notes from the desk Social houses worth another look

Author: Derek Schlickeisen

You made the choice when you came to Middlebury.

"Greek life isn't for me," you thought. "I don't want to go to a big school where the only way to be known is by joining some fraternity full of problem drinkers who will make me do degrading things just to let me hang out with them."

Well … maybe you didn't say it just like that. But I did. As a proud Virginia native, I had in-state status at a bunch of great big schools with a thriving Greek life like only the South can provide. And I took a pass because I didn't think it was for me.

To cut to the end of this little story, I ended up pledging one of the College's social houses, and it was among the best decisions I've made since arriving at Midd.

I don't mean to plug my or any other house, but rather to disabuse you of your misconceptions regarding social houses on campus.

Social house members are problem drinkers. This is a pretty big one I've encountered with my non-member friends ("Unaffiliated," I think, is the technical word for you). When people drink at social house parties, they are much safer and more moderate than when they drink elsewhere. That is because houses do not serve hard liquor at parties, and because when guests drink at the house, the members - all of them trained in responsible alcohol service - are watching. This is a big part of why most trips to the Health Center and Porter Hospital come from freshman dorms and not social houses.

Social house members are all jocks. True, some houses have more athletes than others. But in reality, many of us are just huge nerds in disguise. I, for one, am both an active social house member and an editor with this esteemed publication. My house also counts among its membership more than a few club leaders, veterans of J-term organic chemistry and frequent participants in inter-collegiate competitions named after dead mathematicians.

Social house members are exclusive. That is just plain not true. If the rush posters that pop up every semester aren't evidence enough, we would love nothing more than to see your bright shining face on bid night. We don't reject bids, and we don't make new members feel unwelcome. We love you. Love us back.

Social house members sell their souls during pledge. Shockingly, many pledges find that they post their best grades during pledge semester. The less time you have, it turns out, the better you tend to manage it. And fortunately for you (and us when we were pledges), Vermont state law prohibits paddling.

So the upshot of all this is that you should give the social houses another look. They aren't just for your super-outgoing friend or the guy on your freshman hall who drank beer in the shower. They're another one of the many great things Middlebury has to offer, and they're not the fraternities you strolled by with disdain on your college tours.

Derek Schlickeisen '09 is a Focus editor from Alexandria, VA.