Honors Students Respond to the Return of Recruitment at VCU
Hollyann Purvis
As sororities and fraternities plan to commence the new member intake process for the first time since early 2021, students at Virginia Commonwealth University have had to decide whether or not to participate in Greek life.
After a hazing incident at a Delta Chi event that led to the death of VCU freshman Adam Oakes in February 2021, VCU Fraternity and Sorority Life immediately halted intake and new member activities across all councils.
In a recruitment and intake update published on Sept. 22, 2021, FSL announced that new member activities were scheduled to begin again at VCU.
“On August 2, 2021, VCU announced a pause for all fraternity and sorority new member activities, including recruitment and intake. We now write to update you that, given the progress made related to personnel, policies, and procedures, new member activities will resume in the spring semester with a projected start date in February 2022,” the update said.
One of the largest points made in the update was the continuation of alcohol prohibition at all activities, events or gatherings of “recognized student organizations” with an “undergraduate student membership,” the website said. 
In spite of the optimistic update, an Instagram survey conducted by “Le Monde” on Jan. 24, 2022 showed that only one out of 23 respondents indicated that they would be participating in recruitment. Freshman Honors student Abby Lacuesta was among the 23 students who voted that rushing would not be in their plans for the spring semester.
Lacuesta recently had the chance to talk to sorority members about recruitment, and stated that it helped to “counter” some of the opinions that she’d previously held. However, she ultimately decided against joining any Greek organizations this semester, according to Lacuesta.
“After the death of Adam Oakes, my perception of Greek life became even more tainted,” Lacuesta stated in an email. “I decided definitively that rushing wasn’t something that I wanted to partake in.”
While some students’ decisions were influenced by the incident that occurred last year, others were hesitant to join due to an overall negative perception of Greek life.
“The main reason why I'm not rushing is that I don't see myself becoming a part of it [Greek life],“ freshman Honors student Nellie Edwards stated. “I find it hard for organizations to distance themselves from their problematic pasts, especially when the school they belong to maintains a loose grip and at an arm's length.”
Some Honors students are seeking community within organizations that are unrelated to Greek life. With nearly 500 other groups on campus, student involvement is not exclusive to sororities and fraternities.
“I actually do think Greek life can really enrich peoples' lives,” Edwards stated. “While it’s still not for me, I am lucky to be a part of other campus organizations that can give me a sense of community and fulfillment.”
As recruitment approaches, only time will tell if more students in the Honors College at VCU decide to take part in the rushing process.
Photo by Simon Maage on Unsplash