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A fraternity or sorority are value based organization of a group of men or women formed by a brotherhood or sisterhood and common goals and aspirations who make a commitment to each other for life. The members that form a fraternity or sorority share their efforts, friendship and knowledge. Together these members learn, grow, and make the fraternity or sorority, commonly called a Greek organization, stronger. Their common experience builds ties that last a lifetime. Individuals may only be a member of one organization. This does not include academic, honorary, professional, and service organizations.

Supportive friends, leadership opportunities, philanthropic projects, community service, career opportunities, and becoming part of a national network. This only begins the description of how being Greek will positively affect your life and membership is for life.

Participating in any worthwhile activity always requires an investment of one's time. Research has shown that involved college students are more likely to graduate and they report greater satisfaction with their college experience. Through the Greek experience, you will learn how to balance academics, work, campus involvement, and social commitments. This could include community service, weekly chapter meetings, philanthropy events, social gatherings, etc.

At 51³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏ the local chapters are monitored and assisted by professional university staff. Fraternity and sorority members are also elected to officer positions to manage the day-to-day operations of the organization as well as council officer positions to help manage the organizations within their councils. In addition, the chapters at 51³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏ are all a part of a national organization that provides support, advice, and direction through regional/national members. Fraternity and sorority members elected to officer positions manage the day-to-day operations of the organization. These officers are assisted by members serving on committees and by alumni who act as advisors. In addition, all Greek organizations at 51³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏ are part of a national organization which offers support, advice, and direction through a paid professional staff and regional volunteers. Professional staff from the university are employed to assist and monitor the activities of Greek organizations.

Be supportive and learn as much as you can by asking questions of your child as they meet people through the recruitment process. Encourage and support your child, and if you ever have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact the professional staff that work with fraternities and sororities at 51³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏ mentioned above.

The fraternity or sorority experience is multifaceted and offers numerous opportunities to your child. Joining an organization opens up the opportunity to create lifelong friendships with not only those in their organization, but with other chapters as well. Becoming a member of an organization also gives a sense of community and a support system. In addition, each chapter is dedicated to enhancing leadership skills, academic success, providing community service to local and national charities, developing financial responsibility and providing an ever growing national networking circle.

Developing lifelong friendships with the members in an organization and other chapters helps make the campus seem smaller. For many members, these organizations become a home away from home. In addition to the brotherhood or sisterhood, every chapter is dedicated to enhancing leadership skills, academic success, giving back to local and national charities, developing financial responsibility, and providing networking opportunities with Greek alumni around the country. When your student joins a Greek organization, he or she becomes a lifelong member and reaps the benefits of these opportunities well beyond their college years.

Also, if your child joins a chapter soon after starting college, the transition process can be made easier by having an instant connection to upperclassmen and various resources within the organization.

It will be up to your child to determine the level of involvement they want to have within the organization and what kind of experience it will be for them.

Every fraternity and sorority is self-supportive; the cost of membership for each organization varies. Each chapter determines its fees based off of numerous factors:

• Set amount required by the national organization (for materials needed as a member)
• Chapter dues
• Cost of holding membership intake or recruitment
• Various other financial obligations for chapter operations
• Each organization has payment plans available and are usually flexible to create a payment plan that will benefit the member

Most would agree that the benefits of being in a fraternity or sorority far outweigh the monetary costs.