The Rice Room in Memorial Union Hall on the evening of Wednesday, Sept. 25, was filled with the laughter of the nine members and advisor of the Panhellenic Council.
Despite its daunting name, the Panhellenic Council’s mission is quite simple; to provide a place for the Panhellenic Sorority chapters on the Washburn campus to communicate with one another. There are three Panhellenic chapters on campus: Alpha Phi, Delta Gamma, and Zeta Tau Alpha.
Emma Jo Nelson, senior biology major, is the current sitting president of the council. She officially called the meeting to order at 5:15 p.m. She then proceeded to take roll call for the delegates of each chapter as well as for the council members and advisor.
All of the women proceeded to stand together and promptly recite the council’s oath. They pledged to serve the college community through the development of character, good scholarship, mutual respect and helpfulness.
“It’s kind of like the bridge between all of the chapters. This board is made up of members from all the sororities so that we’re all represented,” Nelson said. One of the big things we do is run the primary recruitment for all the chapters, which involves all of the chapters coming together. It’s like a three-day event; it has to be very organized.
Despite the long-form discussions about the business aspects regarding budgets, invoices and standard procedures, the council’s commitment to enjoying one another’s company shone through the hard work to foster a welcoming community of support and friendliness.
Carley Pert, senior elementary education major, serves as the vice president of communications.
“The importance of Panhellenic Council is just having everyone connected together in a safe spot where, if they are having troubles in their individual chapters they can come to us.”
At the end of the meeting, each member took a turn to share announcements and news as well as the progress they’ve made on chapter projects. They discussed the upcoming fall season with much anticipation. A Halloween Movie Night and pumpkin painting activity are both in the works for its members.
The meeting was officially adjourned at 5:28 p.m. The council meets weekly on Wednesday evenings in the Rice room of the Memorial Union.
Edited by Stuti Khadka and Morgan Albrecht
