Twenty-two years ago, Hamilton eliminated Greek society off-campus housing. Now, fraternities and sororities are looking to make a comeback on campus.
Hamilton College is known for its sense of community and the strong relationships between students on campus. The College has 27 varsity sports teams, hundreds of clubs, and a number of other organizations that allow students to connect with one another on a daily basis. Greek life at Hamilton, however, is not something that is often discussed with respect to the social scene on campus. This is due to the lack of housing for Greek societies.
In 1996, Greek housing was removed from campus, but the fraternities that occupied these houses were not terminated. The former fraternity houses were turned into high quality residence halls for upper classmen on campus with the exception of Wertimer and Wally J. The fraternities were at a loss for how to maintain the same culture they once had in their houses.
These days, though, Greek life at Hamilton offers many unique perks. First, it is a great way to identify with peers in college and creates a sense of unity on campus. In recent years, many colleges and universities across the country have withdrawn their support for these organizations. This has happened in an attempt to protect the safety and security of students on campus. A common misconception is that fraternity initiation, or pledging, consists solely of dangerous activities that make the pledges vulnerable. The biggest concern for parents and school officials is that students will suffer from the consequences of binge drinking during pledging.
What many people are unaware of, though, is that fraternities and sororities yield many more benefits than potential negative consequences. Yes, there is the occasional tragedy at big universities with fraternity members drinking too much. While these stories make national news and spark complaints that fraternities should be completely banished from college campuses, there are positive aspects of Greek societies that do not make the headlines.
Fraternities at schools with strong alumni relations like Hamilton provide members with an easy way to connect with graduates of their fraternity that work in their prospective fields. Additionally, Greek societies hold social events that encourage students to connect on a personal level. Rush events began on the first day of the spring semester and continue all the way through spring break.
Vice President of Psi Upsilon, Sam Rowley ’20, comments that his fraternity plans to hold, “One rush event each weekend for at least the next month. Rush events will be different each week and people who attend can expect to just hang out and get to know current Psi U brothers and other kids who are rushing as well.”
This weekend, many societies plan to hold rush events for the Super Bowl. These events will give prospective members an opportunity to bond over football and some tasty pizza and chicken wings, while also allowing members and future pledges the opportunity to get to know each other a little bit better. Fraternities are not the only groups holding rush events this spring, though.
Katie Gagnon ’21, who plans to attend the rush events for sororities this spring, comments that, “There’s no reason not to do it. They are fun social events where students can connect and have fun together.” Sororities on campus are currently holding table talks and other get-togethers that consist of eating delicious food and getting to know each other.
These social events minimize the age gap between under and upperclassmen and allow members of different sports teams, clubs, and organizations outside of Greek life to get to know more about the College in general. Additionally, rushing at Hamilton is a much more relaxed, fun, and inviting process than other schools in the area.
After rushing comes to an end this spring, the various fraternities and sororities will decide which prospective members receive bids. Once a student receives and signs a bid (you can only sign one), they accept the invitation to pledge that Greek organization in the next fall semester. Pledging is “the process of becoming initiated into a society. It is how a society shares information about its history and values,” according to the Hamilton website.
Rushing Greek societies is one of the best ways to branch out and get to know more people on campus. The best part about rushing, though, is the lifelong friendships that are formed. In summary, Ethan Wallis ’21 states, “Rushing gives me a great opportunity to meet new people, make connections that last a lifetime, and it will further advance my networking to get a job that best suits me.”
