PROFILE
OF A
CAMPUS
STEREOTYPE
       By Chelsea Stevens, Union Staffer

Everyone’s stereotypical sorority girl includes lots of boobs and makeup and not a lot of brains. There’s no shortage of Greek girls on campus, with our seven active sororities recognized by the Panhellenic Council. The typical non-Greek may have minimal contact with the sisters of a sorority, and any brief experience with their tendency to look like they’re going to a Sports Illustrated photo shoot instead of class can give many students a particular idea about their personalities. Can they even hold an intelligent conversation, you ask? Does their vocabulary consist of more than like, totally, or duh? In some cases, in fact, it does.

This week, I sat down with Shaunna Campbell, president of our campus’ Delta Zeta chapter. Though she’s a proud member of the Greek system, Campbell is fully aware of the less-than-positive perception placed on most sorority girls. “There really is no stereotypical sorority girl,” she described. “People see the red cups, the Greek TV show, movies…they don’t see past it to the other stuff we do.” The sorority does indeed do quite a bit of philanthropic work. They participate in Greek Week, a week-long fundraiser promoting the One Heartland organization which raises money for children with HIV. The sorority also isn’t as unintelligent as many believe them to be, either. “Delta Zeta actually holds a higher GPA than the campus’ average female,” Campbell explained.

Their on-campus events bring much attention to the sororities and fraternities, which promote many students to give the Greek way a try. I, for one, was quite surprised by the number of students involved in the Greek system. “For Greek Week we split into seven teams, and each team has about five organizations, so we have over 35 of them on campus,” Campbell explained. What on Earth would cause such multitudes of girls to join a sorority, if not simply for the parties and men? “At Long Beach, it’s such a commuter campus, I wanted to find a way to fit in,” Shaunna replied. “It’s so helpful to meet new people. . . If you join for the right reasons with the right heart, it’ll be for you.” Along with new friends, the connections and networking from alumni and other current members don’t hurt. “Someone at a job fair asked if I was a Delta Zeta, and it turned out that she was too and we had an instant connection. That could have been my future employer,” Campbell said.

Though many women believe sororities are simply not for them, Campbell stressed there’s a place for everyone in the Greek system. “Give it a chance, it’s definitely worth it, even if you’re on the fence,” she commented. “Recruitment is kind of stressful, but its so much fun, and it’s definitely a life experience. You meet people you know you can sit down with and feel comfortable without it being forced.” As hard as it may seem, try giving a sorority girl a second chance next time you happen upon one. It seems they aren’t all half bad.