The Greek System: Its Place at Wabash College
The Sigma Chi fraternity house.
On my first visit to Wabash College as a high school senior I thought I knew right away the greatness of this place. The one thing I was not sure about was the Greek system one finds at this beloved institution. Everyone, as they grow up, hears stories about what it is like being in a fraternity and how horrible pledgeships are, and I committed to Wabash with absolutely no intention of being a “frat boy” as my old high school friends now like to call me. When I came back to Wabash a second time for honors scholar week I was told I would be staying in a fraternity for that weekend. Although a sense of excitement overcame me when I found out I was going to be hanging out at a fraternity all weekend, I still went into the weekend having no intention of joining one. This idea of me not joining a fraternity changed after I walked through the door of the house I was staying at. The magic of being taken in and accepted by a brotherhood of “college” guys so openly was overwhelming. I immediately fell in love with the fraternity system found at Wabash without even knowing more than that everyone happened to be really nice. Eventually I accepted a bid from that fraternity and through pledgeship became an active brother. Although the initial euphoria wore off as I got deeper into the Greek lifestyle it was quickly replaced by the deep since of respect and love I started to feel for the great tradition and brotherhood that I was now part of.
When discussing the Greek system at Wabash College the first issue that must be brought up are the differences between us and them, to be more specific the difference between the Wabash fraternities and those of other schools. The most immediate difference one will find is how Wabash conducts its rush process. As we all know, Wabash fraternities open rush to incoming freshmen in the March of their senior year, before they are even out of high school. This is obviously quite different from other universities. Although I earlier wrote of the magic of Wabash rush, I cannot overlook how difficult and unsettling it can be for someone not even out of high school to make such a big decision that will effect the rest of his life. It can be and for the most part should be a difficult decision. Other universities around us such as IU do not begin their rush until several weeks into first semester. And everyone knows about our foes to the south, who give their gentle little freshmen a whole semester to ease in to their new surroundings before they can rush. Although it is tough to make a decision as big as becoming a pledge at a particular fraternity in such a short amount of time, it works well with the type of lifestyle that one will live here at Wabash. At Wabash, where the lack of the opposite sex is constantly felt, the word brotherhood gains a whole new meaning, and having the rush process start as early as it does helps cater to the brotherhood of Wabash in general as well as the brotherhood one will find within the walls of a fraternity. Beginning rush in March gives a future freshman that much more time to become acquainted with not only a lot of future freshmen but also with a lot of current students of Wabash. This of course can help freshmen adjust better to the lifestyle a Wabash man chooses to lead.
The next immediate difference between us and them is where freshmen live after they decide to pledge a fraternity. Outsiders find it quite odd when they learn that pledges begin living in their respective fraternity house the day they move on to campus. This is obviously different from other schools in which freshmen do not begin to live in their fraternity house until they are active brothers, most of the time not even until their sophomore year. Although there is no real reason that I know of for which freshmen begin their Wabash experience in the fraternity house, the product that results from this is amazing. Once again the word brotherhood comes into play. Much like rush, starting out in the fraternity house right away will give a whole new meaning to brotherhood that only a Wabash man can know. As one will soon learn most of the fraternities at Wabash have a special room just for freshmen to sleep called the cold dorm. Trust that nothing brings a pledge class closer together than when they all live in one big room together for a year.
Now we have a rudimentary understanding of how fraternities at Wabash are different than other fraternities. I must now press how important the fraternities really are to both the college and to us students. Without the Greek system at Wabash the college would have a very difficult time attracting new students to the campus. From the time a prospective student first visits this beautiful campus to the time he moves in on Freshman Saturday the fraternities are constantly on showcase. And it seems that Greek life at Wabash is always a point of discussion with prospective students, amongst other things such as our great academics or how crazy Dr. Webb really is. The fraternities are one of the greatest if not the greatest attraction Wabash has to offer. The great traditions along with the congenial and brotherly attitude that the fraternities offer give the college the swagger that it requires to be the great institution it really is. The fraternities of Wabash also reach out far beyond the boundaries of campus. Whether freshmen pledges are out door knocking raising money for Muffy, or a group of brothers devotes a Saturday to help put a new roof on a house for Habitat for Humanity, the fraternities have a profound effect on the community around Wabash as well as within.
Once one becomes a legitimate part of the Wabash family he will learn how important the fraternities are to so many students on campus, and how the fraternities help them make it through their time here at Wabash. In his article last year entitled “A Perspective on Fraternities,” my fellow Phoenix writer, Jake Nettnay, wrote that the fraternities of Wabash help students form their own “safety nets” through their newly found brothers. I must commend Jake on making this astute observation. Whether one is having family problems, girl problems, or academic problems, the support one can find in his particular house can help a young man with any problem that may face him through any day to day problems he may encounter.
As Russell Kirk once said, “the past is a great storehouse of wisdom.” As a conservative publication we here at The Phoenix along with Mr. Kirk believe that being guided by the wisdom of those wise men that have been in our position before is paramount for success. Therefore I will now offer a couple words of advice that I found useful when they were told to me as a freshmen. First, as a freshman you ought to open yourself to the Wabash community. As I have written to the point of exhaustion in this article, Wabash is a brotherhood, and the sooner one recognizes that he is now a part of that the sooner he will be able to reap the benefits of being a Wabash man. Secondly, although you are now a Wabash man, remember that you are a freshman. There is a whole campus full of bright young gentlemen here who have simply been here longer and understand how things should be better than a freshman might. So in the end although you are now a member of this Wabash community, remember to respect those who have been around longer than you. You can learn a lot and be better off simply by observing those upperclassmen around you. Just make sure you’re observing the right ones, for even a great place like Wabash still will have its hiccups.
Lastly, understand that Wabash and its Greek system will not show its effect on you until you are outside of it. This last semester, while studying abroad, I realized how much different I am after being within the walls of Wabash for a few years. With every new situation I found myself in, I always found myself thinking back on the fact that I would be simply incapable of doing things as effectively as I can now without the skill set that Wabash and its Greek system has taught me.
I will never be able to make a totally accurate observation of how important the Greek system is to Wabash and how close it is to the hearts of all her students, faculty, and alumni. Something that sacred simply cannot be put into words. I hope that these words will help a new member of the Wabash community better understand how important the presence of these fraternities really are and how without them Wabash would not be what it is today. Always remember that by making the choice to become a Wabash man you have openly accepted the road less traveled. Being a Wabash man is not easy but it is certainly worth it. This same goes with the Greek system at Wabash, being a brother of a fraternity here will certainly be one of the most difficult things that you ever devote yourself to, but it is worth it.
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