United Front

The NPC Executive Committee has made several campus visits since our annual meeting and installation in October 2013. These visits provide us with golden opportunities to open communication channels and reinforce our collaborative efforts with university officials. In addition, we like to meet with sorority leaders and empower them to work together as a unified College Panhellenic.

It is important to realize the power we yield as a larger Panhellenic community. Our history tells the story of how our united front brings desirable outcomes.

Panhellenic power was evident in the 1970s when fraternities and sororities were alerted that the government was planning to eliminate all the membership restrictions based on gender in proposed guidelines for Title IX of the Education Amendments. Under the leadership of Virginia Jacobsen and the Executive Committee, NPC acted promptly. The statement sent to the Office for Civil Rights and Congress reasoned that the proposed regulations did not apply to private, voluntary women’s fraternities and sororities. Sorority women inundated elected representatives in Congress with thousands of letters and phone calls. Ultimately, Congress passed a bill exempting social fraternities and sororities and certain other youth organizations; President Gerald Ford signed it. Our NPC history record states, “All of this was accomplished by united and concentrated interfraternity effort.”

Friends, we have the power to achieve great things when we stand side by side and work together for the greater good of the sorority experience. This also holds true for the overall fraternal movement.

NPC is part of the Fraternal Government Relations Coalition (FGRC) along with the North-American Interfraternity Conference (NIC) and the Fraternity and Sorority Political Action Committee (FSPAC). In late April, collegians and inter/national leaders of our NPC groups will join NIC to lobby on the Hill for the benefit of the fraternity and sorority movement. Our agenda includes student safety legislation; college affordability; and the Collegiate Housing and Infrastructure Act (CHIA), among other issues. Lobbying teams will meet with staff and members of Congress and the Senate. This raises our visibility among members of Congress and extends our reach so we can continue to advocate for rights as private organizations.

Women’s fraternities and sororities now raise 60 percent of the contributions toward FSPAC. As a result, FSPAC has shifted its candidate contribution policy to include support for female candidates running for positions in Congress. This will allow for influence in more primary elections for women. For more information, please visit the FSPAC website at www.fspac.org.

Lessons from the past serve us well today. Our united front makes a difference in efforts to achieve our vision -- advancing sorority together.