Graphic by Susie Duose

People join a fraternity or sorority to make lifelong friendships. If you haven’t found close friendships yet, this may be the path for you.

Whenever people think of fraternities and sororities, they think of a cultish group of fake party people. Often it is associated with a stereotypical college movie where “frats” party all the time. Like everyone assumes, I made those assumptions, too. I didn’t want to join a sorority because I thought we’d be doing rituals with goats to become a member. Hopefully that doesn’t happen on other campuses, but thankfully it doesn’t happen at Washburn.

One of the main reasons a person might not join a fraternity or sorority is the fear of exclusion because of a person’s ethnicity. It’s definitely a fact that racism is still prevalent today, but I can say that the fraternities and sororities at Washburn are welcoming to minorities far better than what I hear at other universities. It may be like this because of a smaller population of students attending Washburn, but as an African American woman, I’ve felt more comfortable than I expected. I can’t speak for fraternities as much, but some of the people I’ve talked with don’t feel the need to constantly remind me that I’m different. It’s something any minority should consider when looking into joining a sorority here at Washburn. Of course, there are going to be some people that give you dirty looks, but you can find your safe space within the organizations.

Another reason why people may not join is because of hazing. To get into a sorority, you may think of someone forcing a person to do something or even abusing you to be a member. At Washburn, it’s not acceptable to haze people in a fraternity or sorority since the hazing law came into effect in the state of Kansas. Washburn adopted the anti-hazing policy on Nov. 28, 2017, prohibiting students from endangering the lives of members within all student organizations. In the past, future members commonly would have to deal with that if they wanted to be a member and sometimes may lead to death. Violation of the Anti-Hazing law can lead to suspension from the university and jail time. Hazing being disgraceful to all the fraternities and sororities on campus also convinced me to join.

For most degree-seeking college students, grades are a priority. When looking into joining a sorority, I liked that all the sororities are focused on academics. In case you don’t know, if a member in a fraternity or sorority does not meet the academic requirements, they can lose their membership. It keeps you motivated to try in classes, and if you are a part of one, you can always find someone that can help you with your assignments.

Lastly, I would say one of the main reasons people don’t join is the cost. Normally people see the cost and don’t consider joining because of it. On average the cost can range from $300 to $9,000 or more per year. Although expense is typically the issue when it comes to traditional organizations such as Delta Gamma, Alpha Delta, Sigma Phi Epsilon, Alpha Phi, Zeta Tau Alpha, Phi Delta Theta and Kappa Sigma, there are alternatives that are significantly more affordable. Multicultural organizations such as Sigma Lambda Gamma, Zeta Phi Beta, Alpha Kappa Alpha, and Kappa Alpha Psi provide a way for students of different backgrounds to come together. They are also relatively cost effective and openly inclusive to all backgrounds. Though these alternatives have a historical ethnic background, anyone is welcome to join. If someone is not wanting to join a multicultural organization, there are ways to cut costs by using scholarships, grants, financial aid, or student loans. All of these options can help, but unfortunately some people don’t consider joining because of that.

Overall, I think that fraternities and sororities are inclusive depending on where you are located. There are different types of organizations on campus to choose from where you can feel most comfortable. If you or someone you know wants to join a sorority or fraternity organization but is worried about cost, I recommend reaching out to the organization presidents’ and/or consider the multicultural options.

Edited by Jeremy Ford and LeSha’ Davis