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[Kaminski_0002: Photo by: Student Association. Licence CC]

You may have seen movies such as Neighbors and its sequel. Based on what we see in movies and TV shows, people create stereotypes. Yes, I know there are a lot of people who think sorority girls are immature, party every night, don’t care about their grades and are only in college to have fun. It happens with the fraternity guys, also known as “frat boys.” I am a sorority girl, but that doesn’t mean I throw wild parties next to your house and have you call the police because me and my sisters went too far.

Hang in there. Sorority and fraternity life in college is not like what you see on TV or how people think it is. In fact, the misconceptions about the Greeks are endless. As someone who is in this world where t-shirts with three Greek letters are everywhere, philanthropy is the biggest priority and sisterhood for life is what unites us; I can say that it is the complete opposite of what people think.

I never believed in those stereotypes. As I went through the rush process, I confirmed that what everyone thinks about us are misconceptions. “Rush,” as I said earlier, is when university students interested in joining a Greek organization go to a series of social events to meet the current members. Let’s call these “rush events.” Next thing you know, I became a pledge of the first and the best sorority founded in Puerto Rico back in 1927. Now, as a member since August 2015, I will tell you what collegiate Greek life is all about.

Sorority girls are dumb party people who give priority to hanging out instead of studying. No, I am not a twenty-something girl who has a 2.0 GPA and failed the semester for the third time in a row. I was taught to care about university during my time as a sorority member. It’s okay to have fun every once in a while, but I have never been taught to drink every day and forget about homework. It’s all about balance. We make time to have fun, party and enjoy life while studying is our priority. 

What all these frat boys and sorority girls do is drink. I have done more than just drink. I don’t even drink that much; and yet, I am not excluded for it or anything. There’s a thing called community service that every Greek organization is required to do because it’s one of the purposes of their existence. I have given food to the hungry, hope to the misfortunate and help to the forgotten one. The sight of seeing poor people smile when they receive what they need is priceless. Activities are not limited to just parties. We are taught to be professionals, to have the most important values and to be the change we want to see in the world. The fraternity guys aren’t a bunch of annoying people who act like children. In fact, I was surprised when I started to meet them. Many of them turned out to be normal, nice and good advice givers. 

Members of these organizations pay for friends. Fraternities and sororities are like every organization out there. If you are in one, I’m sure you have had to pay some fees too keep the organization alive. We are not an exception, and just because I pay dues doesn’t mean that I buy friends. All we pay for is our membership. My friends, who I call sisters or sorority sisters, are priceless. When I joined the sorority, everyone wasn’t automatically my friend. It was up to me to make them. I’m grateful to have a second family full of girls who make me a better person and accept me for who I am. They have helped me find the motivation to study sometimes, improve my crippling social anxiety and give me a better life compared to high school. I didn’t even have any friends during that time, was bullied and constantly rejected by society. 

They do satanic rituals and cults. Okay, this one is rather odd because I don’t recall gathering with my sisters to worship the devil or something like that. That’s taboo, believe me. This goes to all the people who have told me this: no, I am not a Freemason just because I am a member of a sorority. 

You need to have good looks. The stereotypical sorority member is thin, blonde and white. If you saw movies like Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising, you’d think we are judgmental and exclude those who do not have the looks. Here’s the thing: I’m not even blonde. These Greek organizations have a thing called diversity, meaning that you don’t have to be perfect or look good 24/7. 

That being said, I did not join for the parties or ”buying” friends. I spend hours studying, maintaining my 3.90 GPA, working and dealing with responsibilities. Even my own sorority sisters tell me that exams and homework should be the #1 priority. Truth is, fraternity and sorority members are a bunch of people happily enjoying life without harming anyone. We work and study hard, but we don’t forget to have fun in our free time. We also don’t forget to do our required community service and prepare for our professional life.

People say that surrounding yourself with others who are great influence can make you a better person. That’s true; and I thank my sisters for it because I wouldn’t be where I am if it wasn’t for them. A lot of you think that joining a sorority or fraternity turns you into a crazy, avid partygoer who has no future. I’m going to destroy this stereotype for the last time. My own sisters helped me find who I truly am because for the first time ever, I wasn’t judged. I became the real me without even changing one tiny thing.