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On the night of August 8th, 2018, the first twelve students moved into new on-campus Greek housing at Arizona State University. These Greek Leadership Village Assistants each moved into their fraternity and sorority chapterhouses a day ahead of ASU’s Move-In Day, so they’d be there to help the rest of the community.

For the roughly 800 students who would move in the next day, this was the start of a new era in Greek Life at ASU. But the journey actually began years earlier.

As of the 2017-18 school year, more than 5,000 ASU undergraduates are members of the Greek community, representing 9% of the undergraduate student population. There are 75 fraternities and sororities currently active on campus — more than 25 of which are culturally based organizations with a Latinx, African American, Native American, Asian American or LGBTQA focus.

Greek Life Nationwide:
Growing Impact, Troubling Concerns.

Undergraduate fraternity and sorority numbers are higher than ever, with roughly 800,000 student members across the country.2  Research has shown that Greek organization members are more likely to graduate on time, participate in student government, volunteer and start their careers right after graduation.3  In general, these students are community-minded leaders with high aspirations for their futures.

And yet, every few years, it seems there is a national debate about the future of Greek organizations, particularly when poor decisions made at a few chapterhouses have had tragic consequences. Most recently, four fraternity pledges at four different institutions lost their lives due to drinking and hazing activities. This cluster of senseless tragedies drove significant discussion among parents, administrators, Greek organizations and the public at large.4 Concern bubbled up into outrage and outright antipathy toward fraternities and sororities, despite their generally positive contributions to university and college campuses and society as a whole.

“A lot of senior leaders and college presidents (were) quietly asking the question, ‘Can this continue?’” said Kevin Kruger, president of NASPA, a national association of student affairs professionals.5

In November of 2017 alone, seven large universities suspended all Greek activities on their campuses. Some smaller schools eliminated Greek life entirely.6  Arizona State University, however, has chosen a completely different path.

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ASU Transforms The Greek Community By Embracing It

Comprising the largest membership-based, multi-faceted community at ASU, Greek organizations have played an important role in university life for more than 85 years. More recently, while other schools distanced themselves from the Greek community, ASU administrators sought to strengthen the university’s ties with student members and help deepen students’ commitment to leadership and service.

In 2011, a third-party Coalition Report commissioned by the university evaluated the ASU Greek Community in terms of scholarship development, advancement in membership and campus interaction factors. The Report emphasized the fact that there were no shared spaces for Greek organizations on campus. At the time, sororities in the National Panhellenic Council had some apartment-style housing on campus; however, these facilities lacked common areas and community-building space. Fraternity housing on campus had been dwindling and deteriorating since the early 2000s, with the last fraternity departing Alpha Drive in 2012. ASU leadership recognized that bringing the Greek community on campus in shared housing could be utterly transformative, if implemented properly. Living together on campus would help promote organizational stability and mutual accountability, while fostering a more transparent, connected relationship with the university. But none of it would work without the buy-in and deep involvement of fraternity and sorority members. ASU Senior Vice President Dr. James Rund tasked two students — Wayne Unger, Pi Kappa Phi president, and Corinne Roels, Panhellenic president — with exploring the options.

“Dr. Rund asked us to find out what on-campus Greek housing might look like for the 21st century. It was a big ask, but he really wanted this to be student-driven,” Unger recalled. “Corinne and I were both graduating in May of 2013, so we knew we wouldn’t see the eventual outcome. For us, it was about leaving a legacy.”

In a sweeping effort, Roels and Unger researched the history of Greek housing initiatives at ASU and surveyed other Greek leaders (both active and alumni) for their thoughts on the issues. There was general consensus among the Greek community that the lack of physical proximity to each other contributed greatly to a lack of unity and cohesiveness among their organizations. Roels and Unger began developing an in-depth exploration of two possibilities — converting an existing residential community into Greek housing, or designing and building an entirely new Greek Village.


