The Fraternity and Sorority Standards Program was created in 2004 to create a set of rules and expectations that Greek life organizations must abide by. The main goal of the Standards Program, according to the Fraternity and Sorority Life (FSL) website, is to challenge fraternities and sororities to have a positive impact on their communities.

There are 10 different areas in which the Standards Program sets expectations, called the shared principles. The principles listed are: academic achievement, alumni/graduate chapter engagement, campus leadership and involvement, council involvement, educational and learning, financial stewardship, leadership training, membership development, outreach and civic engagement, and responsibility, health and safety.

Julie Bryant, the associate director for FSL, believes that this program is effective because the students helped create and determine where standards were to be set for Greek life organizations.

“It was student-driven to create the program, which I think is important to us because we want to make sure that a program like that is coming from the students,” Bryant said. “They’re saying that we want standards to be in place for organizations and have expectations for organizations on this campus.”

Sarah Choffin is a first-year studying applied nutrition who also is involved in the service sororit, Omega Phi Alpha. She said the sorority has made it very clear to her what the expectations are to become a member. She also believes that it is important for fraternities and sororities at NC State to uphold the Standards Program because they should be a positive reflection of the school.

“You’re influencing new-coming students, whether or not positive or negative,” Choffin said. “You want to represent the school in a good light.” 

Shelley Brown Dobek is the Director of FSL and has been working with Greek life at NC State for 18 years. She said that the Standards Program has been revised four times in order to adapt to university and student changes in fall 2005, 2006, 2011 and 2017.

Brown Dobek also explained that the biggest problem with Greek organizations upholding the Standards Program is filling out the proper forms and failing to document their work.

Both Bryant and Brown Dobek mentioned that there are ways, however, that fraternities and sororities can better keep up with their requirements, including portfolio coaches, the Standards Checklist and the Helper Helper app. Portfolio coaches are staff members within the FSL Department who meet Greek organizations to discuss the work in their portfolio. 

The standards checklist is also available on the FSL website that allows organizations to keep track of what they have done throughout the year. The Helper Helper app is another resource where students participating in NC State Greek life have found places to volunteer. 

Constantine Boardman Katsoudas, first-year studying human biology and a member of the fraternity Beta Theta Pi, said that he has found the Helper Helper app is a way for him and the fraternity to find service opportunities. 

“It has all the opportunities, and it shows the commitments and the times,” Boardman Katsoudas said. “It has the stats on there too and all of my hours.”

Bryant said that if a sorority or fraternity were to continuously not uphold the Standards’ expectations, there are possible consequences, such as having their approval from NC State’s Fraternity and Sorority Life revoked. However, according to Bryant, that has not been an issue thus far at NC State. 

“There is the expectation that they continue to meet that standard, and after multiple years [of not meeting that standard] maybe their eligibility for student recognition, for registration approval through us would be revoked,” Bryant said. “But that is not something we have had to do in the years that we have been having the standards process. No one has not met their standards and lost recognition through the university.”

Bryant said she thinks that Standards Program is also a helpful way for the university to see all of the great accomplishments that fraternities and sororities have made throughout the year.

“I think the [Standards Program] is our rewards program as well,” Bryant said. “It’s a way that we recognize our organizations and want to show what good work they are doing in the community.”

For more information about the Standards Program and Fraternity and Sorority Life at NC State, visit their website.