The FMU chapter of the National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) hosted a sorority open house at 6 p.m. on Feb. 4 in the Lowrimore Auditorium.

The event followed a sit-down style lecture with socially-distanced seating and pre-recorded PowerPoint presentations from members of the Alpha Kappa Alpha and Sigma Gamma Rho sororities, which introduced the core values of their groups and discussed the detailed requirements to be considered for membership in NPHC organizations.

The NPHC, also referred to as “The Divine Nine,” originated as a primarily African-American group, consisting of nine collective sororities and fraternities, four of which are active on the FMU campus. Due to COVID-19 precautions, what would usually be one large open house event was split into two meetings, with one focusing on the sororities and the other on the fraternities.   

Since 2014, the FMU chapter of NPHC continues to host open house events every spring and fall, requiring all students interested in joining their organizations to attend at least one open house before they may be considered for recruitment.

The event was led by LaTasha Brand, the FMU dean of students, who emphasized the importance of students’ involvement in campus organizations. In addition to personal connections and family-like relationships, Brand said Greek life allows students to serve while also building their leadership skills.

“I’ve seen students, in the many years that I’ve been here, join a club, and it helps break them out of their shell,” Brand said. “It gives them a way to network with other people. Greek life just adds to the campus community and allows students another opportunity or venue to become a part of, to make not only FMU their school, but make FMU their home.”

In addition to discussing information on the NPHC sororities, Brand also warned students against the dangers of hazing in Greek life and encouraged students to notify someone immediately if they suspect any hazing acts have been committed. Brand emphasized hazing does not always involve physical harm and advised students to ask questions if an organization tells them to do anything that does not make sense.

“As a university, we do take the practice of hazing seriously,” Brand said. “It’s not something that we tolerate in our campus community, and I’d rather be proactive than reactive.”

Aaliyah Wilson, a sophomore psychology major, said she was excited to learn about Greek life on campus after her recent transfer from Florence Darlington Technical College.

“I’m interested in maybe joining a Divine Nine sorority one day, so I just wanted to get out and see what it’s about,” Wilson said. “I’m just trying to get into more stuff on campus since this is only my second semester being here. I think [Greek life] is important to the campus because it gives everybody opportunities to find where they fit in and gives you the opportunity to have a long-term brotherhood and sisterhood.”

For more information on NPHC organizations and other Greek life on campus, visit the official FMU webpage at https://www.fmarion.edu/gogreek/.