You could say there’s not much to be gained from joining a sorority. You’re forced into a stereotype that requires you to pay hundreds of dollars’ worth of dues and wear heels at least once a week.
A quick Google search generates words such as “hazing,” “racism,” and “alcohol,” as well as pictures of girls often drinking alcohol or wearing little to no clothes. Even the sororities at Hillsdale have received plenty of negativity online, including words like “sloppy,” “divided,” “exclusive,” “black-out drunk,” “snobby,” and “rude” on greekrank.com. Yes, there are plenty of positive comments as well, but is joining a group on campus that so many people criticize really worth it? That is the question every freshman girl asks herself when Rebekah Dell sends out an email invitation for formal recruitment.
The delayed rush here creates a recruitment experience much different from that of most schools. Independent women can befriend members of all sororities, allowing them to make an informed decision about rush. Additionally, Hillsdale attracts students interested in pursuing truth. Hillsdale sorority girls tend toward these same key principles, rather than hazing, forced alcohol consumption, or extreme exclusivity.
Yet despite this generally positive reputation, Hillsdale sororities struggle to defend themselves against the same criticisms thrown at all sororities. The first of these is that all sorority girls are “drunken partiers.” While girls in any given sorority do participate in the campus party atmosphere, Greek life does not condone inappropriate behavior. Junior Anna Barhanovich did not feel that joining a sorority pressured her to change her views.
“My values and beliefs did not change when I joined a sorority,” Barhanovich said. “I have grown as a person.”
The second common criticism is that sorority girls are exclusive. Clearly, sororities must have standards to eliminate stereotypes as much as possible. However, the standards generally reflect positive attributes such as good grades, campus involvement, classy behavior, and commitment to self-improvement, rather than money and social life. Additionally, girls “excluded” from sororities typically want no part in them. Independent junior Holly Frankfurt might call a sorority exclusive in that she didn’t receive a bid, but she has no negative feelings since she was uninterested.
“I didn’t want a bid, so I’m not upset I didn’t get one,” Frankfurt said.
The third criticism is that sorority girls conform to a social norm. If conforming means wearing pin attire every week, cheering boisterously during Greek Week, and posting an absurd number of pictures on social media, then sororities can claim conformity. However, sororities have an incredible variety of athletes, musicians, economics majors, history majors, and so much more. The diversity of interests within a sorority at Hillsdale is so broad that conformity is impossible.
No system is perfect, but Hillsdale’s Greek system is better than other schools’. The women that rush a sorority here are the same women who interviewed with an admissions advisor, scored well on standardized tests, and struggled academically through the first few semesters. Just because they call each other sisters doesn’t mean they lack the values of so many independent women on campus.