- Profile of Phillip Humphreys
- Plaudits
- Service Awards
- Colleague to Colleague: Caitlin Roberts reports on the rich history of Greek life at The Beach
- Spotlight on Beach Pride Center
- Unit Activities
- A CLASS Act
- Students Participate in Internships at The Washington Center
- Meet Erin Swetland
- Student Nuggets
- Alternative Spring Break 2009
- Facts About The Beach
- Target Case Study Competition Held
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Members of the university's 37 fraternities and sororities gave more than 10,000 service hours in 2008.
Greeks at the Beach
Greek letter organizations at The Beach are hard at work to incorporate the values of service, leadership and community into everything they do. As a result, they have seen their membership more than double in the last three years.
CSULB boasts the fourth largest Greek community in the California State University system, with four councils that represent 37 fraternities and sororities. The Cultural Greek Council is comprised of 12 culturally-based national and regional fraternities and sororities—four of which were founded at The Beach and have expanded to other campuses in the region. The Interfraternity Council is comprised of 10 men’s fraternities. The National Pan-Hellenic Council has eight African-American fraternities and sororities. There are seven women’s international sororities on the Panhellenic Council. Most of these fraternities and sororities are affiliated with larger national or international organizations.
“SERVICE, LEADERSHIP and COMMUNITY are the CORE VALUES of fraternities and sororities.”
In 2008, fraternity and sorority members at The Beach gave more than 10,000 hours of service through projects like Lambda Theta Alpha’s Street Heat, which collects blankets and socks to deliver to residents of Skid Row in Los Angeles. Pi Kappa Alpha “adopted” 22 West/7th Street at Studebaker, where they devoted several hours each month to clean-up work.
In addition to service hours, Long Beach Greeks raised more than $50,000 for charity in 2008. They support local and national organizations, such as Miller’s Children’s Hospital, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, the Alzheimer’s Foundation, the Susan G. Komen Foundation for Breast Cancer Research and AIDS Walk Los Angeles. In addition to their individual chapter efforts, the entire community spent 24 hours camped out on the CSULB track together to raise $12,000 for the American Cancer Society at Relay for Life. Their Greek Week competition last year brought in $10,000 for Camp Heartland, a camp for children who are HIV positive and their siblings. Efforts for the 2009 Greek Week are expected to nearly double that donation.
More than 40 percent of CSULB’s fraternity and sorority students are involved in at least one other student organization on campus. Thirty-five percent of the President’s Ambassadors are members of fraternities or sororities. Greeks are involved in ASI, currently serving in positions in the executive cabinet, senate and USU Board of Trustees. The Order of Omega Greek honor society is experiencing its highest membership in five years.
Every spring, fraternity and sorority leaders come together for the Greek Leadership Retreat, a three-day retreat that focuses on community building, leadership development and brainstorming sessions on how to continue to improve the fraternity and sorority experience at Long Beach State.
Each year, a delegation of fraternity and sorority leaders also attends the Western Region Greek Association Leadership Conference in San Francisco. This year, 20 students represented Long Beach State and were recognized for their efforts in university involvement and inter-Greek relations.
Recruitment of outstanding members makes this success possible. In 2008, increased marketing efforts led to a 50 percent increase in recruitment participation. Chapters welcomed their largest new member classes in 10 years. More than 400 Greeks participated in the annual move-in day at the residence halls, helping incoming students get settled into their new homes.
During the first week of the fall semester, a Greek Fair is held to provide an opportunity for fraternities and sororities to meet with potential new members and share information about their organizations. In 2008, the Be Greek campaign was launched. Fraternity and sorority members sported “Be Greek” t-shirts all over campus, encouraging students to embrace the opportunities that are available to them through membership in a Greek organization. As a result of active campus participation, increased marketing and an intentional effort toward expansion, the fraternity and sorority population at Long Beach State grew by nearly three percent in the last three years. Seven new organizations were added, with more than 650 new members. Long-term plans include the addition of two more fraternities to the Interfraternity Council and possibly more organizations to the Cultural Greek Council.
Greek life at Long Beach State has a rich history. Several Greek organizations have been at The Beach for more than 50 years, while others found their start here. The commitment of these groups to offer students an environment that strengthens academic performance, promotes camaraderie, develops leadership skills and engages members in philanthropic/community service activities, stands as evidence as to why these groups are on a path toward even greater success.