“A lot of schools are going in the opposite direction, making decisions that aren’t exactly proactive. Arizona State University took the opportunity to listen to the students and grow our commitment to the Greek community and our student community. ASU really came to the table and made a significant investment in the Greek community in terms of land, staff and resources to make sure this project succeeds.” 
— Gary Ballinger, ASU Director of Fraternity & Sorority Life
 

 
The duo presented their findings to Dr. Rund on January 25, 2013. Roels’ and Unger’s Greek Village Proposal outlined both an interim solution and an ideal newly constructed community. The report included careful consideration for both residential accommodations as well as community meeting and recreational spaces, storage areas, staffing and even the importance of identity markers for each Greek organization and the community as a whole. The long-term vision for a Greek Village was carefully outlined, but neither Unger nor Roels expected much to happen after that.

Much to the surprise of Roels and Unger, ASU quickly fine-tuned and then implemented an interim plan for converting an existing facility into short-term Greek housing — with Corinne Roels hired on as a student worker to help oversee the plan. Even more exciting was the fact that ASU also elected to move forward with the more ambitious (and expensive) long-term plan for a newly constructed Greek Village.

“We didn’t think it would be built — we thought the proposal was too bold,” Roels said. “It was a 26-page wish list from everybody in the Greek community about what would make all of us really feel a part of ASU. We finished our presentation and Dr. Rund just said, ‘Great. Okay.’”

“Our plan was innovative and ambitious,” Unger said. “While there was a chance that ASU would reject our long-term vision for a Greek community, the university embraced it.”

For Rund, there was never any question.

“We felt really good about their idea,” he recalled. “They had thought about their issues and they had developed realistic solutions. Really, the students are often better suited to tell us what they need… and we go from there.”


In addition to moving forward with on-campus Greek housing, ASU leadership began working closely with fraternity and sorority leaders to reframe the mission, vision and core values of Greek life in Tempe. The “New American Fraternity & Sorority
Community  7” model launched at the start of the 2013-14 academic year, with the goal of creating the premier fraternity and sorority experience in the country. The ASU Greek community chose to center around four high aspirations: Scholarship, Leadership, Philanthropy and Service.

 

Building a Team and Developing a Plan

After the university identified a 4.4-acre site along the eastern edge of campus for the future Greek Leadership Village, student Greek leaders and ASU Fraternity & Sorority Life staff formed a housing committee and began early planning. Several of the students on the committee visited newer on-campus Greek housing at other universities to gather ideas about what might or might not work at ASU.

Working together, the committee outlined four project goals:
  • Create a true village — Provide authentic interaction among residents and chapters through engaging outdoor recreation and social gathering spaces. This should include opportunities for identity, messaging, and flexible meeting and support venues.
  • Support rich and vibrant student life — Create living spaces that engage students by promoting a collaborative spirit, scholarship, leadership and service.
  • Engage the all-Greek community — Provide a home for all of the Greek organizations where all chapters share in the collective benefits of the village.
  • Promote the “New American Fraternity & Sorority Community,” centered on its four aspirations
“This is a subset of Greek organizations who want their students to be engaged in a way where they’re focused on leadership development,” said Michael Crow, ASU president. “The most important thing about this project from our perspective is that we didn’t come up with an edict, we didn’t come up with an answer. We said to the students, ‘Well, what will you design?’ And we think what they came up with is a great design.”

The university hired a consulting architecture firm to develop a conceptual package to document the students’ vision, including the idea of a village with 26 connected houses and a large Community Center that would serve as a hub for all Greek life at ASU. After preliminary concepts were presented in February of 2016, ASU engaged American Campus Communities (ACC) as a trusted partner to provide needed expertise in student housing development, financing and management. ACC reviewed initial plans and made key customizations, including modifications to promote inclusivity, equity and safety. Other adjustments were made to provide appropriate access for charter buses and up to 4,000 people, the potential headcount when all resident and chapter members might be present in the Village. As planning progressed, the initial design was modified to allow for a wider range of house floorplans, which enabled the inclusion of an additional chapter house — bringing the total to 27.

