Wyatt Smith
Staff Writer
Greek Life is, for good or bad depending on your personal opinions, a part of the culture here at The College of Wooster. To determine the opinions of the student population regarding the Greek groups and their impact on the campus and culture at Wooster, students were randomly asked to participate in a survey.
To the right are graphs that comprise the empirical element of the survey. Precautions were taken to ensure that the data presented is as representative as possible of the entire student body. The survey included text boxes allowing respondents to elaborate on the questions, and below are the identified trends in these responses.
Influence on Campus Life
The influence of Greek life on the campus was rated on a one to five scale, with one being “very negatively” and five being “very positively.” Greek members on average rated the influence of their organizations as a 4.2, while non-members rated it as a 2.0. In other words, Greeks believe that their groups have a positive influence while non-members believe that they have a negative influence, at least on average.
Those who rated the influence of Greek groups as “very negative” most commonly cited the groups’ exclusivity, describing fraternities and sororities as “impenetrable cliques,” whose presence “strongly segregates the campus community.” Those who view Greek groups as a “negative” aspect of campus life also mentioned the groups’ exclusive atmosphere” “hazing-like aspect of initiations,” their “dangerous drinking culture,” “minimal” community service and “bragging about disrespecting women.”
On the other hand, those who responded that Greek life positively influences the campus focused on the required service hours and other types of activities with which Greek students are involved. Other trends in responses included how Greeks host enjoyable parties that keep students from being bored on the weekends and that Greek groups serve as a “valuable support system” and a “great atmosphere of friendship.” Respondents and mentioned that the “family” aspect of Greek life leads to significantly higher retention rates for students who join Greek groups.
Impact on Drinking Culture
Those who hold that Greek groups lead to more responsible drinking almost consistently highlighted how Greek houses offer a safe, contained environment for students to drink. Specifically, they cited regulations that remove people who are too drunk and identify those under 21 as non-drinkers to ensure responsible drinking. Also mentioned was the “limited amount of alcohol” available at Greek events and how “social events with large groups of people (many of whom are experienced drinkers) can help to provide a safe place, for those new to drinking.”
Students who said they believe Greek groups lead to less responsible drinking directly contradicted the notion of a safe space held by those of the opposite view, claiming that “there’s no limit as to how many drinks you can have” and that “no one stops underage students from drinking at parties.” Some students argued that, while regulations concerning alcohol at Greek events exist, these rules are rarely enforced effectively.
Others’ opinions are summed up in the comment “I don’t feel like [fraternities and sororities] lead to less responsible drinking, just more access.” These respondents drew a connection between freely available alcohol and inevitable abuse. A self-identified member of First Responders said that “the vast majority of alcohol poisoning incidents I have dealt with have been Greek related.”
Of those contending that Greek groups do not influence the drinking culture on campus, by far the most commonly provided rationale was that “there will always be parties, with or without Greek life” combined with the view that Greeks “never force anyone to do anything that they don’t want to do.” The idea was also raised that sororities and fraternities “provide a place for people to drink together,” as opposed to staying in their rooms.
Relations between Greeks and Non-Greeks
Two of the three students who elaborated on why they believe relations between Greek groups and other students are “very bad” referenced a meme about the Xi Chi fraternity posted to the Wooster Meme Facebook page. Both claimed that the post was fairly innocent, one called it an “idle comment,” and described the comments on it by members of Greek groups as “really antagonistic.”
Respondents who viewed the relationship between Greeks and non-Greeks as “good” mentioned that relations at other schools are worse and that “there is always a mixture of people that show up for Greek events.” Especially common were comments about how the respondent was Greek but was friends with many non-Greeks, and vice versa. Those who described relations as “very good” reiterated these themes, with one student adding that “Greek members are integrated and extremely involved in the college community beyond their own groups.”
The Administration’s Relationship with Greek Groups
Many students mentioned aspects of the relationship between Greek groups and various parts of the College’s administration, even though no question in the survey explicitly dealt with this topic.
Several respondents took umbrage with what they saw as a cozy relationship between the College and Greek groups. One student criticized “ResLife’s blatant favoritism of Greek life in housing” and claimed that this “creates much resentment in the non-member community.” Some respondents complained about “how much [Greek groups] get away with compared to everyone else.”
Another student took the opposite perspective. The individual held that “relations [between Greek groups and the rest of campus] would be improved if ResLife and the administration didn’t appear to have a vendetta against Greek life specifically.”
The data for this survey was collected by emailing a link to 500 randomly selected members of the student body. 248 students responded for a response rate of 49.6%. The use of a sample means that the true opinions of the entire student body may vary slightly from the figures seen above. 62.1% of respondents reported their gender as female, 36.3% as male, and 1.6% as other. The survey was active from April 5 until April 10. Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding.