At Sacred Heart University, the annual “Greek Sing” event stands out as one of the most anticipated events of the spring semester for people involved in Fraternity & Sorority Life (FSL). Held during “Greek Week,” which typically takes place in April, the event draws a large crowd of students, teachers, and parents to come together for some FSL fun.
“Greek Sing” is a competition-based event where members from all FSL chapters perform dances, where they are scored by judges, and ultimately, a winner is picked.
“It’s sort of a transition within our fraternity and sorority life community,” said FSL Director Kathryn Ionta. “It’s embedded within our week of fun events, programming and friendly competition.”
Because of that, the “Greek Sing” has become closely associated with the overall identity of Greek week. It is the event that tends to draw the most attention and participation.
“If students are in Greek life, then it is coordinated within their chapter,” said Ionta. “Each chapter takes it upon themselves to select music, plan choreography, things of that nature, for the annual event.”
Although participation is limited to Greek organizations, the event itself is open to anybody. Students who are not involved in Greek life can still attend to cheer on and support the sororities and fraternities.
“If you’re not in a fraternity or sorority but you still want to enjoy the events and programming, you can come out and be a member of our audience,” said Ionta.
For students performing in “Greek Sing”, the experience involves weeks of participation behind the scenes. Junior Olivia Aviles, who is participating in this year’s event, said the process requires more time and effort than people might expect.
“It definitely takes a lot more time than people think,” said Aviles. “We’ve been practicing a lot, and everyone has to stay committed for it to actually come together, which is hard with a busy college schedule.”
Aviles said being a part of a group performance is a different kind of pressure, especially knowing a lot of people will be watching.
“You want it to go well, not just for yourself but for your whole chapter,” said Aviles. “Everyone is counting on each other, which makes it more intense but also more fun.”
The competition is judged by four university staff members who are selected each year. Their role is to evaluate performances using a rubric that focuses on specific elements.
“We have four judges who are staff members of the university who randomly change every year they get asked to help us, and they judge the event,” said Inota.
Performances are scored based on categories such as lip singing accuracy, choreography, and how well each routine connects to the overall theme.
“There’s a rubric that they score off certain categories, like their ability to lip sync, how well the choreography matches up, and how well they match the theme,” said Inota.
Students can watch “Greek Sing” on Thursday, April 9, at 7:45 p.m. in the Martire Family Arena, and stay up to date with the “Greek Week” schedule by following @shufsl on Instagram.
