6 organizations OK’d to conduct intake recruitment

Greek Assembly: Risk Management & Anti-Hazing Symposium flyer. Photo courtesy: iStrike.

The time has come for membership intake and rush processes for organizations at Florida A&M University. But before they were able to get started, students had to attend a meeting that laid out all the do’s and don’ts of intake.

The Greek Assembly: Risk Management & Anti-Hazing Symposium took place last week via Zoom and there were more than 500 people in attendance.

The three parts that the symposium conducted were catered to three groups: one to prepare students who are interested in taking part in a membership process for what is to come, another for prospective members and members of Greek life, and lastly for the Greek members who had to attend in order to conduct intake this semester.

The meetings covered everything from the effects of hazing to the benefits of becoming a member of the National Pan-Hellenic Council.

According to StopHazing, 55% of college students involved in clubs, teams, and organizations experienced hazing.

Bryan Smith, who was hired in 2013 as an anti-hazing administrator at FAMU, shared a few words.

“Hazing is also about protecting power and control,” Smith said. “There is a power imbalance for those who are already within an organization.”

Along with a session devoted to hazing prevention, the symposium covered the university’s requirements for becoming a member of a Greek organization.

Students are required to have earned at least 30 credit hours, have a minimum 2.5 grade point average, attend a Greek assembly session, and be enrolled as a full-time student among other things.

The facilitators for the meeting also made it a point that although a student meets all of those requirements, there might be extra organizational requirements that have to be met by a student’s desired organization.

It was mentioned that, Greek letter organizations are permitted to require higher academic averages than those set by the university.

The facilitators also spoke about the benefits of joining a Greek organization. Some of those benefits include: networking, higher chance of graduating college, and a lifetime of support from other members in the organization.

The organizations approved to conduct intake recruitment for the fall semester are Omega Psi Phi fraternity, Progressive Black Men, Sigma Lambda Gamma National Sorority, National Society of Pershing Rifles, Sigma Alpha Iota International Music fraternity, and Alpha Kappa Psi Professional Business Fraternity.

For more information on Greek life at FAMU, visit iStrike.