What is the significance of paddles in fraternities

Send Link. Personal Information First Name. Last Name. Street Address 1. Street Address 2. Zip Code. Back Next. Antitrust and Unfair Competition Law. Business Law. Criminal Law. Environmental Law. Dazed and Confused was in high school, but you get the gist. For those in the modern-day Greek community, this sensationalized notion of the paddle is a foreign idea. In today's Greek traditions, members regularly present paddles to other members as a sign of gratitude, to welcome new members or to acknowledge a specific achievement.

For those in the Greek community, the paddle is symbolic of a lot of things. Mentoring is an important aspect to Greek life, and when an older brother or sister takes a younger member under their wing, an important bond is created. To show their appreciation, little brothers and sisters present their mentor with a paddle as a sign of gratitude, loyalty and respect. Also, many fraternities give paddles to newly pledged members as a welcoming sign of inclusion into the chapter.

How exactly the paddle came to be part of college, and more importantly, how the paddle become part of Greek life is not exactly cut and dry.

There's no documented, concrete information that shows a clear timeline to today's traditions. What is Greek life in college? Fraternities and sororities, or Greek letter organizations GLOs collectively referred to as "Greek life" , are social organizations at colleges and universities.

Generally, membership in a fraternity or sorority is obtained as an undergraduate student but continues, thereafter, for life. What is an ism in Greek life? What does it mean to be paper in Greek life? Paper refers to those chapter members who were made without a "pledge process". Basically, they filled out the paper work and became members. Do frats still paddle? The tradition of making and giving paddles is definitely still alive and well in Greek organizations, so it's not unheard of that someone would take a ceremonial but otherwise functional wooden paddle and put it to use.

Do sororities paddle? To most sorority alumnae today, paddles represent sisterhood, pride, and tradition. Unfortunately, paddling continues to be used as a hazing tool in fraternities, and although less frequently, sororities too. Alexandra S. Lehman graduated from Bucknell University in and is a J. Davis L. Times, Oct. By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: Fraternal Law Parnterns.

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