Students look to start new sorority

If Sarah Miller and Suzie Adjogah have it their way, a new multicultural sorority will be… If Sarah Miller and Suzie Adjogah have it their way, a new multicultural sorority will be making its debut here on campus next fall.

The two Pitt sophomores and lifelong friends hail from the Washington D.C. area and describe their hometowns as diverse and racially integrated.

“It was so different when I came to Pitt because I found so much self-segregation in the city and on campus,” said Suzie Adjogah.

When the fall term began, the two girls sought out sororities that they felt exemplified their values for integration and sisterhood. But they were discouraged when their searches came up empty. Ordinarily, people might decide to give up and move on, however, Miller and Adjogah declared that if there was no sorority for them on this campus, then they would create one.

“We felt that there was no availability of choice. There are racially divided sororities and one multicultural sorority on campus. We think people need more options and we want to bring it to them,” Miller said.

The two girls began their journey researching organizations that matched their criteria and found one.

The original name of the nationally recognized organization was WMT, Women for a Multicultural Tomorrow, and it was founded in 1991 by a group of eight women from diverse backgrounds and ethnicities at Northern Illinois University. Their mission was to unify a group of diverse women and promote higher education, sisterhood and unity for success.

Miller and Adjogah hope to bring these concepts and ideals to the Pitt campus. However, before their current student organization becomes the sorority it hopes to be, there are steps that need to be taken. Four steps to be exact.

The first step involves the pre-interest stage. Miller and Adjogah completed this step when they contacted WMT and sought entry. The next step is the interest stage. The girls created a packet detailing their knowledge of Greek life on Pitt’s campus and began looking for other girls to join them.

“We wanted to get like-minded individuals who are from different backgrounds. We are now 10 strong with girls from Rainbow Alliance, athletic teams and all over,” said Adjogah.

The new sorority stresses its desire for cross-cultural interaction with an emphasis on sisterhood. When asked about what sorts of people can join the sorority, both girls respond in unison, “Everybody!” The only requirement is that the girls interested in joining are dedicated to the mission of living, learning and spreading the multicultural lifestyle across campus.

“All girls are welcome. They just have to be excited and ready to work to share our message of unity with others. I want us to even become best friends and partners in our vision. We are even looking to work on the entry fees. We don’t want money to hinder anyone from taking part in our future sorority,” Miller said.

The next two steps in becoming a sorority are colony and chapter. The girls are now in the process of becoming a colony. This step is defined as the bonding period full of team- and sisterhood-building activities, community service, and fund raisers.

On Monday, April 2, the girls held a bake sale in front of the William Pitt Union as one of their requirements for the colony stage.

Miller and Adjogah confess that they are unaware of what tasks they must complete at each stage. “We are doing well thus far. Since we are merely affiliated, we are working really hard on crossing and so we are going through the pledging process now,” Miller explained.

Word around campus has been about how the new sorority plans to coexist with the multicultural sorority already on campus. The girls understand that some of the two sorority’s ideas overlap with the other soroity, in terms of diversity and sisterhood, but they hope to feed off of one another and work together on programs to educate and entertain the campus.

“They already know what works and what doesn’t work. We want to coexist in peace. We respect them very much and we want to work together,” said Adjogah.

In fact, the girls would like to work with other organizations as well. Their timing is partly because of the changes being made next school year. The sixth floor of the student union will be renovated for the fall and the O3CL, of Cross-Cultural and Civic Leadership, will move in. This move will bring Asian Students Alliance, Black Action Society, Rainbow Alliance and other organizations into the same space to encourage cohesion and unity.

“We feel it is a good time to start this sorority. We are hoping to work with other organizations as well as other Greeks like Tri-Sigs, the Kappas, Omegas and everyone. We want to bridge the gap between the races and the groups,” Miller said.

The goal for Miller and Adjogah is to have the group become a full fledged chapter of the sorority by the end of next fall. Plans and ideas have been created by the 10 group members who consider themselves equals -Adjogah is the president and Miller is the vice president – in sharing the tasks and the dream.

“This sorority is very important to us. We want to be a presence here on campus, one that promotes the unification of all cultures,” Adjogah said. “We are all Pitt students here together and we have a lot in common regardless of our physical differences.”