Greek Week kicks off with clean-up

A campus-wide Community Service Day Saturday kicked off this year's Greek Week events, which will continue this week and conclude next Wednesday. Three hundred members of the InterFraternity, Panhellenic and BiCultural InterGreek councils worked to clean up areas on and off campus, according to IFC Executive Vice President and Wharton senior Tim Lash. The community clean-up focused on the areas between 38th and 43rd streets and between Baltimore and Chestnut streets, Lash said. "We went out across West Philadelphia and picked up trash," Lash said. "All too often, we neglect the area where we live and for this Community Service Day, we took a new focus." While Saturday's event focused on the West Philadelphia community, the rest of Greek Week takes an inward turn, attempting to create a display of Greek unity while attracting potential rushees, Panhel Greek Week Committee Chairperson and College senior Lisa Hernandez said. To accomplish that goal, featured events this week include Tuesday's Meet the Greeks on Locust Walk and an All-Greek Mixer night Thursday. "Traditionally, much of the focus has been getting freshmen interested in rushing," explained Hernandez, a Pi Beta Phi sister. "But part of the focus of Greek Week should also be inward, to help get us to know each other." The Meet the Greeks event provides an opportunity to "show the campus who we are," Hernandez explained. Thursday's All-Greek Mixer night is a new addition to Greek Week this year, Hernandez said. All Panhel, IFC and Big-C chapters will attend the eight different mixers, which will be hosted by fraternity houses. "Each party is a mixing and matching of all the diverse houses across campus," Hernandez said. Thursday and Friday, all fraternities will host open houses to showcase the chapters to this year's rushees. Lash explained that showcasing the houses allows freshmen to "familiarize themselves with the Greek system." Saturday's Greek Feast will feature a "Spring Fling-type atmosphere," according to Hernandez. "Our goal is to attract people to rush," she said. A Faculty Tea and Awards Reception to be held October 9 will conclude the week's events. Each chapter nominated several faculty members for recognition and will present awards at the tea. "We want the faculty to know that we're unified and that as a group, we recognize them," Hernandez said. Lash added that the event should "increase student-faculty interaction." The tea will also include the presentation of two $500 scholarships to two members of the Greek community who are conducting research in a specific area of expertise.