The mission of the Office of Fraternity Sorority Affairs at the University of Pennsylvania is to provide a holistic approach for the development of the fraternity/ sorority member, which extends beyond other University Life areas. The Greek system creates smaller communities with the larger University environment. It provides a bond of friendship which extends into a lifetime experience. The rituals which guide each organization are based on values and ethics which foster the highest ideals and behavior.
We strive for the following:
- To fulfill the mission of the University and the Division of University Life;
- To provide support and services for the University’s fraternity and sorority community, it’s individual chapters, leaders, members and alumni that allows the experience within these organizations to be a superlative complement to a rigorous academic environment;
- To encourage excellent academic performance within the classroom, and encourage expanded, practical learning opportunities and challenge mind-broadening thought outside of the classroom within our fraternity/sorority chapters;
- To encourage full engagement of our fraternity chapters with Philadelphia’s “urban laboratory” for learning through service, the education of responsible citizens, and the meaningful contributions to our community;
- To foster the diversity of our student body, encouraging diverse membership within our chapters, the collaborative experiences between chapters, and the support our chapters offer to the various cultural subcommunities within the student body;
- To articulate a true sense and meaning of “fraternalism” to the undergraduate and alumni members;
- To present an approachable and positive image and role model for students;
- To aid the undergraduates and alumni in providing and managing safe, clean and financially sound housing facilities through preventative long range planning;
- To facilitate counseling and attend to special needs of students; to refer students to other departments specializing in handling certain services when appropriate;
- To program and educate according to identified or expressed needs, including leadership development and other applied skills for the effective leadership and management of the chapters and their facilities;
- To effectively manage and resolve conflict in judicial matters; to ensure that discipline has an educational purpose as well as a punitive one; to effectively manage and effect change;
- To foster and build strong alumni/ae relations; to provide education programming and services for alumni/ae; to recognize that active alumni are the key to long-term success and continuity of any chapter;
- To foster ongoing communication and interaction between the chapters and their alumni/ae members, providing a valuable relationship and mature guidance for the chapter, but also maintaining an important association between the alumni/ae and the University community at large.
- To maintain excellent records and use them in future long-range planning and program development;
- To foster system growth through well-managed recruitment programs and membership education;
- To continue to develop and implement partnerships with national organizations, utilizing their resources and experience.
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