On Thursday, Sept. 16, Greek Senate's annual Meet the Greeks happened virtually via Cougar Link for the first time ever, as restrictions on gatherings remain in effect due to the current health crisis. Meet the Greeks began at 7:30 p.m. and concluded at 9:30 p.m.
Meet the Greeks 2020 was a different experience in more ways than one. It usually takes place in Harwood Arena, where attendees are treated to food and refreshments, opportunities to meet the organizations, watching entertaining performances and other activities.
This year, instead of stations on the courts of Harwood's gym, organizations had Zoom and Google Meet rooms set up to welcome all members, new and old.
Those who showed interest were given presentations of their desired organizations, with open discussions to follow. Below is a list of all the Greek organizations that participated:
Sororities:
- Chi Upsilon Sigma
- Delta Phi Epsilon
- Lambda Tau Omega
- Mu Sigma Upsilon
- Nu Theta Chi
- Omega Phi Chi
- Omega Sigma Psi
- Sigma Beta Chi
- Sigma Gamma Rho
- Theta Phi Alpha
- Zeta Phi Beta
Fraternities:
- Alpha Phi Alpha
- Iota Phi Theta
- Lambda Sigma Upsilon
- Lambda Theta Phi
- Lambda Upsilon Lambda
- Nu Delta Pi
- Nu Sigma Phi
- Omega Psi Phi
- Phi Beta Sigma
- Sigma Beta Tau
- Tau Kappa Epsilon
Co-ed organization:
- Lambda Delta Chi
Every organization taking part in Meet the Greeks were determined to make the most of the circumstances.
"Greek Life is one of the most resilient groups that I have ever been part of," said Lydia Schustermann, president of Nu Theta Chi. "The last two semesters have been a wicked curveball thrown our way, but all of us have tackled every obstacle thus far."
Many participating groups were tenacious in their approach of achieving the same result. Francois Zebaze, a member of Alpha Phi Alpha, said that stepping helped him find his passion.
Performing with his organization at Meet the Greeks is what made the event such an exuberant experience for him.
"People want to know what you're doing and how it puts a smile on your face," Zebase remarked. "It is a challenge to not be able to have the performance aspect of Meet the Greeks. Really, we must adjust and make the most of what our organization already has."
In the face of the new norms, each organization eagerly represented their respective communities.
"The greatest thing about our organization is the support from alumni and the undergrads coming together to make this the best experience we can," said Jesmiry Martinez, president of Chi Upsilon Sigma.
Martinez enjoyed preparing for Meet the Greeks.
"Being able to prepare for everything virtual, along with the creative visuals for potential new members, has been exciting to create," she said. "It represents our organization and chapter here at Kean University."
"Meet the Greeks has been the biggest recruitment event for Greek Life," said Kiany Perez, president of Mu Sigma Upsilon. "Everyone is still adjusting to online learning. I feel like some people have other priorities to focus on, so they'd rather be doing their homework versus taking time to join an event virtually."
Kiany continued by expressing how challenging it has been to endure the troubling times.
"Being part of Greek Life, I feel like it is really sad because there has been a lot less participating. We do try to make this exciting since we want people to come and be involved," she said.
"Meet the Greeks is different, but we had some good people come in and we had wonderful conversations," said Christian Cornejo, a member of Tau Kappa Epsilon. "We're just trying to make the most out of it."
Greek Senate empowers members of Greek letter organizations to serve, lead and understand the importance of unity. Each organization strives to better the community at large in their own way. For more information about Greek Life, please visit Cougar Link or email at greeks@kean.edu.
