News Scrapbook 1980

an Jit!lO llnion

LOCAL NEWS 0

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PAGE B-1

AN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, SATURDAY MORNING, SEPTEMBER 20, 1980

SORORITIES ALSO REVIVE ON CITY CAMPUSES

Greeks Had Word For It: F.raternity By MICHAEL SCOTT-BLAIR Edueat1on Writer, The San DitQO Unioa

It was Friday evening and the live band was belting out a song that had people tapping their feet two blocks away down College Avenue Beer spla hed on the pavement, bright banner hung from the two- tory rooftops and the he eyed the sh as the hes eyed the h . It wa the first open party night of the academic year at San Diego State University's fraternity hou es, and the annual earch for new mem- bers wa on m one of the oldest and mo. t controversial traditions of U.S. higher education Fraternities were born m the same year as the nation 1776 - and , their 200-year hi tory al o has been tormy They have been honored and they have been banned. They have been loved and despised, neglected and supported, but they have sur- vived Now, on San Diego's teemmg st~te university campus, they are stagmg a strong revival. Since the prmg of 1976, membe:• hip has jumped from 669 to 1,006 m the 15 fraternities on campus, and record ru hes have seen 268 ne pledges at the nine sororities for a total of more than 700 members. Shrouded m ecrecy, with oath·, hand hakes, knocks and ceremony, fraternities and sororities have been crlt1r1zed for decade~. Even mem hers have said that for years the secrecy obscured excesses of ques- tionable behavior. Then the "hazing" of pledges

Abig part of the San Diego State University frater- nity-sorority srene is mixing males and females. These party-goers -0idn't mmd mixing at a recent party. J\11 mg can be relaxing, even on top of a wall. Greeks Had Word For It: Fraternity (Continued from B-1)

fraternities as drinking clubs ' Ca e said he encourages fraternity m mbers to give more thought Lo Lhe friendships that are made and thP other house activities, rncludrng retreats lo mountain camps and s~r- vice to other organizations such as la. t vear's effort to raise $11,000 for leukemia re.~earch. "The sororities are returnmg, but they are much more community-ori- ented and much Jess the social clubs of old ' said Kim Braun, SDSU soror- ity adviser. • "A sorority is ra~her like a mar- riage," she said. ''You live close to people and when you come on bad times with a person you don't just walk away, you have Lo work it out. Campus rommentary echoes the higher side of Gre k social Jiff "You have to learn to compromise -if \OU want to live with other people, Brad Pantokey said. "I know p ople only take any notice of us when we're out having fun, but there is a very ·se nous •1de to fraternity hfe wh1c;h only the members sec " pa 1 1 rl " · m m the mountains wberc we can hart. our innermost thoughts \\ ith people who are at- ease sharing thei " he said. In 1me year of the fraternity," said Mark Scannell, "I have more friends than in all my high school years combined." 'I know this is wbat people think of when they talk about fraternities," said Buddy Green, gesturing towards the beer-laden tables of the rush party. '·But this is only tl,e outside. "I wouldn't open up to people be- fore, but now I've learnf:'d to be com- fortable with my own feelings and the feelings of other people. And, he said 'there are the girls' "And of cour e, there are the beys," said rushee Karen Miller Both, however, said the male- female relahonsh1p of sorority rind fraternit} members are gmssly overrated in the mind of the non- member and frequently exaggerated to the level of absurditv. "There are dumb titles that people put on certain houses," she said, "calling one the 'rich bitch' sorority or the 'pretty boy' fraternity. Some are said to be more interested in scholastics, others in parties, while others are for frustrated jocks but

