Sorority Spotlight: Pi Beta Phi

How would you describe the typical Pi Beta Phi woman?

A typical Pi Phi is very relaxed with a really great sense of humor. Our sisters are very dedicated to Pi Beta Phi life and ritual, but are involved in plenty of outside activities. Nearly every member of our chapter is a part of one or more student organization.

What is your best memory as a house?

Last year, the chapter provided tickets for everyone to go to Dorney Park. It was so much fun! We all carpooled there and got to spend the day running around the amusement park.

How big are your PC’s usually?

Our member classes these past few years have been about 30-35 girls.

What is your overall house GPA?

3.36

What is the chapter’s favorite meal that the chef makes?

It’s hard to choose one meal, because our chef Mike makes incredible food.  For lunch, gyros, quesadillas and falafel are very popular.  One of the best dinners that he makes is shrimp, risotto, and crab cakes.  He always pairs the meal with a vegetarian main dish (for this one, it’s usually eggplant parmesan), two sides of vegetables, and a salad bar. He also makes really amazing macaroni and cheese and Shepard’s Pie.

What are your favorite Pi Beta Phi traditions?

Each year during Halloween we do a sisters-only event, where we paint pumpkins together. We buy doughnuts and apple cider for the event. It’s a ton of fun! We also have movie nights.  Everyone bundles up in blankets and we watch a movie together.

How is your chapter different from the others on campus?

Our chapter has girls from a variety of backgrounds that are bonded through our values. We have a set of core values in Pi Beta Phi.  Our one value of sincere friendship plays the strongest role in our chapter.  It’s something unique to Pi Beta Phi that we try to emphasize in our day-to-day life.

What is your philanthropy? What are some events that you do to raise money and awareness for your philanthropy? 

Our philanthropy is the Pi Beta Phi Foundation, mainly the Literacy Fund.  It supports our main initiative, Read > Lead > Achieve.  The goal of the initiative is to put books into the hands of children that otherwise would not be able to access them.  Over these past several years, one-million books have been provided to underprivileged youth.  There are also more hands-on programs, such as Champions are Readers®.  Our VP of Philanthropy connects with a local school, and members volunteer to mentor students struggling with literacy.  Events that we do to raise money and awareness for our philanthropy include Pi Day and Pi Phi Gives You Wings.  On Pi Day, which happens every spring, people can pay money to smash a pie into a sister’s face.  It’s a lot of fun and a big event on campus.  This past October, we had our first ever Pi Phi Gives You Wings event.  It was a Lehigh After Dark event.  We sold $5 tickets to students, and then they could come eat unlimited chicken wings and pizza. It was a huge success!

Some people are worried about the financial commitment that is associated with Greek Life. How have sisters in your sorority dealt with this issue?

Our financial dues are the lowest of all sororities at Lehigh.  We are very proactive in working with members that are struggling to meet the financial obligation.  We offer a payment plan where the dues are split into multiple payments during the semester.  Additionally, being a member of Pi Beta Phi opens up plenty of scholarship opportunities.

What would be your chapter’s advice for a PNM about going through recruitment?

Be yourself!  You will probably be living in your sorority house for the next two years of your life, so you should look for which group of girls makes you feel the most comfortable and that you get along with the best. Also, don’t stress out too much!  The recruitment process is specifically designed so that everyone finds a chapter that is a good fit.