12-05-97
By Stephen Swanson, 541-737-0789
SOURCE: Clay Torset, 541-737-5432
CORVALLIS - With 15 percent of students at the nation's four-year colleges members of fraternities or sororities, it's only a matter of time until a university student is faced with the question of joining the Greek sister or brotherhood.
"Is the Greek life for everyone?" asks Linda Paschke, coordinator of student organizational development at Oregon State University. "No, it's not, but for many students, it's a perfect fit," Paschke said.
At OSU, students follow the national trend with 15 percent, or about 2,000 students, part of the Greek system.
"All kinds of studies show that students who don't have a balance in their lives are not as successful," Paschke said. "Co-curricular activities, whether they be fraternity or sorority-related, or activities associated with other organizations are very important."
"Whether students affiliate with Greek life or not, they should get involved in something during their college career," said Clay Torset, OSU's Greek life coordinator.
"I can tell you problems with the Greek system," said Jon Lovdokken, an OSU senior and editor of the OSU student newspaper, The Barometer. "It's not for everyone, but for me, the Greek system taught me a lot about leadership skills and it exposed me to a lot of people that I had to have contact with whether I wanted to or not. It taught me how to deal with people, how to make responsible decisions and how to get along.
"And, above and beyond that, when I first walked into my fraternity, I walked into a 50-person family," said Lovdokken, who is a member of Sigma Pi. "Now, I may not be best of friends with all those people, but I can feel free to call on each and every one of them at any time, even in the middle of the night, and they will be open to helping out. And that spirit continues long after I graduate and leave OSU."
Vince Van De Coevering, a 1989 OSU graduate, agrees.
A member of Phi Sigma Kappa during his OSU days, Van De Coevering is now manager of the information services department of an Oregon insurance corporation.
"It provides a reasonably safe social environment and gives you an opportunity to make some lifelong friends," Van De Coevering said. "There's a lot of fun involved, but there is also a lot of work. There is a heavy emphasis on academics and in most houses the average grade point average keeps edging upward. There are also chores and duties that you have to perform to keep the house running and committees that give you leadership skills, as well as keeping the living group together."
Fraternity and sorority contacts also help after college, he added, noting that membership is often an icebreaker in employment and social situations.
"And whenever I have a job opening, I make sure it is advertised" in the fraternity alumni network, Van De Coevering said.
While the Greek system still has somewhat of a reputation for wild times, that is changing. Drinking at fraternities and sororities has declined dramatically in the past several years, according to the New York Times. Most houses have strict alcohol policies, some houses have banned alcohol and others are considering a ban.
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