Parents and Families

We want all parents and families to feel comfortable being part of their student's fraternity or sorority experience and aim to help you learn as much as possible about membership. Above all, the information below should serve as a resource to help illustrate the benefits and expectations of fraternities and sororities and the critical role you play at every stage of their students' membership.

At a Glance
  • Greek Life at Sewanee comprises 19 organizations—10 fraternities and nine sororities
  •  We have nine local organizations— two fraternities and seven sororities
  •  Around 68% of undergraduate students belong to a fraternity or sorority
  •  30% of members are also varsity athletes
  •  57% of fraternity and sorority members are also members of the Order of the Gown
  •  Each of the 19 Greek organizations has a dedicated house or townhouse. 
Roles of Parents and Families

While your student is away from home, you still play a vital role in their collegiate experience, including membership in a fraternity or sorority. Just like the leaders and members of these organizations, you also have a responsibility to help your student have a positive and meaningful experience.

When you take the time to learn the expectations and policies that your student is expected to uphold, you can help them have the best experience possible. Talk with your student about the new opportunities and challenges that will arise as a college student, fraternity, or sorority member. Help them recognize that the choices they make today can affect themselves and others into adulthood.

Moreover, you hold a unique position to positively shape your students' decision-making and behavior, especially in the face of complex scenarios. By reinforcing the expectations and regulations of fraternities, sororities, and the University, you can guide your student towards responsible choices.

If your student is considering membership or has recently joined, here are some helpful tips:

  • Take time to learn the expectations for membership and the organizational/University policies.
  • Have a conversation with your student about the new opportunities and challenges that will arise as a college student and Greek member.
  • Be consistent with your reinforcement of the behavior expectations and policies in place by the organization and the University.

Important Topics for Parents and Families

Benefits

Joining a Greek organization is one way to find community and belonging here at Sewanee. Membership provides a place with people to count on. Fraternities and sororities strive to enhance the college experience by challenging members to achieve academic excellence, develop leadership potential, and give back to the local community.

Discussing Health and Safety

College life can overwhelm many new students, especially with new social environments and changing academic expectations. While many freedoms come with being a college student, there is also increased responsibility. You play an integral role in your student's fraternity or sorority experience as both a support system for growth and independence and a guide to help them through critical situations. You are encouraged to have regular, direct conversations with your student about health and safety issues to help them understand their seriousness and set expectations for what you deem acceptable behavior.

Alcohol 

High-risk drinking and binge drinking are considered one of the most difficult challenges on American college campuses today.

Starting the Conversation

Suppose your student plans to join a sports team, student organization, fraternity, or sorority. In that case, we recommend sitting down with them and having a candid conversation about the risks associated with high-risk drinking and binge drinking. Research suggests that teens who talk to family members about alcohol avoidance strategies before they begin their first year of college are more likely to avoid alcohol or limit its use. 

Below are a few tips for starting the conversation:

  1. Look for ways to raise the topic naturally. For example, discussions about moving into a fraternity or sorority house can generate a conversation about how this might affect their alcohol choices.
  2. Reference facts about how drinking can negatively affect mental health, safety, and academic success to help illustrate the consequences of alcohol abuse during your conversations.
  3. Stress the importance of calling 911 during potentially unsafe situations. We must discourage students from trying to resolve serious problems themselves and instead tell them to seek professional guidance. For example, if your college student is ever in a position where someone has passed out from drinking alcohol, instruct them to call 911 immediately.

Keeping the Conversation Going

Continue to open the lines of communication about alcohol during each stage of fraternity or sorority membership throughout your student's time in college. Regular conversations will demonstrate your continued support and reinforce your stances about what is acceptable behavior regarding alcohol consumption.

These conversations should aim to be supportive while conveying vital information to help your student stay safe and achieve their full potential. You can play an influential role in helping their students avoid high-risk drinking, understand the dangers of binge drinking, and find constructive alternatives to drinking.

Hazing 

Studies show that parents, families, and friends are often the first groups with whom students share their hazing experiences. It is essential to be knowledgeable about hazing, why it is a serious issue, and how to report it. We all have a responsibility to help stop hazing.

Families need to be familiar with the realities of hazing on college campuses across the country. 

National studies have found:

  • More than half (55%) of college students involved in clubs, teams, and organizations experience hazing.
  • Nearly half (47%) of students have experienced hazing before coming to college.

If your student discloses a hazing experience, or you suspect hazing has occurred, we urge you to talk with your student and report your concerns to the University. 

Starting the Conversation

  1. Be honest with yourself. As you think about the possibility of your student, or any student, being hazed, it's normal to feel a range of difficult emotions. Reflect on how this emotional upset might impact your ability to delve into the topic. Ask yourself:
    • How do I respond to thinking about my teen being hazed? Do I get super anxious and start lecturing them, desperately trying to protect them? 
    • Do I rationalize ("They would never subject themselves to that. They would walk away. Their friends are all good kids.") and assume there is no way it would happen to my kid? 
    • What strategies can I use to regulate my feelings and prepare myself and my young adult for this conversation?
  2. Normalize your student’s intense need to belong—a normal part of brain development. Help your student understand that hazing often happens regardless of consent and that this is because the need to belong, coupled with the power of peer pressure, impedes true consent. Ask yourself:
    • How can I talk about the pros and cons of their drive to belong?
    • How might their need to belong put them at risk for hazing or being hazed? 
  3. Know the facts about hazing and talk about them. Students often accept the risks associated with hazing to avoid the fear of social isolation. Knowing this underscores why it is essential to speak with your student about their need to belong while also discussing the facts about hazing. You can familiarize yourself with hazing information by visiting hazing.sewanee.edu.

