Sacred Heart University’s Greek Life organizations brought the energy and excitement during this year’s Greek Week, which took place April 7-12. These six days were packed with NFL-themed events designed to unite students, boost school spirit and celebrate fraternity and sorority life (FSL) across campus.
The week began with a Draft Day Kickoff Party at Thea’s Abbey on April 7, followed by NFL Trivia on April 8 in the Martire Forum. On April 9, students competed in an NFL Combine and Banner Contest on the Upper Quad.
One of the most anticipated events, Greek Sing, took place at the Martire Family Arena on April 10, where chapters showcased choreographed performances and themed music mixes. The week wrapped up with FSL Appreciation Day on April 11, featuring food trucks and community bonding, and a Day of Service on April 12, in an effort to give back to local causes.
Leah Navarra, Vice President of Programming for Panhellenic, played a major role in planning the week.
“My role in helping organize Greek Week is that I am the Vice President of Programming for Panhellenic,” Navarra said. “We had to come up with a theme that would be universal for both sides of Fraternity and Sorority Life. We then had to organize events that would fit into the theme.”
Navarra explained that the inspiration for the theme came from seeing what other schools were doing and then putting a personal spin on it. “I stumbled upon a university doing a NFL inspired competition. It was just one event and I wanted to see how we could expand this idea into a theme for a whole week,” Navarra said. “It had a different feel than the past years because it was very hands-on for both ends of the community.”
Giovanni Ramos, Vice President of Membership Development and Programming for IFC said the NFL theme helped set this year apart.
“It gave us a fun and competitive vibe that matched the spirit of Greek Week,” Ramos said. “We also wanted the theme to reflect what students were actually excited about, so we used Instagram story suggestions to get input from the community.”
The two worked closely with the Office of Fraternity & Sorority Life to plan the events.
“Constant communication and early planning really helped us stay on track,” Ramos said. “A huge shoutout to Leah Navarra; her dedication and organization played a huge role in making sure everything ran smoothly.”
Source: Mark F. Conrad, Sacred Heart University
“Greek Sing! Our organizations put in a ton of work choreographing and mixing music for the event,” said Dante DeCesare, Assistant FSL Director. “1,500+ students in the Greek community come to the event every year, and attendance is continuing to grow.”
DeCesare also praised the student leadership for making the week such a success.
“Panhellenic and IFC have a designated officer that is responsible for planning Greek Week. They begin the planning process a few months ahead of time with weekly meetings. Our office supports them throughout the process, but I cannot give them enough credit,” DeCesare said.
When it came time to reflect, both student leaders shared how meaningful the experience had been. “Greek Sing was my favorite and most meaningful event of the week,” Ramos said. “It really captured what Greek Week is all about: community, spirit and unity.”
“Now that Greek Week is over, I feel that my team and I have accomplished this whole week with success and have truly made a week that a lot of students can remember,” said Navarra.
“I love seeing everyone having a good time together. It’s a testament to the work the community, student leaders and our office put into the event,” DeCesare said.
