Last updated on Oct 16, 2023
By Alexa Garrett, Staff Writer
Greek life has historically been a popular attraction at LIU Post, however this year sororities have been gaining an abundance of new members.
“It went really well in comparison to last year. We had 43 people accepted last year and this year we had 57, so definitely a big jump there which is awesome,” Fraternity and Sorority Life Coordinator Gabrielle Barone said.
There are multiple different sororities and fraternities on campus, including sororities Alpha Epsilon Phi, Alpha Xi Delta, Kappa Kappa Gamma, Delta Zeta and Sigma Delta Tau, as well as fraternities Phi Sigma Kappa, Sigma Kappa Epsilon and Tau Kappa Epsilon.
A way to connect and impact the community around you, students feel that Greek life is an amazing way to get involved.
“I’m from Ohio, so it was important for me to develop a large network of people because coming in I knew no one,” junior musical theatre major Delaney Hill said. As a musical theatre major, I noticed that a lot of the people that I was around were in my major and it became difficult to balance work and fun. I wanted to meet women that were not involved in musical theatre so that I could have a place to go to when I didn’t want to talk about my major or school work.”
Hill has benefitted from the sorority recruitment process and everything to follow.
“I’ve always been interested in fundraising. It’s always been important to me to dip my toes in the water of many different environments and a sorority was a perfect way to do that because I got to have fun with my sisters, while also giving back to the community,” she said.
The process to join sororities was detailed this year. On Sept. 18 and 19, it was the Panhellenic Orientation Day for those who were interested in sisterhood. Next was the Open House Day in which students got the opportunity to talk to each chapter and ask questions regarding the sorority lifestyle. Sept. 21 was the philanthropy round, which pertains mainly to a discussion about each sorority’s social involvement. An evening preference round came next in the schedule, where sororities would vote to invite their best-fit candidates back to speak further with them.
Applicants only got a maximum of two sorority callbacks.
“You never know who you’re going to get invited back to and each round you go from seeing all of the sororities to seeing two of the sororities in one day. Your mind is never clear during recruitment week, especially from a potential new member (PNM) standpoint,” freshman psychology major Shannon Mcconnell said.
Sept. 23 was the most awaited day for the new applicants: Bid Day! Students say that they were stressed, excited and nervous in the process of applying to different chapters.
Mcconnell talks about how the entire process of applying affected her.
“It was very good to go in with an open mind, but it’s very nerve-racking because you want to make a good impression, she said. First impressions are everything. Knowing who you are for them but also having an open mind and not being secluded to one aspect of you is important.”
Mcconnell, who is now a part of the Kappa Kappa Gamma chapter, is the most excited about the sorority’s philanthropy: mental health.
“The philanthropy aspect of every sorority was how I ranked them in my head. One of Kappa’s main philanthropies is mental health, and as a psych major, that really stuck out to me. Philanthropy is the biggest part of what makes a sorority a sorority because it stands for their beliefs and it stands for what they truly do care about,” she said.
If you are interested in joining a sorority, many resources can help you in the process. You can find application information on the LIU website or email Gabrielle Barone at gabrielle.barone@liu.edu.
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