I think that's a lot of nonsense thes days. The sorority provides a home base for the collPge experience," Mil- ler said. "Its a valuable transitional step from the high school life.cen- tered around the home to the com- pletely mrlependent life of an adult. It helps you adjust more gradually and with less problems:· 'The 111creased interest in sorority and fraternity life is occurring, freshman Darice Chocas said, be- cause "students are seeking a return to the more-rounded college life. "They're tired of just bumming around on the weekend. I think stu- dents of today have a .better idea of who they are than 10 or 20 years ago, and they want a more sophisticated social hfe '' Though all m€mbers of the Greek- letter houses deny that good look are an important factor in member- ship, a qmck survey showed soront)'. s, tcrs sll ikmg near film star poses as they chatted with fraternity mem- r outside the chapter houses at l t.t art. Over at tne sorority houses, three bronzed young he-men strode by, un- obtrusively flexing rippling muscles and trying not to be outdone by the Jaguar XK that accelerated by with flair. "It's like a cattle parade," snapped one young woman. Members shrug. "Much of that kind of competition is a part of real life," Chocas said. "I don't know why people try to deny it." For the more pragmatic, Greek- letter life means a-betler chance for housing, help with Jobs in later life, assistance with college work and a more relaxed and secure social life. ''When you go to a party." said Joni Louzensky, •·you know there'll be people there you know and who'll respect you and ju t be fnendly. That's so much better than the usual party hassle." Each SDSU fraternity and sorority owns its own house, complete with dormitory and sometimes·kitchen fa- cilities, which in these times of scarce appartments is an additional advantage. "ll is a good way to get future job- referral from other members of your fraternity. and fraternity members help each other with their course studies,' Cross said.

~ealthy form of social Ufe, and t_he ,eremonies arc almost like a rehg- 10us experience. It is a productive ind constructive life - not destruc- ive, as many people seem to think." - The only other campus in San b1ego with sorority and fraternity ·ctivihes i the Uni\'ersity of San Diego, where there are four active ouses with a stable and enthusiastic embership. "I think we're really starting to see a growing interest in the real values ef Greek life," said Carol Holmes of lhe USO dean of students office. There arP no fraternity houses at UCSD. The campus opened in the l960s when fraternities and sorori- ies were seen as part of the "estab- li hment" that the angry student body of that era rejected. Thr"ugh he 1970s, there was little interest m pening houses. but m the past , ear here have been some i_qmries, cam- pus officials said. Said Doug Case, fraternity adviser t SDSU ·Most people still jom to avr. a httle tun nd raisP a little ell. And over the years, hell-raising as not changed much - still revolv- g around parties, raids on sorori- .cs and the putting of Greek letters In all sorts of places. "It isn't until later," he said. •·that embers begm to realize that the ose bonds of lasting friendship, hat are formed, the personal growth hat occurs and the brotherhood and istership of membership are the ea) value of the fraternities and sororities." Tb.at is not to say that all hazing as been suppressed, he said - but henever it surfaces, action is taken gainst it at both lhe local and the atioual level He said, however, that the fraterni- y emphasis on drinking bothers him. 'Are we selling brotherhood or ze?" he asked. In a rec:ent fraternity journal edi- orial on Rush the round of parties esigncd to attract new members - e- said "The combmed gros.,; ex- nclitures of all the fraternities eas- ly exceeds $50,000, and at lea-,t half f

that has to be consumed. But as Mark Kagan, Joe Canepa,. Rob Bernard and Sheri Pierce demonstrate, there's time for enjoying the sun too. ' "I would've walked away

Fraternity hfe can be demanding. First, t~ere's the crowds, such as at the Delta Upsilon fr~termty at San Diego State Umversity, left. And theres all that beer

nationwide.

compelling them, as pai:t of the _initi- ation rite, to do sometimes painful. humiliating stunts, or such fnvolous things as stuffmg as many people as possible into a telephone booth, swal- lowing goldfish and sleeping over- night in graveyards - were qecned

been required to eat goldfish_ or sit _on a block of ice and pick up olives with my teeth. That's all nonsense and childish," he said. "I've found fraternity life to be a (Continued on B-8, Col. l)

"Today's students are too sophisti- cated for that nonsense," fraternity member Jim Elliot said during one SDSU event in which freshmen were being enticed to join the various Greek-letter societies.