Bumps In the Road

Not everyone in the Greek student and alumni community was on board. While construction was underway in spring of 2017, naysayers organized against the project and participated in media interviews8 voicing their concerns about the community. One student served on the Greek housing committee for months before resigning and starting a petition on Change.org,9  citing concerns with cost and occupancy requirements, lack of interest among Greek organizations, and insufficient community parking and amenities, among other issues. Ultimately, however, the petition had only 196 supporters within a Greek community of nearly 5,000 students. A second Change.org petitioner10 claimed to have confirmation from “100 percent of ASU fraternity chapters that they would refuse to live in the complex on all grounds.”

That petition only garnered 81 supporters.

Inviting The Neighbors

All Greek-letter organizations were eligible to apply for a chapterhouse lease in the Greek Leadership Village. The selection criteria were developed by the facilities committee and included:
  • Membership numbers and how the organization would ensure full occupancy. (Generally, acceptance required at least 38 members — double the number of beds in the smallest chapterhouse. However, some exceptions would be possible.)
  • A description of how the organization would contribute to the Village community through its programming and other efforts.
  • Demonstration of good standing with the university and the relevant Greek governing council, as well as support from their national organization and alumni advisory board.  
  • A commitment to upholding the community standards in the Village.
Interest in the Greek Leadership Village was high. In fact, there were more applications received than chapterhouses available. Through the painstaking review process, the committee interviewed the Chapter President, a Chapter Alumnus Advisor and national representatives from each fraternity or sorority seeking a lease. In May of 2017, selected organizations received an invitation to join the Greek Leadership Village, with their chapterhouse assignment.


“Before, all of the fraternities and sororities were more isolated. Now you can see what the other organizations are doing for their members or their philanthropy, and it’s really inspiring. And having a presence on campus helps forge a strong connection between Greek Life and the entire university.”
— Cyrus Sullivan, Senior, Phi Kappa Theta

 

From Dreams To Reality

Construction was completed on the Greek Leadership Village in the summer of 2018. The gated complex is made up of 27 individual chapterhouses in contiguous three- and four-story townhomes. A 28th townhome space offers staff apartments and hotel space for visiting Greek national representatives, as well as maintenance space. In total, the GLV comprises 951 beds in predominantly traditional double-occupancy units. The complex also includes a 33,000-square-foot Community Center.
Two fully landscaped courtyards feature shaded barbecue areas and outdoor fire pits as well as various outdoor seating. The courtyards are available to all Greek organizations for planned events or casual studying and socializing, whether they live in the facility or not. The Village also features abundant bicycle storage within the fenced perimeter.

“From a design perspective, the Greek Leadership Village is more modern in style than the traditional sorority houses we’re used to, but it’s exactly right for this campus,” said Kemberley Reyes, an interior designer with Alpha Gamma Delta sorority. “The village is well planned and intentional in its design, and it’s a great space for bringing people together.

“They did their thorough research and placed the outdoor spaces in the correct locations for students to enjoy the nice weather in Tempe. I think they really did listen to all of the problems with the former sorority housing situation and corrected them with this
new village.”

Located on one corner of the property, the Greek Leadership Village Community Center offers meeting, office and event space for all 75 Greek organizations at ASU. Owned and operated by the university, the Community Center features 2,000 square feet of street-level retail, including a small convenience market. There are offices for fraternity and sorority life staff and all five Greek governing councils, as well as quiet study spaces and meeting rooms that can be used by any Greek organization. Finally, there is a 300-person partitionable ballroom that can be reserved for Greek events.


Peace of Mind
The Greek Ledership Village features a secure eight-foot perimeter fence with full CCTV coverage and an addressable fire system. Student access is enabled by electronic key cards at the property perimeter, at each house and within the emergency-exit stairwells between every two houses. Each student can only access the chapterhouse he or she lives in, and the floor-level access doors between houses cannot be opened at the same time (except for emergency circumstances).

