I have only lived on Webster Avenue for about eight weeks, but it suddenly feels like a lot longer. Not because I'm unhappy -- I'm not -- but because I feel incredibly sheltered. It's been quite a while since I was last exposed to anti-Greek sentiment, and in the meantime I've gone from a freshman who did not intend to rush, to a sophomore pledge wearing my letters and assorted strange costumes to class. People stopped complaining about the Greek system to my face as soon as I became a part of it. A few terms after the D's front page proclaimed "The end of the Greek system as we know it," the rants and raves both for and against seemed to die down. For whatever reason, last night was the first time I have ever felt judged and attacked for being a member of a sorority. It was also, to be fair, a night that led me to realize just how badly members of the Greek system sometimes behave as a whole, resulting in exactly the kind of blanket judgments and generalizations I heard expressed.
But this is not an editorial about group affiliation and hostility. Last night I attended a meeting with the new dean of the Tucker Foundation and a group of students who comprise the Dartmouth Community Service Council. All of the students who were present have proved themselves dedicated leaders by virtue of their involvement with Tucker and with their individual projects. I am a member of this council because I chair a mentoring program I have participated in since my freshman fall, and I knew this was an important meeting. At issue was the possibility of a relationship between the Greek system and the Tucker Foundation. I looked forward to an opportunity to discuss increasing our commitment to service on this campus with a group of people whom I respect. I left last night surprised at our inability to listen to each other as individuals and shocked at a kind of moral superiority that left me feeling as though I were allowed to be a part of one group or another, but certainly not both.
At a previous meeting with Dr. Lord, Tucker's new dean, a group of us had touched on the possibility of an alliance between the Tucker foundation and the people who facilitate service projects within their Greek houses, usually called Programming or Philanthropy Chairs. Those of us present, affiliated and unaffiliated, discussed an ideal Dartmouth at which every student is involved in at least one service organization, a program that fits his talents and passions and schedule. We are a school rich with resources and opportunities, and both the Tucker Foundation and the Greek system are undergoing changes and rethinking their missions as we speak. What better time to get people out in the community, making changes there too? The people at Tucker have the know-how, the connections, the physical space, the resources, and the dedication to expand and become an incredible force on this campus. The people in campus organizations, be they Greek, religious, or otherwise, have the manpower. I feel, and many of us feel, that they also have the inclination and will find the time.
When I spoke to members of my house about this idea, they were enthused and optimistic. It will give us a chance to build stronger programs using the resources and information that Tucker has, they said. It will allow us to find service opportunities that match the interests of our house, they said. It will encourage the Greek system as a whole to rise to the occasion and put some serious time and energy into doing good. Every comment I received reflected the same desire to "use" Tucker and let Tucker use us.
When I brought these points to the meeting, they were met with hostility. In fact I, and the three other Greeks present, were all met with hostility. Lest you think I am attacking the people there, a lot of the hostility was wholly warranted. I can't imagine putting weeks of effort into a project only to watch it come crashing down when Greek members try to use your service organization as a means to earning the hours required to meet minimum standards. Chairs of Tucker programs told stories of fraternity members who committed to help and never showed, or showed but misbehaved, and those who turned an opportunity to help less fortunate people into a juvenile athletic competition. At the same time, a lot of the hostility I saw stemmed not from experience, but from prejudice. I sat and listened as students perpetuated every myth about drunken "Animal House" debauchery and insisted that frat boys are useless when it comes to anything other than pong.
In my eight weeks of residence on Frat Row, I have seen a lot more than pong. I have seen money raised for various organizations through bake sales and car washes; I have seen Big Brothers and DREAM mentors. What we need to do now will take a little effort on everyone's part. What we need to do now is rise to the occasion and stop judging one another based on where we spend our Saturday nights, and start working together to make Dartmouth a place where getting up off our butts and out into the community is a common practice for everyone.
What we need to do now, as people with a knowledge of service and a gift for leadership and organization, is share that gift with a system that includes over 40 percent of the student body. What we need to do now, as that 40 percent, is make a serious commitment to becoming more involved and stick to that commitment instead of letting each other down. I walked out of the meeting tonight unable to decide at whom I was angry: the Greeks who give Greeks a bad name, or the students whose holier-than-thou attitude allows them to make blanket assumptions about the approximately 1,600 Greek-affiliated people on this campus. I think its time we put those differences behind us and start working together constructively to make this school a place where we are truly committed to service and to giving one another a chance.