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SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE

SD BUSINESS ACTION SEP

SEP

"Russian for Beginners", a 10-week course in conversational Russian. will be offered Tuesday evenings by USD Office of Continuing Education. start- ing Sept. 16.Thef~ isS65. Call 293-4585

Violin/piano duo - Vi olini st Jame~ Zaga_mi. Concert Master of the Stale Orchestra of Mexico. and pianist Pamela Stubbs perform music of Bee- thoven. Ravel and Prokofief in a benefit concert Sept 23 at 3 in Camino Hall , USO. Sponsored by the Music Teachers' Assn. of California and the USO Music Department ; proceeds go to s~pport the Chamber Music Festival for young musicians in the San Diego area. Info: 271-0205 .

SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE

SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE

1980

SEP

SEP

The- West Ulustrated,

USD Founders Galle Neil Boyle from his ex- aintings and bronzes b~erican Indians thru Sept. ~riences with nauv;i~t of paintings and etchmr 9 Retrospecuve ex 21 -Nov. 5. Open we,, b.y Dorothy Stranon Sep~ k 29\-6480 ext. 4261 . 10-4 USO. Alcala ar · days · .

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USO Noontime Concerts-Wednesday_ noontime rt at US D feature cellist Marcia Zeavm conce s . · · S t 7· soprano Debra Aramend1a s,_nging ep · • · · G D1P1etro Spanish songs Sept. 24; and p1amst ary h p I Oct. I. Concerts at 12: IS in the Frenc ar or. Founders Hall. Free.

SAN DIEGO UNION

SAN DIEGO UNION

BENEFIT CONCERT - Violinist James Zagami and pianist Pamela Stubbs will present a concert to benefit the first annual chamber music festival to be held in January for young San Diego r:1us1c_1ans. The Music Teachers' Association of California and the Umve~s1ty of San Diego Music Department are sponsoring the conce~ which will begin next Sunday at 3 p.m. In Camino Hall, Umv.,11ty of San Diego.

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ker will entertain Thur

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COMIC RELIEF - Comedian Jimmy ~alol San Die!IO at 8 p.m. in Camino Theater, Umvet'9tly

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SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE

SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE SEP

SEP 1000 Mideast Trends- USO offers lecture_series _on trends in the Mideast, Thur. 6-9 pm in Can,11no Hall . Rm . 150, Sept. I I-Dec. 11. Sept. 11 , lntr_o- d . . Sept. I 8: " Western Percepuons and M1s- uct1on, Id " s t 25· perceptions of the Islamic War : ep . . . Films The Empty Quarter. Nomad and the Clly, Man ~nd Nawre. Regis . info: 293-4585.

USD Concert Serles- Sunday afternoon concert series in Camino Theatre, USO presents Father Nicolas Reveles in a piano recital, including a piano sonata by Schubert and Schumann 's Car-

SAN DIEGO UNION

SAN DIEGO UNION

naval, Sept. 2 1 at 4. The Alcala Trio presents an all Brethoven concert, with Father Nicolas Re- veles on piano . Or. Henry Kolar on v,ohn and Marjorie Hart on cello. Oct. 5 at 4. Info: 291- 6480.

SEP21,a

VOCAL RECITAL - I songs Wednesday at 12: 15 p.m. In the French Parlor, Univeraity of San Diego. . Soprano Debra Aramendia will sing Spanish

I PIANO CONCERT - Nicolas Reveles will play a solo recital today at 4 p.m. In Camino Theater, Univeraity of San Diego. His program will consist of two Beethoven Sonatas, the Opus 27, No. 1, and the Opus 27, No. 2, as well as Haydn's Sonata No. 21 in F major and Schumann's "Carnaval," Opus 8. ~--~--~~-

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