DO COLLEGES REALLY NEED

FRATERNITY HOUSES?
BY: JORDAN BECK
WHY I PICKED THIS TOPIC

• GREEK LIFE AS A WHOLE IS RISING IN NUMBERS

• BALL STATE SUSPENDED ALL FRATERNITIES IN 2018 DURING THE FIRST
SEMESTER
• FRATERNITY HOUSE EVENTS WILL BE STARTING UP NEXT YEAR
• WANTED TO KNOW MORE ON WHY THEY GET A BAD REPUTATION
• I USED TO BE A MEMBER OF THETA CHI FRATERNITY IN 2019 WHEN IT GOT
SUSPENDED FROM CAMPUS
RESEARCH QUESTION

• DOES HAVING FRATERNITY HOUSES ON

COLLEGE CAMPUSES LEAD TO MORE
DEVIANT BEHAVIOR AMONG COLLEGE
STUDENTS?
FINDINGS

• FRATERNITIES WERE CREATED IN THE BEGINNING FOR A COUPLE OF

REASONS
• 1. BRING LIKEMINDED INDIVIDUALS TOGETHER SO THEY CAN HELP EACH
OTHER THROUGHOUT LIFE DURING AND AFTER COLLEGE
• 2. HELP IN THE COMMUNITY AND ACROSS CAMPUS
• 3. MAKE CONNECTIONS WITH OTHER MEMBERS AS WELL AS THE OTHER
MEMBERS OF THE STUDENT BODY
FINDINGS

• 20-30% OF COLLEGE STUDENTS ARE INVOLVED IN GREEK LIFE IN AMERICA

• 75% OF FRATERNITIES HAVE CHAPTER HOUSES
• PARTICIPATION IS UP OVER 10% IN THE LAST 5 YEARS
• GRADUATION RATE FOR THOSE INVOLVED IS ROUGHLY 85% WHICH IS ONE
OF THE HIGHEST OUT OF ALL SCHOOL ORIENTED GROUPS
SO WHAT'S THE PROBLEM WITH HAVING A
FRATERNITY HOUSE ON CAMPUS?

• HAZING INCIDENTS ARE STARTING TO BECOME OUT OF CONTROL AS WE ARE

SEEING THEM ALL OVER THE NEWS AND THE INTERNET
• CHAPTER HOUSES ARE NO LONGER A PLACE FOR STUDYING AS ITS MAIN USE
NOW IS FOR HAVING PARTIES AND EVENTS
• MEMBERS WHO LIVE IN HOUSE ARE 3X MORE LIKELY TO COMMIT SEXUAL
ASSAULT THEN THOSE WHO ARENT
• DROP OUT RATES FOR THOSE WHO LIVE IN HOUSE ARE INCREASING EVERY
SINGLE YEAR WITH NO SIGN OF SLOWING DOWN
FEMINIST THEORY

• I FEEL AS IF THIS THEORY FITS PERFECT FOR THIS FOR A COUPLE REASONS
• 1. SHEDS LIGHT ON THE TOXIC MASCULINITY THAT COMES WITH
FRATERNITY'S
• 2. SHOWS US HOW WOMAN ARE SEXUALIZED AND NOT TREATED PROPERLY
WHEN THEY ENTER THE HOUSE
• 3. MAKES YOU WONDER WHY GUYS CANT GO INTO SORORITY HOUSES YET
GIRLS CAN GO INTO FRATERNITY HOUSES
TOXIC MASCULINITY

• MEMBERS ARE KNOWN FOR EXCESSIVE DRINKING, DRUG USE AND TALKING
DOWN ABOUT WOMAN
• THE WHOLE PURPOSE OF PLEDGING IS TO BRING YOU DOWN IN ORDER TO
BRING YOU UP
• ”MOVING INTO THE HOUSE IS LIKE GOING TO A YEAR-LONG SUMMER CAMP
FOR ALCOHOLIC HORNY MAN CHILDREN” (SERVANTES)
• MEN FEEL ENTITLED BECAUSE THE PARTY IS WHERE THEY LIVE SO MORALS
CAN GO OUT THE WINDOW REALLY QUICK ESPECIALLY WHEN ALCOHOL IS
INVOLVED
CONCLUSION

• I BELIEVE COLLEGES HAD GOOD INTENTIONS WHEN THEY WANTED TO

START FRATERNITY HOUSES. HOWEVER, AS TIME WENT OUT IT WAS
ALREADY OUT OF THEIR CONTROL
• GREEK LIFE AS A WHOLE IS STILL VERY BENEFICIAL IF YOU WOULD THROW
OUT THE HOUSES
• IF SCHOOLS DON’T START PUTTING NEW RULES IN PLACE TO HELP THE
MEMBERS I FEEL AS IF WE WILL EVENTUALLY SEE AN END TO ALL
FRATERNITIES WITHIN THE NEXT 10 YEARS ACROSS THE UNITED STATES.
MULTIPLE COLLEGES HAVE ALREADY COMPLETELY ERASED THE GREEK LIFE
PROGRAMS AND MORE ARE FOLLOWING BY THE YEAR
SOURCES

• ADRIENNE WESTENFELD ASSISTANT EDITOR ADRIENNE WESTENFELD IS A WRITER AND

EDITOR AT ESQUIRE. (2021, FEBRUARY 12). ARE FRATERNITIES TOO TOXIC TO SAVE? ONE
WRITER INFILTRATED THE SECRETIVE SYSTEM TO FIND OUT
• SERVANTES, I. (2017, OCTOBER 19). 10 REASONS YOU SHOULDN'T JOIN A FRATERNITY,
FROM A FRATERNITY ALUM
• PATEL, K. (2020, AUGUST 03). CALLS TO ABOLISH GREEK LIFE ARE SWEEPING THE NATION.
NOW, THEY'RE GROWING LOUDER AT PENN
• NEW, J. (2014). SHOULD COLLEGES BAN FRATERNITIES AND SORORITIES?
HTTPS://WWW.INSIDEHIGHERED.COM/NEWS/2014/09/30/SHOULD-COLLEGES-BAN-
FRATERNITIES-AND-SORORITIES