THE GREEK LIFE: First in a series; Greek system has seen much change through the centuries

The Greek system at the University is one of the oldest institutions on campus today. As early as the 1770s, Greek letter literary societies have existed on campus. And Phi Beta Kappa was founded at the University in 1776. However, it was not until the mid-19th century that social fraternities first appeared at the University. In 1849, the first social fraternity, Delta Phi, formed a chapter at the University. Phi Kappa Sigma and Zeta Psi followed a year later. These Greek letter groups, which were kept secret, formed as a response to the more scholarly literary societies. By 1900, more than 20 fraternity chapters existed on campus. Psi Upsilon, founded in 1891, had the first fraternity house on campus in the Castle. And while the fraternity no longer has a chapter on campus, their house still stands and is one of the most recognizable buildings on the University's campus. In the beginning of the 20th century, college presidents at other universities were voicing opposition to the formation of fraternities, but the University's administration pledged support for them. In 1910, the University's chief executive officer, Provost Edgar Fahs Smith Eencouraged men to join fraternities, and requested that fraternities support the Christian Association and become a factor in the Bible study movement. But as more and more fraternities formed on campus, the University was forced to come up with not only recommendations, but regulations to govern them. One of the most controversial aspects of the fraternity system is the process of "rushing," when new students look at all the fraternities and decide which they want to pledge -- and as early as 1911, the University and the fraternities had conflicts about how rush should be run. The University threatened to abolish the entire process until the administration reached an agreement with the fraternities on the logistics of rush, with guidelines that fraternities were required to follow. Fraternities were not permitted to start rush until the Thursday before classes started or to give out bid invitations until the first Monday of December. Pledge candidates were not allowed to spend a night in a fraternity house until the second Monday in December. As students from other schools, especially those from women's colleges, came to campus to attend fraternity events, fraternities began to develop a somewhat raucous reputation. Even back so far as 1928, Lynn Harris, president of the Beaver College for Women, wrote a letter to the University's provost, claiming irately that Beaver College students exposed to "open drunkenness" at the University, and would be prohibited from attending future parties. "We do not feel justified in sending [our students] into conditions which might tempt them, or afford them opportunities to be other than ladies," she wrote. In addition to the emerging issue of bawdy behavior, as more and more fraternities formed on campus, questions of fraternity house ownership and responsibility for maintenance became more of an issue, leading to the creation of a Fraternity Study Committee in the 1950s. In 1958, the committee issued a report focusing on University-owned fraternity houses, which established guidelines and regulations for the management and maintenance of fraternity properties. The Interfraternity Council, the umbrella organization representing the University's fraternities, played an active role in organizing campus social events during the 1960s. In 1967, the IFC brought one of the most famous entertainers in music history to the University -- Sammy Davis Jr. He performed a concert that year at the Palestra. The IFC is not the only Greek organization with a history at the University; as the 20th century progressed, Greek organizations for women and minorities began to form on campus. The first sorority, Delta Delta Delta, established a chapter at the University in 1904. Six more chapters formed before 1926. Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs Director Tricia Phaup said membership in sororities increased over the following decades and hit a peak in the 1960s, waning in the 1970s. Many chapters were forced to leave campus in the early 1970s because the alumni could not financially support houses with low membership, Phaup said. The Panhellenic Council itself, the umbrella organization that governs the University's sororities, was absent from campus from 1973 to 1978 as a result of low membership. Phaup said only the chapters of Kappa Delta and Chi Omega survived the low membership of the 1970s. Several sororities which had left in the early '70s returned later that decade and during the early 1980s as interest in joining sororities increased again. Fraternities for minority groups also started to form in the early 20th century. Delta Sigma Theta, a sorority for African Americans, established a chapter at the University in 1918. Alpha Phi Alpha was the first black fraternity at the University, forming in 1920. As more African American fraternities and sororities formed, an umbrella group, the Black InterGreek Council was established to represent these chapters. The Black InterGreek Council later became the Bi-Cultural InterGreek Council (Big-C) in recognition of the Latino fraternities and sororities that were being founded. Lambda Upsilon Lambda, the University's first Latino fraternity, was established in 1988. In the last few years, Phaup said, the IFC, Panhel and Big-C have worked together effectively to better the Greek system. She cited the creation of the Greek Social Action Committee and the Greek Peer Judicial Board as examples of this cooperation. "The system has come together more and the three umbrella organizations set common goals together," she said. The 1980s were a time of change for the University's Greek system. With many states across the nation raising the legal drinking age from 18 to 21, the National Interfraternity Conference instituted "dry rush," rush proceedings not involving alcohol, in 1983. By the mid-1980s, the University's Greek system followed most of the nation's other colleges in mandating that rush events not involve consumption of alcohol. Members of the Greek system also came together in 1988 to force the ouster of Bruce Arnold, OFSA director at that time. The IFC passed a resolution stating that Arnold's directorship was ineffective, and that he was an adversary of the Greek community. Individual chapters from the IFC, Panhel and Big-C all signed petitions echoing this statement. In November 1988, Arnold was transferred to another office at the University and Phaup took his place. The 1990s pose new challenges for the Greek system at the University. In 1993 a Bring Your Own Alcohol Policy was created for fraternity and sorority parties. And in February of this year, the Commission on Strengthening the Community recommended in its preliminary report that Greek rush be postponed from freshman year to sophomore year. But, in the Commission's final report, released in April, the recommendation was changed so that rush could start in the spring of freshman year rather than sophomore year. This was a victory for the Greek system. Greek leaders had argued after the first report that a sophomore rush could eliminate some chapters since they would not be able to afford to remain in their houses. Many chapters depend on sophomores living in the chapter houses after pledging freshman year. The future of freshman rush still is uncertain. The IFC and University reached a compromise this September which, for the time being, will keep rush in the first semester of freshman year. Rush has been shortened from five weeks to three weeks and instead of having unlimited rush events, fraternities can only hold six rush events during the three-week span. Although she does not know what the impact of changing IFC rush will be, Phaup said the other two Greek groups have a later rush and have not suffered because of it. "Panhel rushes in the spring of freshman year and the Big-C doesn't rush until sophomore year," she said. "Those systems are doing fine." It is unclear whether the University will allow an abbreviated fall rush to continue next year or if it will follow the Commission's recommendation and make rush begin in the spring.

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