As members of Greek organizations, we are expected to trust, accept, and support our fellow brothers and sisters. Such high expectations can be fulfilled only if there is a strong bond between each member of a house. Every house has its own way of building that bond; one controversial way to do so is through hazing.

We hear of the occurrenceof hazingthroughout the country, but does it exist on this campus? To clear up misconceptions of whether hazing is taking place at Carnegie Mellon, we have asked brothers from two on-campus fraternities to write about their pledging process and their feelings on hazing. Among possible pledging models to choose from, the two perspectives in this article come from opposite sides of the spectrum; one involves a non-pledging model, in which new members are made into brothers at their first meeting, and the other involves a year-long pledge process, where new members do not become brothers until a year has passed.  Through these perspectives, we can obtain an idea of how fraternities of this campus operate in terms of creating brothers, as well as their sentiments towards hazing.  

Erin Weber
Greek Council President
Delta Gamma

In a crowded meeting room, 16 new faces mix with a familiar 44. These new men are the latest addition to our chapter; they arethe future of Sigma Phi Epsilon. Brothers only a few days after accepting their invitations, these men sit among the chapter as full brothers andare already taking on leadership positions and voting on issues that affect the entire chapter.

The goals of new member programs are the same among all Greek organizations: to learn about the chapter, to meet its members, and to bond as an incoming class. Our non-pledging model takes the title and hierarchy away from the pledging system, emphasizing immediate involvement within the chapter as well as mutual respect and equality among brothers old and new.

Through weekly meetings, the new brothers learn about SigEp's history and chapter structure. By participating in community service with their new brothers and the chapter as a whole, they build a strong foundation of brotherhood while experiencing our values first hand. With that said, our system doesn't seem all that different from a pledging model, because the non-pledging system is about building commitment to the fraternity, while ensuring that member development will continue throughout a brother's college career. In the end, we hope that the opportunities afforded to our brothers through continuous member development will help make their college experience all the more memorable and worthwhile.  

Christian J. Wolfe
Vice President Member Development
Sigma Phi Epsilon

Phi Kappa Theta holds strong to integrity and our status as gentlemen above all else. Our pledge process aims to instill these values on our newest members. We feel that our uncommonly long (two semesters) pledge period is necessary to mold young men into what the ideals of our fraternity represents.

Some of the most important facets of our pledge process are what we call the "four P's:" the Pledge Party, the Pledge Project, the Pledge Philanthropy, and the Pledge Prank. These titles may seem self-explanatory, but more important than the tasks themselvesis why we ask pledges to complete them. The four P's are designed to build unity amongst the pledge class and to give them an idea of what is expected of brothers, once they have been initiated. Each P requires that the pledges work together to accomplish a common goal. These tasks correlate to daily life as a brother at Phi Kappa Theta.

Another major part of our pledge process is the expectation we place upon pledges to contribute to booth, buggy, and Greek Sing. Anyone who has been at Carnegie Mellon for carnival knows how much work goes into these events. Carnival is an opportunity for the brotherhood to come together and showcase our talent as a whole. While the four P's build unity amongst the pledge class, participation by the pledges in the events surrounding carnival helps to bring the class closer to the brotherhood, and proves to be a major bonding experience. <>We stand by our mission statement that anything asked of a pledge will never be unbecoming of a gentleman. Stereotypical 'frat hazing' can only reflect poorly upon a house. A brother is not made through ridiculous or degrading punishment, but through hard work and determination. We feel that because of this we have one of the best pledge processes on the quad, and one that is reflected in the unity of our house. 

Sean T. Baker
Fall '04 Pledge Master
Phi Kappa Theta

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