Keeping the Conversation Going

Hazing will not go away or disappear on its own. It will be eliminated when enough people take action. Using the tips above, we encourage you to continue to discuss this topic

with your student, especially during the new member process. Consistently reinforce the consequences of hazing and ensure your student knows where to go for help.

Financial Responsibility

Every fraternity and sorority has its own expectations of its members regarding finances. Please have open conversations with your students about what is expected of them each semester. The Greek organizations do not receive funding from the University; their yearly budget is based on membership dues. 

Greek Fee
All fraternity and sorority members are assessed a $30 Greek Fee each semester. The Greek Fee funds the Greek Life operating budget and supports programs and educational experiences such as leadership development, officer training, membership recruitment, pre-recruitment education, and more. 

General Liability Insurance
In addition to membership dues and the Greek Fee, members of local fraternities and sororities are charged annually for their organization's general liability insurance coverage. Unlike chapters affiliated with an international or national organization, local Greek organizations maintain general liability insurance with assistance from the University. Members of local Greek organizations should expect the annual cost to be around $180 to $200.

Housing

Privately Owned   Managed Greek Housing 

A fraternity occupies each of these facilities and sleeps between one and six undergraduate members during the academic year. Students residing in the privately owned fraternity facilities pay the same room and board as students living in University housing. These charges are issued with tuition bills, and payments are passed to respective house corporations. 

What is a house corporation? 

A house corporation (HC) is a group that owns and manages a fraternity facility utilized by undergraduate members. The HC is usually made up of alumni, such as a board, who volunteer their time to ensure the fraternity facility is maintained. The HC's responsibilities include:

  • Maintaining the property: This includes upkeep, inspections, repairs, and renovations. 
  • Maintaining equipment and furnishings.
  • Financial management: The HC is responsible for paying utilities and property taxes, making loan payments, and securing insurance.
  • Anticipating future needs: This may include identifying amenities and setting budgets. 

The following organizations occupy a privately owned and managed facility: Chi Psi, Delta Kappa Epsilon, Delta Tau Delta, Kappa Alpha Order, Lambda Chi Alpha, Phi Gamma Delta, Phi Society, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, and Sigma Nu.

University Owned   Managed Greek Housing 

These facilities consist of eight sororities and one fraternity, each housing between six and twelve students. The Office of Residential Life oversees each of these properties.

The following organizations occupy a university-owned and managed facility: Alpha Delta Pi, Alpha Delta Theta, Alpha Tau Zeta, Gamma Sigma Phi, Kappa Delta, Kappa Omega, Phi Kappa Epsilon, Phi Sigma Theta, Theta Kappa Phi, and Theta Pi.


Visit the Residential Life website to learn more about the university-owned Greek housing (aka Theme Housing).

New Member Process

The purpose of the new member process is to teach the fundamentals of being a productive member of a fraternity or sorority. New members should be celebrated and treated with the utmost respect, and this should be reflected in all activities associated with the new member process. 

All Greek organizations are required to provide a calendar to all members with the following details:

  • Requirements for initiation
  • Date/Time/Location of events and activities
  • The event purpose and outcomes for each new member activity 

While each organization's new member process differs, the maximum length of time allowed is eight weeks, and initiation into the organization must occur within this timeframe. During the new member process, new member activities may only take place between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m.

Recruitment

Formal recruitment (formerly called 'rush') is the process in which a potential new member (PNM) meets all fraternities or sororities at Sewanee and learns what they might want to get out of and contribute to the Greek community if they receive an invitation and choose to join. It is a uniquely structured opportunity to learn about each organization, meet the active members involved, and provide space for organizations to get to know the PNMs. Formal recruitment is typically held within the first month of the Easter semester.

Informal recruitment (aka upper-class recruitment) is another opportunity for fraternities and sororities to welcome new members. It typically takes place during the first month of the Advent semester. The informal/upper-class process is less structured than formal recruitment and has fewer dates. 

Tips for helping your student prepare for the recruitment process:

  • Encourage them to ask questions. 
  • Speak to the importance of getting to know the members. 
  • Ask them to consider what they hope to gain from fraternity or sorority membership.
  • Suggest that they attend events hosted by organizations they have yet to consider. Encourage them to try to get to know a diverse range of members.
Time Commitment

In addition to the organization's social, philanthropic, and service activities and group meetings, members may commit between three and eight hours per week to their fraternity or sorority. Time commitments will vary depending on the member’s roles and level of involvement, such as serving on committees or holding leadership positions. It is essential for students to ask questions regarding time commitments during the recruitment process. A member's time commitment ultimately depends on what they would like to gain from their membership experience.

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References:

Favor and Company. (2020). FHSI Guide for Parents 2020. Retrieved from
https://favorandcompany.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/FHSI-Guide-for-Parents-2020.pdf

StopHazing. (2023, July 20). 10 Tips for Talking with Your Teen. Stop Hazing.https://stophazing.org/2023/07/20/10-tips-for-talking-with-your-teen/

Turrisi, R., Mallett, K. A., Cleveland, M., Varvil-Weld, L., Abar, C. C., Scaglione, N.,   Hultgren,
B. (2013). An evaluation of timing and dosage of a parent-based intervention to minimize college students’ alcohol consumption. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 74(1), 30-40.