta Chi, Delta Theta Sigma and Alpha Gamma Rho.

Each of these organizations has a certain budget that they must keep their spending within each semester. Because money can be tight for some organizations, the CPC designed the semi-formal dance to take away some of the pressures of spending money.

“The CPC wanted to create a semi-formal that would save Greeks money, while promoting Greek unity and a positive environment free of alcohol,” Mandie Lombardo, CPC President said. 

This is not the first time that financial troubles have hit Greek life in the past. Although all three male fraternities have chapter houses within the River Falls area, none of the female sororities have chapter houses for their members. It was agreed that if one sorority did not have the financial means to support housing for its members then none of the other sororities would have houses as well for their chapters.

This is one of many things that Levine is hoping to change in his time here at UWRF.

“I think that it is important for all sororities to be on the same playing field when it comes to housing because it makes the recruitment experience fair for girls that are rushing in the fall,” Meghan Moynihan, member of Alpha Omicron Pi, said. 

This is Levine’s first year as Greek coordinator at UWRF and he is hoping to take the individual organizations and create a more unified community that outsiders will want to become a part of in the future. By instilling these values in current members Levine is hoping to show campus what being Greek is all about.

“Providing an opportunity for students within our community to come together in a central location only serves to increase the value of the system that our students belong to,” Levine said.

Levine is also promoting leadership and networking skills within the Greek community saying that it is important for students to expand their learning outside of the classroom on campus.

“Greek life opens the doors to leadership, academic and social development that students cannot always find inside a classroom,” Levine said. 

The CPC and Levine are working together to make changes to the council agreement this year that will change some of the rules on housing for Greeks as well as financial budgets. Their goal is to create a more united Greek community by the time fall recruitment comes around next year.

“Our community is in desperate need of finding the ability to come together as a community rather than an individual group of organizations,” Levine said.

The most important change that Levine would like to make as Greek coordinator is growth in numbers. Greeks will be striving for a community that is self-sufficient, inclusive and engaging to the campus community.

“Growth in programming, recruitment and diversity is essential for our future successes,” Levine said. “It is time that our community provides an environment that all students want to join.”