Greek Movers & Shakers is a program that allows Greek students to help first year students move into their dorm rooms when they arrive on campus in August. In 2008, there were about 225 Greeks that came out on move-in day to help. Greeks came back a day early to train with orientation leaders, provide assistance to first year families, and get freshmen acclimated to Cornell and Greek life. Parents were thrilled with the helpful nature of the Greek students, and they were left with an improved perception of the Greek community at Cornell. The program is getting stronger every year, and with the help of campus life it has been a great success.
This program seeks to educate new members about relevant topics through creative and interactive programming. Programs include a welcome reception and educational workshops around hazing and alcohol awareness.
Each year at the Annual Conference, NGLA recognizes outstanding Panhellenic, Interfraternity, National Pan-Hellenic Council, Latino/a councils in the region with the presentation of awards in Academic Achievement, Community Service & Philanthropy, Council Management, Continuous Open Bidding, Leadership & Educational, Membership Recruitment, Multicultural Initiatives, Public Relations, and Risk Management & Reduction.
This annual reception is an opportunity for Cornell's Greek community to recognize outstanding faculty members who continue to make a difference in the lives of their students and to show appreciation for all their efforts. Faculty members were recognized from each of the seven undergraduate colleges and schools.
In addition, students are recognized as Greek Scholars. Each student exemplified academic excellence, outstanding leadership and university and community involvement throughout the entire year.
This annual, day-long conference for chapter officers covers leadership skills such as facility management, financial management, community service, recruitment, legal issues, and new member education.
This overnight retreat is an opportunity for one member from each of our organizations to attend an off campus retreat. The objective is to meet other leaders from the community, establish opportunities to positively contribute to the future of the Greek community and learn more about ourselves as leaders.
This is the annual community service day held in the spring semester. The event is aligned with Greek Mythology; Demeter was the Goddess of the Harvest. The myth says that Demeter had the powers to control the seasons. Demeter's powers were so powerful that when her daughter, Persephone, was abducted by Hades, the Lord of the Underworld, she made all life on earth come to a standstill and sent Hermes to retrieve her. Before being released, Persephone was tricked into eating pomegranates to force her to return to the underworld for six months out of the year. When Persephone was reunited with her mother Demeter, all vegetation on earth flourished. The Day of Demeter program happens every spring for the Cornell Greek Community as we celebrate the coming of spring by giving back to our communities and fertilizing the living earth.
The purpose of Greek Week is to unite the Cornell Greek Community through various fun and challenging events. Chapters will participate in the fun activities planned throughout the week. Greek Week also serves as a marketing tool for each organization and an opportunity for the chapters to promote its fraternal spirit.
The Multicultural Greek Letter Council hosts this annual step competition each spring semester to showcase the talents of its member organizations as well as to raise funds for the MGLC Book Scholarship.
A meeting facilitated by the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs that brings together all chapter presidents to discuss new and current policies as well as encourage dialogue between the various representatives of the Greek community at Cornell. The retreat largely serves as a training session for presidents and revisits many of the points made in the End-of-the-Year Evaluations. Because many chapters face similar issues, the retreat is a venue where common problems can be addressed.
Another important aspect of the retreat is the preparation that it provides for the two major documents that are expected from each chapter, namely, the End-of-the-Year Report and the Annual Goals Report.
Every Sunday throughout the academic year, chapters volunteer their membership to cleanup the Collegetown area. This is a new initiative for Fall 2008 after members saw a need to live their values and take time out of their week to serve the local community. Chapter members meet outside of Collegetown Bagels and work to clean up the streets of Collegetown with trash bags, gloves, brooms and dustpans.
Service is a basic tenet of fraternities and sororities. A new tradition for the Greek community is to provide a safe and fun Halloween experience for children of all ages living in the Ithaca area. The creation of a Trick-or-Treat Trail links fraternity and sorority houses, university program houses, and a university community center together to provide one big route for parents to take their children trick-or-treating. The aim of the Trick-or-Treat Trail is to bridge relations with the local community while simultaneously serving an un-met need. The trail also ends at the campus community center where those in costume could play games, eat candy, and enjoy kid-friendly Halloween films.
