Pledge week is a lot of fun for students at Grove City College. It is the process of becoming a member of a Greek group. The Beta Sigma fraternity was founded in 1922. Its colors are red, which represents loyalty, black, which represents strength, and white, which represents pride. The fraternity has 4 main symbols, the bulldog, the handshake, the brick, and the stars, which all symbolize something different. The Beta Sigma Fraternity holds 2 main events a year, the Monster Mash and Professor Preach off. David Bereck, the pledge master (PM) for the Beta Sigma Fraternity, says that it is a week that “unites the pledges with the fraternity as brothers of Christ”. It is a week of building relationships, community, and commitment to the group. A PM is one member of the sorority or fraternity that leads pledge week. He (or she), is in charge of making the schedule of events, attending the events, and leading the rushes from task to task. The PM must act a certain character for the week. He is to act scary and intimidating so that the rushes can build a tighter bond and endure the week together. David says that the most difficult part of being PM is acting the part and not breaking down and helping the guys out. Each morning, the pledges have a time of devotion together before breakfast. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, they attend chapel together. Each evening, they have dinner together, usually with a different sorority each night. The purpose of this is to meet new people who are also involved in Greek life. Throughout the week, pledges must complete certain tasks that are created by the PM. They can be anything from counting the number of cars in the parking lot to presenting a five-minute presentation about the difference between bread and toast. It is a week of endurance, fun, and loyalty. At the end, it is all worth it because you have life-long brothers or sisters.
