When people think of sororities they may just think of pretty college girls in short skirts throwing parties and having fun, but the reality is, the true purpose of sororities are to help raise money for charity and provide young women with sisterhood that can help them to succeed in college and at professional endeavors that happen after college.
Fraternities may get an even worse rap, with images of college parties and guys who are somewhat brutish as a stereotype. However, they also dedicate themselves to working on raising money for charities and providing each other opportunities and support when they are in the workforce.
In fact, many sororities and fraternities have a whole “season” dedicated to philanthropy, and many of these seasons culminate in a huge event that raises money for a specific cause. One example of this is Penn State’s Thon, a 46 hour dance competition that is sponsored by all the Greek organizations on campus. The program goes to help families with children who have illnesses, and it is the largest student-run charity event in the nation! Over the years they have raised over $157 million, helped 4,000 families and had over 16,000 students participate as volunteers to raise funds and staff the event itself.
Most Greek organizations in colleges participate in fundraising of some type, and each year they raise more than $7 million dollars for charities of their choices, and in a survey, 27% of Greek campus organizations listed philanthropy as extremely important, with 68% of organizations listing it as important. So you can see, that Greek organizations are not just a place for kids to go and party, they are organizations that set a foundation of giving for a whole life. Once they see how fun and easy it is to raise funds for a cause they care about, young adults may continue to do so for a long time to come!