Zaurious Belton
palmettoreport@gmail.com

(Rock Hill, S.C.) – Winthrop University has celebrated, over the past school year, 50 years of Greek life on campus, which has provided students with opportunities to get involved and help serve the community.

The Winthrop Board of Trustees first voted to allow Greek organizations on campus in January 1976 and that fall students granted charters to the first three sororities on campus.

Since then, nearly 6,000 Winthrop alumni have graduated as a member of a Greek organization and the school says there are currently more than 200 students involved with one of the 15 active fraternities or sororities on campus.

“Fraternity and sorority life offers an opportunity for students to develop their leadership skills while learning a greater appreciation for a true fraternal experience,” according to the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life website.

Throughout the year, Winthrop has celebrated the anniversary with a number of events, including an alumni drop-in, trivia night and a campus service project.

Last month, the school hosted a Greek Week, which was highlighted by a carnival on the Campus Green. The event, April 14, featured a variety of food, music and games.

“It’s really, exciting to see, honestly. Plus, there’s a lot of people here and a lot of them I know. So, it’s going to be really fun talking to them and just getting to hang out,” said Danny Nguyen, a Winthrop finance major, who attended the carnival.

One popular feature at the carnival was a mechanical bull ride.

“I thought the bull was a fun experience, to see a task that you don’t see very often,” said Winthrop student Noah Fraziar. “I thought it was pretty fun and unexpected.”

Freshman Jamari Ford, a photography major, said he enjoyed the spinning bull and other rides.

“The bull ride is worth it,” he said. “It’s 10 out of 10…this is my first year. It’s like I’ve never been part of this. I didn’t even know Greek Week was a thing until I got here.”

The carnival also featured a dunking booth that was intended to help raise money for the Greek chapters.

“Dunking people is very satisfying,” said Adrian Chandler, an education major, who dumped water on the heads of a few of his friends.

“It just brings the community together, like it brings people joy. You get a chance to interact with people on this sunny beautiful day and water will always keep somebody hydrated. So, I highly suggest you dunk somebody whenever you have the opportunity and it was a small cost, like $5 towards an organization. So, it was very good experience,” Chandler said.

A number of the Greek organizations also performed choreographed dances at the event.

“I could tell that people put their time and thought into it. So, I really like it. It gives us a sense of community and being united and gives us a reason to socialize in the music,” said Marques Hodgson, a computer science major.

Students who want to join a fraternity or sorority must remain academically eligible, by being actively enrolled, completing at least 12 credit hours and maintaining a 2.5 GPA.

However, according to Winthrop, many chapters have higher academic requirements for membership.

* Joseph Kasko contributed to this report.

Please consider following the Palmetto Report on Facebook or X (formerly Twitter) and you can find and subscribe to our digital content on YouTube and Spotify.