From the NPC Chairman: Continuing to Create a More Accessible and Equitable Panhellenic Sorority Experience

Dear friends,

Diversity, equity, inclusion and access are all words that we have heard a great deal more of collectively or in some combination over the last several years from our member organizations. As a result of the tumultuous times during 2020, many of us have had an opportunity to reflect on our thoughts and actions as we consider the access and equity of those around us and how we incorporate diversity and inclusion in our organizations to better serve our chapters, campuses and communities.  

In fall 2020, the National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) hosted an Access & Equity Listening Tour with various constituencies throughout the fraternal community. The NPC Board of Directors also initiated an Access & Equity Advisory Committee where one of the charges was to identify barriers to membership on our campuses. Through participation in these sessions and with recommendations from our advisory committee, one of the overarching themes was need to revise and redesign the processes, practices and policies of Panhellenic recruitment. It became evident that our recruitment processes and their costs created barriers to membership. Therefore, all of us must acknowledge the necessity and urgency of creating an accessible and equitable Panhellenic experience.

NPC has further taken the initiative to form five recruitment reform project workgroups. These recruitment reform projects were initiated early last year and have just recently completed their work. Eliminating and reducing barriers and opening the access to all women on our college campuses has been a focus of these reform projects. Removing these barriers that impede progress as a conference is a priority if we are to remain relevant and in alignment with our highest and best values. You can read a summary of the work of the recruitment reform project workgroups here.

Reforming recruitment practices may be difficult for many to do, but it is truly imperative. The traditions, customs and practices that many of us have participated in for many years no longer provide a platform that serves our changing membership, values and relevance to collegiate women. The fully structured formal recruitment process, costs of recruitment and sorority membership, alternative approaches to recruitment and promoting the sorority experience are all areas the reform projects have reviewed and made recommendations. The board appreciates the work of these project teams to study the issues and help us begin to take real action toward recruitment reform, and as their recommendations are implemented, we will share updates with all of you.

However, there is more we all can do right now. We must not stop here but continue to educate, listen and act to provide access and equity in our entire NPC community. Our collegiate members seek to hold NPC and inter/national leadership responsible for changing current policies and practices in response to the demographic and attitudinal shift in the collegiate environment, and we are doing so both at NPC and in our member organizations. 

Specifically, over the last several years, NPC has prioritized the development of resources and educational sessions to develop a culture of care within our Panhellenics, and we’ve seen the addition of specific Panhellenic officers on many campuses focused on creating more inclusive communities. At the same time, many of our member organizations have taken this call to action to make changes within their own organization and integrate many initiatives that promote inclusiveness within our collegiate chapters on college campuses. Changing or eliminating legacy policies and recommendation letters, the establishment of chapter belonging/inclusion officers and transgender inclusion are just a few areas that our member organizations have examined and made significant internal changes. 

Ultimately, the goal of all our member organizations is to provide an inclusive, values-oriented, affordable and relevant membership experience. Together we can make this happen. As I reflect on what I’ve learned about those four words—diversity, equity, access and inclusion—during the past several years, it demands that we collectively promote and provide action to break down the barriers and provide access and equity, thus providing a richer, more diverse experience for our entire NPC community. 

Interfraternally,

Cheri M. De Jong
2021-23 NPC Chairman

From the NPC Chairman: A Reflection on Increasing Access and Equity in the Sorority Experience

Dear friends,

Last June, as our nation was filled with sadness and sincere reflection, the NPC Board of Directors made a commitment to more substantively and candidly engage about race and confront racism. It was past time that we acknowledged that racism, within society and within the Panhellenic community, was not an issue we could address simply through kindness or greater respect for one another. Instead, we made the commitment to carefully consider structural and systemic reasons that too many women of color did not view our organizations as places where they feel welcoming, understood or heard.

It's important now that we take stock of the progress made in the past year, and of the work still to come, to identify reforms and eliminate structural and systemic barriers to the sorority experience. 

To help us follow through on our commitments, one of the major steps the board took was to appoint the NPC Access and Equity Advisory Committee (AEAC) to provide recommendations on how to increase access to the sorority experience and equity across NPC policies and procedures. Building on the feedback from NPC’s listening tours and committee members' experiences and expertise, you may recall this group has provided guidance, particularly in three areas:

1. Auditing of Unanimous Agreements, policies and best practices. Based on the committee’s recommendations, several proposals for changes to these items were adopted by the Council of Delegates earlier this year. 
2. Consulting on inclusion of diversity factors for NPC workforce recruitment. As much as we focus on recruiting new members to the sorority experience so too must we focus on recruiting new individuals to the professional and volunteer workforce responsible for advocating for and supporting that experience, and the committee shared their expertise in this area.
3. Identifying barriers to access created by norms and practices at the campus level. Here, the committee has helped identify additional areas for education and changes regarding recruitment and Panhellenic operations to further remove barriers to sorority membership.  

