All new members of Greek organizations will assemble tonight for the first of three workshops in a series aimed to educate new members on issues of hazing, sexual harassment and alcohol abuse.
Tonight at 7 p.m. in Alumni Hall, Gary Bonas, director of Leadership Development at Villanova University in Pennsylvania and a member of the board of directors of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity, will give a speech titled "Broken Pledges," which deals with self esteem and the detrimental effects of hazing.
The New Member Education Series was designed during the last two terms by Dani Brune '96, the Panhellenic Council's New Member Educator; Rahul Mathur '95, president of Sexual Awareness through Greek Education; and Gabrielle Lucke, the College's Health Educator.
While similar education programs have been in existence for several years, this year's programs are more structured and interesting, Brune said.
"We wanted to get away from people reading alcohol statistics off posters and find lectures and groups that would incorporate the new members into programs that were interesting and informative without being preachy," Brune said.
But some pledges said they do not see any point in the program.
"It's such bullshit. I think a lot of us are mature enough to know what we're getting into -- it's not necessary," Naveh Levy '97, a new fraternity member, said.
But Brune said she thinks these are the issues most relevant to new Greek members.
"We created the program because last year's new member education was poorly organized. Many of the events were overcrowded and were not addressing issues that were of interest," Brune said.
Jeff Risher '95, president of the Order of Omega, a Greek honors society co-sponsoring the series, said it "was developed to address the fact that education of new members in regard to social issues was insufficient and, in some cases, nonexistent."
Mathur said one of the main goals is to give new Greek house members the knowledge to deal with problems they may face both in their houses and at Dartmouth in general.
The presidents of all the Greek houses agreed to make the program mandatory for all new members and are in charge of enforcing disciplinary action if their pledges do not attend, Risher said.
Some pledges said they feel the program should not be mandatory for the new members and questioned its target audience.
"I think they should make the older brothers and sisters come -- they're the ones who inflict the hazing," Kate Fowler '97, a new sorority member, said.
"I think it's a good thing to try to educate everyone but I don't think it should be mandatory. People will be less receptive to something they feel they have to listen to," said Marissa Piropato '97, who also joined a sorority this term.
The schedule for the remainder of the New Member Series is:
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Tuesday, Oct. 18, at 8 p.m. in Webster Hall -- In conjunction with Alcohol Awareness Week, the Improbable Players will present a theatrical performance about the role alcohol plays in relationships and decision making.
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Tuesday, Oct. 25, at 10 a.m., 12, 2, 4, 6, and 8 p.m. in Collis Commonground -- The Mount Elmore Institute for Diversity Training and Research will run six seminars on sexual awareness and harassment in the Dartmouth Community. The workshops are sponsored by the Bildner Endowment.
All of the events are open to the public "because these issues are certainly not restricted to members of Greek organizations and will be of general interest," Brune said.
The program is presented by the Coed, Fraternity, Sorority Council in cooperation with various other campus organizations, including the College Commission on Alcohol and Other Drugs, the Interfraternity Council, the Order of Omega, Panhell and the Women's Resource Center.
