For many students, Greek life is an exciting part of the college experience during their first year as they figure out which fraternity or sorority fits them best and which one their friends are joining.
Fraternities and sororities have been a part of ACU’s culture since 1919 and were formerly known as “social clubs” until 2015, when the name was changed to Greek life.
According to an Optimist article from 2015, when the university made the name change, it was to “help prospective students and their families understand ACU’s unique social club system.”
While they are called fraternities and sororities, they are not nationally chartered like most of the universities across the country. Ever since the clubs have existed, they have never been nationally chartered.
Calling them fraternities and sororities can feel misleading to new students who have no knowledge of ACU culture. When people hear Greek life, they often think of the nationally chartered organizations that have some similarities with ACU’s version but also many differences.
Robin McPherson, senior coordinator for Greek life, said there was no change in the way things operated when the name was changed, and it was just semantics.
“The terminology is more recognizable to students,” she said. “So therefore, whenever they are coming here and they’re trying to determine whether they want to go to a big school. And maybe the one thing hinges on, well, I want to be part of Greek life, and they don’t know what a social club is.”
Also, the words Greek life often come with unwanted stereotypes of people thinking about partying, binge drinking and hazing.
Some of the differences between ACU and other universities include not being nationally chartered, not having chapter houses and not being able to pledge until the second semester of freshman year.
Despite these, there are some similarities between social clubs and fraternities and sororities, like the community aspect and alumni network, although it is much smaller at a private university.
The ACU website fails to mention how its clubs are different from public universities. However, the website does acknowledge the fact that they used to be called social clubs.
While the purpose of the change was to help new and prospective students better understand how ACU’s clubs work, it makes it more confusing since the term Greek life is associated with the fraternities and sororities at public universities.
Other Church of Christ–based universities like Harding University, Lipscomb University and Lubbock Christian University all call them social clubs.
This gives a better idea to students and parents of what “Greek life” looks like at these universities.
Even though there are similarities between social clubs and fraternities and sororities, it is not enough to call them that at ACU.
ACU’s social clubs are a unique part of its culture and history, and while the clubs themselves are not changing the way they operate or how they act, the change in name changes the legacy that alumni have left behind.
Since the name change was just to essentially conform to what other universities do, there was no need for ACU to change what social clubs are called.
Calling fraternities and sororities what they are — social clubs — fits the ACU culture better and gives new and prospective students an improved idea of what to expect from them when they come here.
