Column by Jeremy Stith. E-mail opinions@kykernel.com.
When I first came to UK, I really didn’t plan on joining a fraternity. I didn’t know too much about the Greek system short of what I saw in Animal House.
I went out with a friend to the open houses during rush week and was really surprised.
First off, the free food should be enough of a reason by itself. But when I started talking to the guys at rush, I discovered a lot.
Fraternities offer opportunities you can’t get anywhere else. Going into my junior year, I have been a part of a Bible study within my house, traveled to Haiti with a fraternity brother to help rebuild after the earthquake, and had the opportunity to travel across the country for football games, formals and leadership conferences.I have met countless alumni in my position as External Relations Vice President; men from almost every occupation who offer insight into life after college, and valuable contacts for internships and employment in the summers and after graduation.
I pledged with 25 men from different parts of the country and different backgrounds and havegrown closer to them in the past two years than I have with friends I’ve had my entire life. I was lucky enough to move into the house after pledgeship and have been here two years. Living with my brothers has been a great experience, and it certainly beats living in the dorms. Never in your life will you get to live with 30 of your best friends. It’s an experience that I hope my son will get to have someday.
As a fraternity man, you’ll participate in various philanthropic activities, from Greek Sing, to the campus wide Dance Blue, to the individual organizational philanthropies, with ours being camp KYSOC, a camp for disabled children in Carrolton, KY.
You’ll also develop skills that will benefit you in the classroom.
Before pledgeship, I never had the discipline to keep and maintain a planner, but after, I continue to depend on mine to this day.We have old tests and notes to help you get a leg up in your classes, and through book swaps, you can beat the crazy book prices at the University Bookstore and Kennedy’s. You’ll also benefit from the knowledge of the upperclassmen about which classes to take under which professor, and receive the kind of insight your adviser might not be able to give you.
If you didn’t rush in the fall, I would highly encourage you to consider spring rush. It can be the start to one of your best experiences in college and beyond. Open houses are all this week, and also, there’s free food.
Please come out, and see what UK’s Greek system can offer you!
Jeremy Stith is a biology junior. E-mail opinions@kykernel.com
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