Molloy University making history with its first fraternity and sorority

Molloy University is poised to enter Greek life — gingerly — with campus chapters of a fraternity and sorority next year expected to draw about 40 members total from the student body.

Those chapters will be the first in the history of the 5,100-student private university, founded in 1955 in Rockville Centre by an order of Roman Catholic nuns, the Dominican Sisters of Amityville.

Molloy officials invited the organizations after campus meetings and direct requests from students, said Janine Biscari, the university’s vice president for student affairs. Almost all Molloy students commute, so part of Greek life's appeal was the "opportunity to have a social life out of the classroom experience but still live at home," Biscari said. "The students are looking for it, another avenue to find that sense of belonging."

Don’t expect "Animal House." For starters, there will be no Greek housing on campus. While the organizations will have access to campus club spaces and other resources, including a graduate assistant who will help their event planning, Biscari said she expected they would do more than contribute to the university’s social life.

"Their members are focused on giving back to the community and becoming strong, ethical leaders in the community, and we thought that was in direct alignment with our mission."

Members will be required to take an anti-hazing course, Biscari said.

The fraternity is Phi Kappa Theta. The sorority is Theta Phi Alpha. Both have Catholic roots but opened decades ago to members of other faiths. Molloy could add other fraternities and sororities organizations in the future, Biscari said.

Quinn Moran, a consultant for Phi Kap, said the group hoped to provide a "well-rounded fraternity experience" at Molloy, offering philanthropic activities with local charities or Children’s Miracle Network, a Phi Kap partner, along with social activities like dances, paintball or bowling.

Phi Kap will conduct outreach for prospective members in the fall. Selection will include a "one-on-one interview to assess what the student is looking for and if they are looking for a specific leadership role" in the chapter, Moran said.

In a statement, Theta Phi president Kristin Henkenius said the sorority’s "values of justice, friendship, and truth make us a natural fit for Molloy."

Other Long Island colleges and universities have offered fraternities and sororities for years.

Dani Weatherford, chief executive of the National Panhellenic Conference, an umbrella group for sororities, including Theta Phi, said the group had about 1,400 members at five campuses across Long Island, including Stony Brook and Hofstra universities, up 2% from the previous academic year, mirroring several successive years of national growth that will bring membership to about 390,000 this year.

Weatherford attributed the growth partly to "RushTok," a social media phenomenon where potential members document the experience of rushing, or joining, sororities.

"There’s a documented history of leadership experiences and engagement on campuses," she said. Members "find their home away from home, supported by other women who are participating in the same kind of life experiences they are."

The North American Interfraternity Conference, a trade association that represents fraternities including Phi Kap, cites on its website research it says proves that fraternities "foster positive mental health, serve as a success accelerator for students, and engender tremendous loyalty and connection among alumni to support their alma mater."

A 2018 study by Miami University economists found that Greek life had a small negative impact on student grades that was most apparent during the semester of pledging, semesters of increased social activities, and for males. Researchers found no evidence of a "Greek salary premium."

By Nicholas Spangler

nicholas.spangler@newsday.comspanglernewsday

Nicholas Spangler is a general assignment reporter and has worked at Newsday since 2010.