Collective Efforts Yield Results
Margaret Mead, an anthropologist who died in 1978, spoke the popular quotation:
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.
The Circle of Sisterhood believes this and believes that when collective efforts are made, that change multiplies. We are seeing this illustrated on college campuses across the country. Sorority women have been raising money and doing community service within their own chapters for hundreds of years, but with the establishment of the Circle of Sisterhood Foundation, sorority (& fraternity) members had a cause that collectively they could stand behind. Here’s a sampling of what those ‘small groups of thoughtful, committed citizens’ are doing:
Clemson University: Last week, the recruitment kick-off dinner & concert benefited the foundation. Ten dollars was charged at the door, raffle tickets were sold and drawn for prizes and the potential new members learned about philanthropy before formal bids were given.
Mount Union University: The University is a small community of less than 2,500 undergraduate students where the panhellenic community has come together to sponsor a book club reading “Half the Sky” and raising awareness about womens’ issues globally. They are also selling t-shirts to raise funds for the cause.
Purdue University: The Interfraternity Council at Purdue University joined the cause last Spring and launched a “Brothers 4 Sisters” campaign, raising over $1200 for the Foundation. In addition, the Panhellenic Council organized “Dine & Donate” events with local eateries & yogurt/ice cream shops. During designated days, diners could mention the Circle of Sisterhood Foundation and a portion of their bill was donated back to the philanthropy.
University of North Carolina at Charlotte: During recruitment’s “Philanthropy Day” last week, campus was covered with posters to raise awareness around the mission of the Circle of Sisterhood. In addition, the Panhellenic Council organized a Go Greek Fashion Show to benefit the Foundation.
University of Richmond: The One Book/One Campus annual program adopted “Half the Sky” as their book this year. They will be hosting a series of discussions about social inequality and utilize the book as a catalyst to forge faculty/student relationships across curriculum. The founder of the Circle of Sisterhood, Ginny Carroll will be the keynote speaker for an event in October.
Panhellenic Women join together to support the Circle of Sisterhood at the Southeastern Panhellenic Conference, Spring 2011
We know this is a small sampling of the MANY efforts that are happening on campuses now. Please leave a comment and let us know what your community is doing to support the Circle of Sisterhood, we’d love to spotlight your efforts in the future!
This post was written by Aimee Ash, Executive Director of Gamma Sigma Alpha National Greek Academic Honor Society. Ash is a volunteer for the Circle of Sisterhood Foundation.