 


Each chapterhouse is identified by Greek letter signage on the house entry and from the street, and every chapter has its own flagpole. A welcoming ground-floor patio greets visitors, with a more private covered patio and sun deck above. There are five different chapterhouse floorplans, providing accommodations for as few as 19 and as many as 41 residents. This flexibility was designed into the Village plans to enable both small and large Greek organizations the opportunity to lease a chapterhouse. All floorplans feature chapter meeting and gathering spaces on the ground floor, along with a house kitchen and a private single bedroom for a chapter officer or house manager. Upper floors are accessed via an interior private stairwell. There are also elevators between every two chapterhouses. Every house has card-controlled access at each entry point.

Each residential floor features double-occupancy furnished bedrooms and a community bathroom designed for personal privacy and efficiency. Washers and dryers are also included on each floor.


“The perspective and close involvement of the students is a huge part of the GLV’s success.”
— Cody Bollum, Sophomore, Acacia

 


Making Each House A Home

Recognizing the importance of tailoring each house to its residents as much as possible, ACC developed an innovative approach that allowed significant customization. For each resident chapter, ACC conducted an initial introductory phone call, an online meeting to explore the customization catalog and then face-to-face meetings with the ACC chapter outreach team. The process required extensive coordination to achieve consensus among three different constituencies in each organization — active student members, the local graduate chapter or house advisory group, and the national body.

Customization options included flooring, paint colors, finishes and fixtures, appliances and furniture. ACC planned for a range of interest in making these decisions — some organizations would likely want limited, packaged choices, while others would want to select every element directly. Those groups that wanted simpler options could choose one of the four basic interior design palettes and be done. Others could mix-and-match from among the finish boards. ACC guided each group through their choices, and also offered optional furniture planning services, interior planning consulting and audio/visual solutions.

Additionally, each chapter had the option of customizing entryway flooring and/or an accent wall with its crest, Greek letters or seal. ACC’s plans were even flexible enough to allow for wish list items, such as converting a meeting room to an exercise space or adding a ceiling projector.

“Customization is how we get to express ourselves as a chapter,” explained Sam Teplitz, a Theta Xi junior. “Our house features the Theta Xi colors, azure blue and silver, and our crest is on the wall. It’s the first thing you see when you walk in the door, and it’s something we take a lot of pride in. It reflects our values and the impact we want to make on the community here.”

Financing
ASU and ACC have a long track record of successful student housing projects together. As with many other projects, the Greek Leadership Village is financed through a Public-Private Partnership model with a long-term ground lease under the American Campus Equity (ACE®) program. Unique to this agreement, ACC handles all management and maintenance functions at the Greek Leadership Village, while ASU performs all residence life programming through its wholly owned Community Center.



This investment in time and engagement was very important to the success of the Greek Leadership Village. Each organization was encouraged to find ways to challenge the design team in making the chapterhouse be uniquely theirs, both for recruitment differentiation as well as community-building.
“Being able to customize our house was really important because now it feels like a home rather than just another dorm on campus,” said Amber Bruemmer, a Chi Omega senior.

ACC was committed to repeated and thorough outreach throughout the design process, culminating in a walk-through after installations so that each chapter could see that everything worked out as they’d hoped.

“Today, you can go into any chapterhouse and none of them look the same,” said Gary Ballinger, ASU fraternity and sorority life director. “The furniture, painting, kitchen, floors, ceiling, and lighting are all different in each facility. That’s what helped each one feel more like a traditional fraternity or sorority house, which exceeded the expectations of our students.”
 

Authentic Governance Comes From Within

While construction and landscaping were underway, students continued to be closely engaged with the Greek Leadership Village. Acacia sophomore Cody Bollum joined the housing committee in the last six months, when students were working closely with ASU Fraternity & Sorority Life Staff to shape community governance. Bollum remembers working on the housing manual: “The whole goal was to enable the self-governance that fraternities and sororities want while still following University policies.”
GLV residents and all Greek organizations that meet or hold events in the Village must follow these guidelines; however, students view it as a partnership rather than a series of edicts from the university.

