Lizzy Pendeville, President of Alpha Xi Delta, discusses her background regarding Greek life, how it impacted her college career thus far and how she hopes to improve it throughout the coming year.
HC: Introduce yourself!
LP: My name is Lizzy Pendeville. I’m from Burgettstown, a small town outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. My major is global supply chain management with a minor in communications.
HC: When did you go Greek? What made you want to go Greek?
LP: I decided to go Greek my freshman year second semester, which was the first time I was able to. I wanted to go Greek to make friends. I was a super quiet and reserved person and I didn’t feel like I could find an awesome group of friends without Greek life.
HC: How has being in a sorority impacted who you are?
LP: Alpha Xi Delta changed my life completely. It has brought me my best friends, opportunities to take leadership roles on campus and have the confidence to follow through and better my life.
HC: Greek life tends to have a negative perspective on it, what do you have to say to those people that don’t understand Greek life?
LP: I would say to the people that do not understand it, to take a moment or two and actually talk to someone in Greek life. We are a community that just wants to respect the rituals that were set before us and help others. The friendships that form through the four years on this campus really last a lifetime and I hope for the outsider looking in is able to understand that.
HC: What was the most recent position you held in your sorority, and why did you do it?
LP: The most recent position I held in Xi before becoming president was the finance and operations vice president. I held this position for one semester. I honestly enjoyed it a lot, but it definitely had its challenges. Being a business major, I felt like it would be good for me to do.
HC: What led you to run to be your chapter’s president?
LP: My decision to run for chapter president really came to life in the middle of last semester. I finally understood through my executive board position how our chapter ran, and I felt like I had good ideas on how to make our chapter even better than it already was. It had always been a goal of mine to be a leader in this chapter and I saw my opportunity to put myself out there and try to become president.
HC: What are your main goals as president this year?
LP: I have a few main goals as president, the first would definitely be getting back to our ritual as a sisterhood. Meaning basically remembering why we all joined a sorority in the first place and appreciating each other. Also getting our sorority out on campus more to show that Greek life is valuable and is on this campus for a reason. Meaning volunteering more and helping the town that we go to school in.
HC: What advice would you offer to somebody interested in joining Greek life?
LP: I would just say my one piece of advice to someone interested in Greek life is to ask questions. Get educated on how we work and see if joining a sisterhood is something you would be interested in!