Greek Life has implemented changes to Greek Week this semester, while still striving for a sense of normalcy.
The previous Greek Week last March was cancelled at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the objectives of Greek Week this year is to execute events.
The events this semester will be different from previous Greek Weeks. There will be in-person events throughout the week, but with Covid protocols.
A socially distanced showing of “Ratatouille” occurred Monday on The Quad. A trivia event Tuesday was also on The Quad. There are virtual options that will be implemented if the weather does not permit events on The Quad.
The traditional Greek Week lip sync event will still happen this year, but it will look different.
“At lip sync, we’re going to limit the crowd to about 200 people, because we don’t want to go over about 250,” Greek Week Coordinator Dalton Kaeshoefer said. “So if you add in the groups that are going to be the judges and the dancers, we’re going to do about 200 tickets for each night of the show.”
Lip sync will be held in Baldwin Auditorium Wednesday and Thursday night. The event is split into two nights this year to allow for greater social distancing.
An emphasis is being placed on a sense of normalcy this year as well.
“It’s for students to feel a sense of community, camaraderie and excitement as we look to being in a world that is just kind of weird right now,” Laura Bates, director for Union and Involvement Services said. “[We are] making the best and doing things that seem somewhat normalized.”
Trying to find events that students enjoy and figuring out if the events are realistic during a pandemic has been an obstacle, Bates said.
The theme of this year’s Greek Week is Lights, Camera, Greek Week.
The overall goal of Greek Week remains the same — to give back to the community. Greek Week has chosen Rural Advocates for Independent Living as the organization to which they will give back.
RAIL is a local organization that helps individuals living with disabilities by providing resources that aids them in living independently.
The various fraternities and sororities on campus will hold fundraisers individually to raise money for the organization as part of Greek Week. The Greek Week committee chooses a different organization to give back to each year.
“We had all of the committee members come together with ideas on an organization to focus our philanthropic efforts to,” Greek Week Director Brandon Adeshakin said. “And then through a couple of weeks we narrow that list down based on several aspects of what we want to see out of this Greek Week, what we want to focus on. Eventually, it just got narrowed down to RAIL.”
Adeshakin said interorganizational collaboration is an important aspect of Greek Week. Through Greek Week, the various fraternity and sorority chapters have been working together to raise money for this local organization. Adeshakin also added that because there have been limited social events, Greek Week is vital in fostering relationships between members of the various organizations.