While this year saw a boom in Greek life participation, Barnard’s Student Government Association is still struggling to decide whether or not to recognize sororities officially, an issue that has financial implications for participating Barnard students.
In the past few years, participation in Greek life on campus has increased, culminating in a 30 percent rise in sorority participation this year. This year, 254 women entered the recruitment process, compared to last year’s 195. Ultimately, 170 women joined sororities, compared to the previous year’s 110.
Some believe it’s the nature of student life on an urban campus that has contributed to the increase in interest in Greek life. Delta Gamma President Leila Mabourakh, BC ’11, said, “The Greek community is so involved and so close-knit, and I think it is becoming more and more attractive to new students when they come here.”
Currently, SGA does not officially recognize the InterGreek Council, the Greek life governing board, which includes three branches. A stipulation in the SGA constitution states that groups that choose members on a “discriminatory basis” can’t receive recognition.
In April, the IGC went to SGA to push for official recognition, which would afford them a variety of extra privileges, including financial help and access to more spaces for events.
Barnard students make up a considerable portion of Greek life, but the push was overturned in an SGA vote in April, leaving the IGC unrecognized by SGA. The Panhellenic Council, a branch of the IGC, currently has stage-one recognition at Barnard, which means that it has some extra privileges, including space to flier and the option to hire an adviser, reserve space, or hang banners.
Without stage-two recognition, though, the IGC cannot receive funding allocations for the academic year from SGA, as most Barnard groups do. It can, however, apply for co-sponsorship, which any group can do regardless of recognition status.
Following SGA’s decision not to recognize sororities, the IGC addressed a formal statement to the presidents of the Columbia College Student Council, the General Studies Student Council, the Engineering Student Council, and SGA, which said that without recognition, the IGC would have to consider other measures for coping with the growth in Greek life and particularly Barnard participation. Such measures could include a cap on the number of Barnard students allowed to participate in sororities.
The statement also noted that without full recognition, the IGC “will be forced to take additional steps which may include the total restriction of Barnard students from involvement in Greek Life.”
Though the IGC does lack official recognition from SGA, SGA has contributed a fixed sum of money as a gift to the governing board for the past two years. According to SGA Vice President of Finance Sharmin Ahmed, BC ’10, “We just give a flat-out amount of $1,000 because that’s the amount comparable to what we should give. … We didn’t want to contribute in ratio, because that would be making the statement that we recognize Greek life, and we didn’t think that that is a statement we could make.”
The problem lies in the fact that the donation SGA gives isn’t accompanied by recognition, which would calculate the amount owed by considering factors such as sorority growth and participation. “Right now, the $1,000 is an arbitrary number. … If they’re recognized, it would be grounded by factors taken into consideration,” CCSC President Sue Yang, CC ’10, said.
SGA has continued to explore the issue—it recently organized a number of focus groups, which consulted a range of Barnard students about sorority recognition—but how the council will ultimately fall on recognition is still up in the air.
Outgoing SGA President Katie Palillo, BC ’10, said that although the issue is a complex one, SGA does want to support Barnard students. “I think that SGA very clearly acknowledges that there’s a demonstrated interest in our campus and in being able to have students sustain that interest—and communities that Barnard students have become leaders in,” she said.
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