The board also asked the AEAC to provide some additional guidance, including reviewing template documents and advising on marketing. The committee will be wrapping up its work and submitting recommendations for the board to review in mid-June after the publication of this message. So, more to come on that.

As the AEAC worked to fulfill its charge, NPC also engaged in parallel initiatives. As an example, NPC began a partnership with the Timothy J. Piazza Center for Fraternity and Sorority Research and Reform for two companion research studies that will evaluate cultural competency and diversity, equity and inclusion within NPC-affiliated sorority chapters. The two studies will measure the level of cultural competency among sorority women at both minority-serving institutions and at predominantly white institutions. Researchers will also identify best practices for strengthening competency and enhancing inclusion within sorority chapters and communities. This pair of studies reflect shared commitment from the Piazza Center and NPC to foster more inclusive sorority communities. 

In addition, the challenges of the past year have offered us an opportunity to test changes to the ways in which we recruit members and begin eliminating more barriers to membership. Based on the work of the AEAC and the relevancy research conducted last summer, the Board of Directors has recently commissioned five recruitment reform projects that are a focus for the next year. 

• As part of the larger Cost of Membership initiative, which I addressed in my April message, NPC is examining the costs associated with Panhellenic recruitment and has already begun to offer recommendations to address the growing concern. These recommendations include a policy addition to remove tiered registration pricing and late fees, as well as a new best practice that encourages a virtual first round whenever possible, helping decrease costs related to space rental, transportation, décor, attire, etc., while also focusing on substantive conversation between PNMs and chapter members. Additionally, an updated best practice encourages a minimal administrative fee to cover only essential recruitment costs.
• The Recruitment Reform Task Force has been charged to re-imagine fully structured recruitment allowing more flexibility and authenticity to further reduce barriers and create a more welcoming environment for prospective members. 
• The Education and Transparency Task Force has been charged to make recommendations for a standard potential new member (PNM) orientation to provide consistent and accurate education to all PNMs and their caregivers. At the same time, NPC staff and the Panhellenic Recruitment Committee are working to execute recommendations focused on creating improved guidance and education for College Panhellenics on budgeting and dues as well as increasing emphasis on the PNM experience instead of competition with other chapters on campus over space and décor.
• The Panhellenic Recruitment Committee also will continue its work in developing new education and resources to better support alternative recruitment approaches and formats.
• A Marketing Advisory Committee will provide guidance to the NPC staff on projects such as developing new resources for College Panhellenics to widely promote the sorority experience.

Amid all of this activity at the NPC level, I also want to call your attention to the work being done at the member organization level. During the last year, NPC member organizations have developed their own structures to examine diversity, equity, access and inclusion factors in their organizations. As a result, many organizations have altered or removed legacy policies or changed requirements for letters of recommendation in order to create a more level playing field and make it easier to join a Panhellenic sorority. 

Together we have accomplished so much, but there is still much work to be done to make the sorority experience more welcoming, inclusive and accessible. We will continue to share our progress with you in messages like this one and on our website. 

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As this is my last message as the NPC chairman, I want you to know it has been my honor and privilege to serve as NPC chairman and I look forward to great things ahead. My thanks to each of you–members of the NPC family, partners and colleagues. Without your dedication and attention, NPC could not and would not be the organization it is today.

Panhellenically,

Carole J. Jones
NPC Chairman

From the NPC Chairman: We hear you and we are listening.

Dear friends,

We hear you and we are listening. Topics of diversity, equity, inclusion (DEI) and access have been an integral part of NPC’s strategic conversations, but the importance of these topics on college campuses and among our members have supported our need to shift from conversation to action. This work is not easy, and steering a ship with 26 member organization in it, each with different perspectives, sometimes may seem slow and awkward, but it is a challenge we are undertaking with sensitivity, humility and diligence.
 
As you may be aware, the NPC Board of Directors has appointed an NPC Access and Equity Advisory Committee, which will provide us with recommendations and guidance on increasing access to the sorority experience and equity across policies and procedures. This will include consideration of norms and practices that create barriers facing potential members based on racial identity, ethnicity, LGBTQ identity, religious beliefs, ability and socioeconomic status, among others. The committee’s work will complement efforts led at the NPC member organizational level regarding membership policies, programming and practices.

Committee members represent a range of identities – based on race, ethnicity, religion, age and ability – and also represent varied Greek-letter organizations. Their insights and perspectives will be critical as we make ours a community in which all women can engage as their full selves. View the committee announcement.
 
As this group begins its work, the Board of Directors and committee members will host a series of listening sessions in August with various NPC constituencies including College Panhellenic leaders, fraternity/sorority advisors, collegiate members and alumnae regarding access and equity. This is the first step in our journey to drive real change that reinforces the foundational values and strength of the Panhellenic experience.

In addition to the work of the committee, NPC has engaged the Cross-Cultural Fraternal Advising Institute Collaborative team to facilitate a virtual education session for collegiate sorority members titled “Cultivating a More Inclusive Recruitment Experience and Addressing Implicit Bias.” More than 470 participants are now better positioned to act with integrity across all aspects of membership growth, development and experiences. Soon, we will share the recording and a resource guide with all College Panhellenics so those who could not attend live will have the opportunity to benefit.

