Members of Greek groups unlikely to seek diversity.(Brief Article)

When traditionally white sororities and fraternities make national news, it's often over racial issues.

A few examples: A University of Georgia sorority rejected a black candidate during "white rush" in 2000. Two fraternities at Auburn University AL were shut down in 2001 after hosting Halloween parties where members wore KKK robes, black face and other racially offensive costumes. Just this summer, Carla Ferguson became the first black woman accepted into a traditionally white sorority at the University of Alabama.

Since there's scant research on racial attitudes of sorority and fraternity members, Lori Patton, director of multicultural outreach, and Shaun Harper, assistant director of MBA admissions--both at Indiana University in Bloomington--decided to survey white members of the Greek system at their school. They presented preliminary results at the NASPA Conference in St. Louis in March. Patton spoke later with WIHE.

Preferring segregation

In a 1991 study, 62% of non-Greeks disagreed with having all-white and all-black housing, while only 37% of Greek students disagreed. And 87% of the non-Greeks said they liked hanging out with those of other races and cultures, compared with 60% of the Greeks.

A 1994 study of white sorority recruitment practices found no encouragement for black participation. In both black and white sororities, "comfort" was the most common reason given for remaining segregated.

A 1996 study found " ... fraternity and sorority members make significantly smaller gains than non-members do on measures of openness to diversity, which include valuing contact with people from different backgrounds and learning about people from different cultures."