In 1858, Sigma Alpha Epsilon established the first Greek-letter group on GW’s campus.  Now, 150 years later, GW is home to 34 chapters of fraternities and sororities, with two more recruiting their first groups of members this fall.

With this year marking the 150th anniversary of Greek Life at GW, the university is celebrating a community that is growing in size and momentum.  

“It’s grown incredibly just in the past five years,” said Dean Harwood, GW’s director of Greek Life, “There are lot of really great chapters, which is what really drives Greek life.”

In only the past five years, the Greek-letter community has grown by almost 50 percent. In 2003, about 1,200 full-time undergraduate students were part of a fraternity or sorority. Last year, more than 1,750 students had gone Greek.

As the numbers have substantially increased, so have the organization’s presences on campus. In 2003, the University built Townhouse Row, a block of townhouses for fraternities and sororities. Since then, more university housing has been dedicated to Greek-letter groups. In 2006-2007 GW Greek organizations raised more than $160,000 for charity.

Harwood said he is excited about the coming year and to see how students and alumni celebrate the 150th anniversary of Greek Life at GW.

To learn more about the Greek Reunion held during Alumni Weekend 2008, Sept. 25-28 click here. To learn more about Greek Life at GW, click here.