By Nick Anderson, '10, Theta Chi
As a senior reflecting on my experience at Lehigh as a member of the Greek community, I can’t help but reminisce and procrastinate in writing this entry. I have shared so many great experiences with not only my brothers but the entire Greek community. I believe a Lehigh Greek experience is truly beneficial to those who participate. I can honestly say that part of my success as an undergraduate can be attributed to the Greek experience. I believe this is true for three reasons:
As a senior reflecting on my experience at Lehigh as a member of the Greek community, I can’t help but reminisce and procrastinate in writing this entry. I have shared so many great experiences with not only my brothers but the entire Greek community. I believe a Lehigh Greek experience is truly beneficial to those who participate. I can honestly say that part of my success as an undergraduate can be attributed to the Greek experience. I believe this is true for three reasons:
First, as a member of the Greek community, I was able to participate in numerous service and philanthropic events that I would not have had the opportunity for otherwise. The community service and philanthropy that come from the Greek community arise from student interest. The students believe they should support or donate, and the means of doing so are all student driven. It is truly rewarding to see a philanthropic effort that contributes to a good cause and that students have fun not only planning and running, but participating in as well.
Secondly, the Greek community is a fantastic way to meet people. I feel that I was able to establish many connections and network effortlessly through the Greek community. I was able to use contacts from the Greek community to help bridge connections between my other involvements on campus. As the first Greek to be President of the Association of Student Alumni (ASA), I feel as though I was able to effectively unify the entire campus (both Greek and non-Greek) at key points in the year such as Lehigh-Lafayette week and Hawk’s for Haiti.
Finally, being Greek helped me to develop as a leader. I learned how a room full of 40 different viewpoints can be combined to achieve a common goal. As my chapter’s Accreditation chair I was able to collect input, articles and perspectives from the entire chapter to produce a report that the chapter as a whole could agree with and be proud of.
The Lehigh Greek experience is truly unique and positive in so many ways. I would highly support the decision to go Greek for anyone who is interested. I had a blast, and will never forget it.