NPC leadership will also continue to engage with experts in the field of diversity, equity, inclusion and access to increase their knowledge of DEI factors and set a common language and framework for NPC’s DEI initiatives.

Moreover, NPC will continue to engage its other advisory groups – the Fraternity/Sorority Advisors Advisory Committee and the Student Advisory Committee – to provide their input and feedback related to NPC’s actions regarding diversity, equity, inclusion and access.

To report on the progress of NPC’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, including the work of the Access and Equity Advisory Committee, a new page has been added to our website.

As we continue our work in creating greater equity within and access to the sorority experience, difficult and meaningful conversations are taking place and new resources are being developed for our College Panhellenics. It is important work that will assist us in confronting racism and considering the structural and systemic reasons that too many women do not view our organizations as places where they feel welcomed, understood or heard.

During a conversation the Board of Directors had with Syreeta Greene, MSW, Ed.D., director of the Office of Equity, Inclusion and Multicultural Affairs, Midwestern State University, she stated, “The road to diversity, equity and inclusion is a journey not a destination.” NPC is committed to that journey.

Panhellenically,

Carole J. Jones

NPC Chairman

From the NPC Chairman: Three Considerations for Addressing Racism in the Panhellenic Community

Dear friends,

I write to you this month during a period of sincere reflection and sadness—in our nation and within our community.

The killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, among far too many others, are challenging each of us, and the organizations to which we belong (Panhellenic and otherwise), to more substantively and candidly engage about race and confront racism.

For the members of the National Panhellenic Conference Board of Directors, the time and place in which we find ourselves has called for clear acknowledgment that racism—within society and within the Panhellenic community—is not an issue we can address simply through kindness or greater respect for one another (as important as those may be). Instead, we must carefully consider the structural and systemic reasons that too many women of color do not view our organizations as places where they feel welcomed, understood or heard.

Our approach must change, and the Board of Directors offers at least three considerations we must confront if we are to honestly reconsider our path forward as a conference and a community of Panhellenic women:

First, our organizations do not reflect the diversity that our Panhellenic communities hope to achieve.  As a community, we don't make ourselves broadly attractive to women of color and we have too often fallen short in supporting our Black and Brown sisters.

The reasons for this are numerous and grounded in a clear history of past discrimination. It is vital, however, that we confront the reality that the lack of diversity within our ranks is not an accident. Decades of narratives, norms and practices have made the “typical” sorority experience understood through a white lens. This is uncomfortable to consider, but it is true.

Second, we believe that we must consider—and change—the systems and norms within the Panhellenic community that have historically benefited and centered the experiences of white women and women of privilege, more generally.

The manner in which we respond to this second area will determine whether we will ultimately make progress in the first. We know that many of our member organizations are already engaging in some of this work. As a board, we recognize these changes at the organizational level must reflect each organizations’ values, culture and sense of purpose. However, as a Panhellenic community, we must acknowledge that we are tied together, and creating lasting change will require each of us to re-evaluate long-standing assumptions about how we operate, recruit and support collegiate sorority women.

Third, as a Panhellenic community, we have an obligation and responsibility to empower our members and volunteers and to openly discuss race and racial injustice.

For many of us in the Panhellenic community, we become reserved and hesitant when race or racism are discussed. In many cases, we have been taught that “we don’t see color” or to “treat everyone equally.” These feelings and sentiments are sometimes understandable and often well-intended, but—as the members of the board have learned—their effect is to ignore and brush aside the many ways that race does shape our society and create unequal experiences within our community. If we are to prepare and empower young women as future leaders, and particularly if we are going to fully embrace BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) and LGBTQ+ Panhellenic women, we must no longer shy away from or be fearful of these critical conversations.

As we consider each of these areas, and others that will no doubt arise, we also ask for some grace. We, as a community, will stumble as we work to find our way. But our hope is that we can drive real change that reinforces the foundational values and strength of the Panhellenic experience.

In the near term, this will likely mean difficult and meaningful conversations, the creation of new resources and a commitment to support and work with College Panhellenics as we consider the themes addressed in this note. In the long term, it will require us to continue critical conversations with our Black and Brown sisters, as well as those who advocate for and support them, in order to develop and implement new approaches, policies, agreements and expectations.

For more than 100 years, the National Panhellenic Conference has been an organization that advances the sorority experience together. It is clearer than ever before that our ability to do that effectively now—and to empower collegiate women in the current moment—calls us to reimagine what “together” truly means.

We are humbled by the many comments and experiences shared within our community in recent weeks, and we remain optimistic about our ability to join together in creating a welcoming, inclusive Panhellenic community that our current and future members deserve.

Panhellenically,




NPC Chairman Carole J. Jones with NPC Directors Mary Baker, Cheri De Jong, Laura Doerre, Rie Hoehner, Malaea Seleski, Laura Sweet and CEO Dani Weatherford