“GLV residents understand the expectations about how they should be conducting themselves,” said Lambda Chi Alpha sophomore Chon Dareing. “Everyone understands that this is an ASU living facility and should be treated as such.”

At the same time, the Greek Leadership Village is far more than the usual dormitory. “I’ve lived on campus all four years, and the GLV is very distinct from other on-campus housing,” says Cyrus Sullivan, Phi Kappa Theta senior, “It’s not the typical bureaucratic housing setup — it’s a lot more communal and authentic.” Bollum adds context, “When the GLV idea first came up, a lot of students were pretty skeptical. They thought the university would have a really heavy hand on how Greeks do things. But when the doors opened, everything changed. Now that people have seen how the GLV community works, everybody wants to live here.”


“On move-in day, we had a great system and a lot of help from the professional staff. Every resident knew what was going on and where to be. Ultimately, everything got set up perfectly with minimal effort on the residents’ parts. What could have been a headache was very easy — we had lots of help.”
— Chon Dareing, Sophomore, Lambda Chi Alpha

 


A Successful New Model For The Future Of University Greek Communities

Move-In Day 2018 was a huge success, thanks to a detailed plan developed by ACC, along with deep logistical coordination among ASU Housing and Fraternity & Sorority Life Staff, ACC and each of the 27 resident Greek organizations. Each student simply pulled up and unloaded at his or her chapterhouse and, by the time the student parked and came back, all belongings were waiting upstairs in the correct room.


“The GLV allows for students to live, study and socialize but the whole point is that it’s true to ASU’s ideals of putting students first and allowing us to be deeply involved in our student experience. Back when I was an undergraduate, there was a sense in the community that ASU didn’t support Greek life. The whole Greek Leadership Village initiative turned that idea on its head. At the ribbon-cutting, the mayor and the Arizona governor were there, and all of the ASU leadership — it was clear that they were invested from the beginning and they’re still invested now.”
— Corinne Roels, 2012 Panhellenic President and 2013 ASU graduate
 


Today, the Greek Leadership Village at Arizona State University is a thriving community and the central hub for Greek Life at ASU. The initiative has been hailed as a success by student residents, Greek alumni and national representatives, ACC partners and ASU leadership. The university’s unique approach of embracing the Greek community has fostered a rededication to fraternity and sorority ideals of service and mutual support and serves as a model for Greek Life at other higher education institutions across the country.
 

“We’re already seeing the Greek Leadership Village’s positive impact on our campus and our student body. Our investment in the Greek student community is fostering greater campus involvement from fraternity and sororities, and helping ensure Greek life at ASU reflects a more inclusive and diverse student body. This is a model for the future of Greek Life that’s truly working.”
— Jennifer Hightower, ASU’s Vice President of Student Services

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1 TASU Fraternity & Sorority Life
2 Thom Patterson, What To Know Before Pledging A Fraternity Or Sorority; CNN.com; Aug 22, 2018
3 P. Wesley Routon, et al, The impact of Greek organization membership on collegiate outcomes: Evidence from a National Survey; Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, Vol.49; Apr 2014
4 Thom Patterson, What To Know Before Pledging A Fraternity Or Sorority; CNN.com; Aug 22, 2018
5 Lauren Camera, Is Greek Life Worth Saving?, US News & World Report; Dec 4, 2017
6 Lauren Camera, Is Greek Life Worth Saving?, US News & World Report; Dec 4, 2017
7 ASU Fraternity & Sorority Life
8 Students petition Arizona State University’s new Greek housing project, ABC15 Arizona; April 25, 2017
9 Greeks United, NOT Divided....Arizona State University Greeks say NO to proposed “Village”, Change.org
10 ASU “Greek Village” is a Ridiculous Sham, Let’s Show ASU We Won’t Live There, Change.org