The Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life recently updated the Greek Bricks along Dan Allen Drive to include four more InterFraternity Council and Panhellenic Organizations. The bricks now include Kappa Delta, Kappa Alpha Theta, Beta Theta Pi and Kappa Kappa Gamma.
The bricks record the history of Greek organizations at NC State and are updated every five years to include new additions to the community. Shelly Brown Dobek, director of Fraternity and Sorority Life, says the bricks are there as a way to represent the history of Greek life at NC State.
“The bricks start on the east side with Sigma Nu, and continue down Dan Allen in founding order,” Dobek said. “They have historically only been IFC and Panhellenic organizations.”
The bricks include organizations that are no longer active or recognized due to suspensions or expulsions on campus. Dobek said the reason the bricks are not removed is because the organizations are still a part of the school’s history.
“The bricks stay because the alumni of the organization were here and they still had that experience,” Dobek said. “The bricks stay because they’re a part of the history and fabric of campus.”
Six of the nine National Pan-Hellenic Council organizations are memorialized in the bricks along Dunn Avenue by Reynolds Coliseum. The bricks were started before Dobek’s time as director of Fraternity and Sorority Life, and much of the reasoning behind the placement of the bricks and separation of the InterFraternity Council, Panhellenic Council and National Pan-Hellenic Council is unknown.
The Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life has plans to update Dunn Avenue to include new bricks as a part of a potential sidewalk project next year. According to Dobek, it is more cost-effective to incorporate the bricks into an upcoming project than to try and raise funds separately.
“When the school has leftover money at the end of the year, they choose small projects that would be easy to complete to spend the funds on,” Dobek said. “We are on that list of projects, so it’s just a matter of time.”
While none of the 10 organizations on the Multicultural Greek Council currently have Greek bricks anywhere on campus, there are plans in place to incorporate these organizations in the ongoing construction of Greek Village. Dobek says they chose Greek Village as the site to further increase the diversity and inclusion of Greek Village.
“Any organization, regardless of size or alumni support, should be welcome within the community,” Dobek said. “It shouldn’t just be the center of life for IFC and Panhellenic organizations.”
The updates to Greek Village includes a plan to design and build smaller townhomes and apartments for organizations who have smaller numbers and may not require the 40 beds that other organizations do. These apartments and townhomes are also an opportunity for Multicultural Greek Organizations and National Pan-Hellenic Organizations to move into Greek Village.
As for who gets their bricks and when, it depends on numerous factors. Organizations must be in operation for five years, inducted at least 100 members or sign a lease with the university. Kappa Kappa Gamma was able to get bricks installed so quickly because they have signed a lease and agreed to build in Greek Village.
“We want to make sure we have an establishment of success and we want to know that a group is going to charter,” Dobek said. “The reality is we don’t have an infinite amount of space, and we want to be able to impact and honor as many alumni as we can.”
To learn more about the Greek Village Project, visit the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life’s website.
