The Positive Influences of College FraternitiesAccording to Webster's New World Dictionary, the definition of a stereotype is: a fixed or conventional notion or concept. While studying at university, I noticed that stereotypes are part of everyday life. Day after day, people are judged for who they are and what they believe. These stereotypes are especially relevant in fraternities. Negative stereotypes associated with college fraternities have recently been blown out of proportion and generally overshadow the many positive aspects and contributions of Greek life. The Greek system offers men and women the opportunity to complete their college education while thriving and giving back to our community. If you are someone who has acquired these negative stereotypes, consider how your community benefits from our many service projects. But before my article can demonstrate your misconceptions, we need to discuss stereotypes. A stereotype is a lack of information. The basis of what the public is informed about is true most of the time, but the misleading part of a stereotype is what people don't hear. If only half of the information in a story is revealed, then of course the reader will not be exposed to the entire story. This is how negative stereotypes about fraternities are born. When it comes to fraternities, few people want to hear about the positives, so they exclude them and only focus on the negatives. According to Sam Doria, a freshman here at Bowling Green, "the positive issues facing fraternities are annoying, I want to see which fraternity will be next to be accused of hazing violations." Most of the positive issues regarding fraternities have recently... middle of article ......yle: The Endless Binge. Newsweek, 124, 72-73. Celio, Jeff (March 1998). [interview with IFC president.]Doria, Sam (March 1998). [Interview with a BGSU student. Hirsch, K. (1990). Fraternities of fear: gang rape, male bonds and the silencing of women. Ms., 1 52-56.Johnson, C. (1991). When sex is the problem. U.S. News & World Report, 111, 34-36. Jordan, I. (1998, last updated January). The Jordan Standard [Sigma Chi Fraternity Headquarters Home Page]. Available on the Internet: http://dsc.dixie.edu/barry/[email protected], Eric. (1998, winter). NIC endorses alcohol-free accommodation. Fraternal Law, 2Wayland, J. (1998, last updated March). The True Gentleman [Home page of Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity at BGSU]. Available http://:www.bgsu.edu/studentlife/organizations/sigma-alpha=epsilon/tgwj.htm