Greeks set up shop on the Walk

Forget English -- students were only speaking Greek on Locust Walk yesterday. Representatives from 43 different fraternities and sororities -- hailing from the InterFraternity Council, the Panhellenic Council and the BiCultural InterGreek Council -- gathered to show off their chapters and allow the University community to "Meet The Greeks." The event, which kicked off this year's Greek Week, was aimed at "getting some exposure to the Greek system [and] getting people interested in the system," according to IFC President and Phi Sigma Kappa brother Hayden Horowitz, a College senior. For the IFC, "Meet the Greeks" was an especially important event. Fraternity rush begins October 23, so the IFC is already registering potential rushees. But for the Big-C and Panhel, who do not hold rush until the spring, the main goal was to spread the word about Greek life in general. "Today we're trying to introduce people to the chapters we have at Penn," said Panhel Greek Week Chairperson and Alpha Phi sister Joanne Pasternack, a College junior. "For sororities, it's just to let people know we're here, and get them excited for [rush in] January." One noticeable feature of the event -- which is perhaps a departure from past events -- was the unity between the three Greek organizations. "Every chapter has shown up," said IFC Greek Week Chairperson and Alpha Epsilon Pi brother Scott Litman. "We've really worked hard to make sure that everybody gets involved in every event." The unity was evident across campus, as all Greeks were requested to wear their respective letters or the 1994 Greek Week T-shirt. Wharton junior and Alpha Kappa Alpha sister Trista Bridges said she thinks the unity is a good idea. "We're trying to connect a lot more -- we need to pull on each other's resources," she said. "Sometimes our focuses are different, but we can work together to do a lot of things." Reaction to the event was positive. Students said they liked seeing all of the University's fraternities and sororities at once in a social situation. "Everything's been really great," said College senior and Sigma Delta Tau sister Kimberly Saul. "People have been showing a lot of interest." Upcoming Greek Week events include Friday's "Rec Night," in which the Greeks will invade Gimbel Gym for a night of music and recreational activities; the annual Greek Olympics, which will pit Greeks against each other in a variety of activities next Thursday; and the Big-C Freshman Step Show, which will take place next Friday in Irvine Auditorium. All proceeds from Greek Week will be donated to charity, Litman said.

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