Lindenwood’s Greek community is set to expand its fraternity options in the spring of 2018 to allow students to find “the right fit for them,” according to Student Involvement administrators.
“Over the last few years, we’ve grown quite a bit in numbers,” said Christopher Miofsky, assistant director of student involvement Greek life. “Obviously, we recently brought on a new women’s organization, and so our men’s community kind of wanted to capitalize on that momentum. So the idea behind this was to bring one or more organizations that would fit within the purposes and mission of the institution, but would also provide other students with the opportunity to affiliate with a fraternity that they may not find a home in currently.”
Miofsky said that there will be three new fraternities coming to campus over the next six years, with the first being Theta Xi next spring, followed by Sigma Tau Gamma in the spring of 2020 and Alpha Sigma Phi in the spring of 2022.
“They have had us on their radar they said for close to 10 years,” Miofsky said. “I think that’s really great that we’ve been able to be on their radar for that long. It’s really showing what we’re doing in our community.”
The next step, according to Miofsky, is to market the organization starting next fall to gain awareness for the group and to look for leadership that wants to start something new on campus.
[perfectpullquote align=”right” cite=”Christopher Miofsky” link=”” color=”#f8de91″ class=”” size=””]This is another opportunity for our students to get involved from the ground floor and a really great opportunity for them to really be leaders on campus.[/perfectpullquote]
“This is another opportunity for our students to get involved from the ground floor and a really great opportunity for them to really be leaders on campus,” he said. “Joining an organization is different than starting an organization. There are just different experiences, and we know that they are students who are looking for that very specific experience to start an organization rather than just join one.”
As for current Greek organizations, Miofsky is expecting the new organization to help current groups grow as well.
“We all know when the tide rises, all the boats rise,” he said. “We understand that bringing on a new group will bring in different students that we aren’t already getting. It will bring some students who will be like, ‘I want to be in that new group,’ and then meet the others and then become more comfortable with one of the existing ones.”
The Interfraternity Council has been involved in the decision to bring the new fraternities to campus and are looking forward to including them within the existing culture, according to IFC President Zach Hall.
“Our community is growing exponentially, and our council has been working very hard to make sure that the Greek community as a whole grows and specifically the men that have been a part of fraternities,” Hall said. “Part of our goal for expansion is to give other men on campus the opportunity to join something that could better them in the future.”
Hall also hopes the new fraternities will help break the stereotypes associated with fraternities.
“I would like the community to see past the Hollywood propaganda that is personified like on movies,” he said. “That’s not what our community is about. Our community is about fostering values that better individuals, and being part of a Greek community, we want individuals to be better.”
Looking forward, Hall thinks adding to the growing Greek Life on campus will benefit young men for years into the future.
“We want to set the standard, and we want to get people to join in on that so that they can make future communities better,” he said. “Membership goes beyond the college experience, and the experience you get here in college in a Greek organization will make you a better leader in the future and in leading the future generation.”
Anyone interested in learning more about the new fraternities coming to campus should contact Miofsky at [email protected] or Hall at [email protected].
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