Multicultural Greeks from the Tri-State region filled Irvine Auditorium on Saturday night for the annual Penn Relays Weekend Step Show.
The Step Show, which is the biggest of its kind on the East Coast, marked the end of the first-annual Multicultural Greek Council Week — a showcase of academic, cultural, social and philanthropic events put on by Penn’s historically black, Latino and Asian-American fraternities and sororities.
Three sororities and four fraternities from the “Divine Nine” — a group of historically black organizations — competed at the show.
Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority and Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity won first place in their respective categories and were each awarded a $1,000 cash prize.
“Stepping is a beautiful experience overall,” said Cory Boone, a graduate student at Rowan University, who performed with Kappa Alpha Psi for a second consecutive year. “It’s an opportunity for brotherhood and bonding.”
Stepping is “a tradition of African-American fraternities and sororities,” said MGC Advisor Larry Moses, who has toured the country with the national team and attended his 14th show at Penn on Saturday.
“It’s an amazing form of coordination and synchronization,” he said. “Each group has its own individual steps — it’s a way for an organization to show who they are.”
MGC Week was also an opportunity for fraternities and sororities to demonstrate the “well-rounded” character of Multicultural Greek life, according to outgoing MGC President and College senior Gabby Blake.
A number of events during the school week were “academically focused,” she said. On Monday, MGC Greeks attended a session on perfecting networking skills and turning internships into full-time job positions after graduation. On Tuesday, students received help from personal tutors at a “Peer Prep Party.”
Members from Omega Psi Phi, Lambda Theta Alpha and Sigma Psi Zeta hosted a college fair at West Philadelphia High School to encourage students to consider college and minority Greek life.
According to Moses, around 100 students are involved in the MGC at Penn.
“We promote diversity, we promote unity,” he said. “We may be small in number, but we’re strong in presence.”
In addition to a unique “cultural focus,” what distinguishes MGC chapters from Interfraternity and Panhellenic Council chapters is that individuals remain active members of their chapters even after graduation, Blake said.
“A lot of alumni came back for MGC Week,” she said. “It’s truly a lifetime commitment.”
