Going to college opens up a number of opportunities for students to get involved on campus. One of these long-standing opportunities is joining a fraternity or sorority, colloquially known as “going Greek”.
One of the sororities on Winthrop University’s campus is Delta Zeta’s Lambda Sigma chapter, which was founded at Winthrop on Jan. 22, 1977. Delta Zeta’s mission statement is, “we live truly,” and the sorority has five statements that accompany the motto: truly learning, truly global, truly giving, truly empowered and truly amazing. These statements encompass the sorority’s values.
“It’s for the rest of your life,” said Sidney Ruff, a sophomore and vice president of membership for Delta Zeta. She added that she has obtained skills in leadership and communication from her experience in Greek life that she believes will help her in her future.The Winthrop chapter had 43 members prior to spring recruitment.
Ruff said that there are a lot of misconceptions that go along with joining a sorority, such as that once you graduate, your time in the organization is up. She said that she appreciates Winthrop having spring recruitment and that in her freshman fall semester, she would not have rushed.
“I fed into the stereotypes about Greek life. The more I got to know the women in Greek life, I realized the stereotypes were not true,” Ruff said.
Winthrop has many stipulations before a student can rush, one of which is having taken 12 credit hours in order to be eligible. This requires most students to wait at least one semester before participating in recruitment.
Ruff said that the hardest aspect of the recruitment process was “staying true” to herself. She said it was hard to stay true to who she was and not change to fit the different organizations.
“I had to remember to stay true to who I was because I knew my future home would accept me for who I was,”Ruff said. “I let the stress get to me. I wish I could go back and tell myself to enjoy the process more.”
Ruff said staying true to herself paid off in the end, and she is excited to be on the other side of the recruitment process for the next three years.
DeLisha Sarratt is a junior at Winthrop and has been in Sigma Gamma Rho, Lambda Kappa chapter since November of last year. This chapter received its charter at Winthrop Sept. 12, 1989.
The mission of Sigma Gamma Rho is to enhance the quality of life for women and their families in the US and globally through community service, and civil and social action. Their goal is to achieve greater progress in areas of education, health awareness and leadership development.
Sarratt was inspired to join the chapter by the women who represent the sorority on Winthrop’s campus, who Sarratt said are “very sweet and welcoming.” Sarratt said that the seven founders were all schoolteachers and their purpose in creating the sorority also greatly inspired her to go Greek and consider Sigma Gamma Rho as her home.
The most difficult part of intake for Sarratt was learning to manage her time and “not appropriate too much time to one area” during her recruitment process. Sarratt said that her favorite part of being in a sorority is having a “forever bond” with her sisters she has gained through the process.
She also said that she likes being able to continue her Founders’ principles by serving the community.
“The best part of going Greek is the sisterhood,” Ruff said, adding that her sisters are her biggest supporters and encourage her daily to be her best self.
Photo provided by Sidney Ruff
