Greek review can benefit campus

Greeks on this campus – like all others – receive a bad rap.

“Ugh. He’s such a dumb frat… Greeks on this campus – like all others – receive a bad rap.

“Ugh. He’s such a dumb frat boy.”

“What a stupid thing to say. Maybe if Greeks didn’t spend all their time drinking, the sorostitute might have been prepared for class.”

Everyone’s heard and most likely have uttered such comments. Rather than viewing the Greek system in light of its total contribution to the campus community, many non-Greeks emphasize the less-than-pristine aspects of the system – as if every other student and student group abstains from similar illegal or otherwise immoral activities. As if you have to be Greek to drink underage, or date rapes only occur at fraternity parties.

Certainly, Pitt’s Greek system makes significant – if otherwise widely unrecognized – contributions to campus. Last year, according to former Greek adviser Sharon Malazich, Pitt Greeks raised more than $100,000 for charities. Events such as Greek Week events provide campus with opportunities to be both charitable and to be entertained.

Greeks – though a fairly small portion of the student body at only slightly more than 10 percent – are among the most active on campus. They disproportionately head student organizations and represent the student body on Student Government Board.

With the resignation of Malazich effective Friday, Interim Dean of Students Jack Daniel thought it was time to re-evaluate the system while it was in transition. He charged Pitt’s director of public safety, Deborah Furka, with compiling a report to detail the “best practices” for the Greek system.

Releasing a timetable for the report, Daniel said Furka will begin working with students and student organizations this month, studying other universities next month and finalizing the report in December. This report will then be used by Daniel, director of Student Life Birney Harrigan and Greek student leaders to examine the system’s policies and practices, and to determine which they should keep, change or discard.

The opportunity is a sizable one for the University and the Greek system. By studying the system at large, asking both Greeks and non-Greeks alike for contributions, substantial improvements can be made to the Greek system and its relations with the greater campus community.

Certainly, the choice to step back and examine the system offers a chance to bridge a serious campus divide – the one between Greeks and non-Greeks. The review could and should look for ways to integrate students, helping non-Greeks to see why someone might legitimately choose to become Greek. This effort should also aid Greeks to see that it’s not them against a larger campus that hates them or thinks that they are moronic partiers.

The study and subsequent review also provide a real opportunity to enact policies and practices to combat potentially negative aspects of the Greek system and the resulting reputation.