In the News - Greek life is shown having positive and negative affects on Universities

Many people agree that college is more than a classroom experience. It is a life experience. For countless young people, college is their first opportunity to make their own decisions, do their own laundry, make mistakes, be creative, and learn how to live on their own.

Greek life is one way colleges and universities blend classroom experiences with student life. This is apparent in the news about Greeks.

When I search the news about Greek life at college campuses, I always see a connection drawn between the university’s objectives and the affect of Greek life. Some articles highlight the negative affects on campus like drinking and hazing. Others point out the benefits like the increased school spirit, relationship-building opportunities, leadership experience, and philanthropy.

In one New York Times article published July 29, 2007, reporter Nicholas Confessore points out that Greek life, especially Greek houses, improve the overall student experience at Union College in Schenectady, NY. He says that Greek houses, “are a foundation on which Union students -- who typically live and dine off campus -- can build a life outside the classroom. They can watch football games or invite professors over for tea, cook dinner with friends or throw a party. The houses are also a physical symbol of Union's ultimate goal: creating a campus where it is harder to tell where the classroom ends and the rest of college begins.”
But the negative affects of Greek life on campus life are highlighted in another series of New York Times articles about the death of a fraternity pledge this year at Rider Univeristy in Lawrenceville, N.J. This case is one of the first in the country where university officials are being held criminally responsible for alcohol abuse by its students. The dean and the director of campus Greek life are facing charges. If they are convicted, they could be sentenced to 18 months in prison and a $10,000 fine. The Mercer County prosecutor was quoted in an August 4 article saying, “If it doesn't send a message, then colleges and universities are asking for trouble in the future.”