The University of Houston needs to invest more money into Greek life. This school has so much potential to be better than it already is.
Investing in Greek life will help bring on donors 20-30 years down the road, increase student life, and move us out of the “commuter school” stereotype. The board and Renu do nothing to help Greek life, if anything they suppress it as much as they can. A good majority of donors I have met were involved in Greek life and if Renu wants donors to stay and attract new donors she has to invest!!
I unfortunately do not believe Greek Life will ever be a major part of UH’s culture going forward.
Real Estate anywhere close to campus is far too expensive, especially if you’re talking mansions in low-crime neighborhoods
The majority student demographic of UH, which is largely first generation college students, does not have the means to be able to put forth a robust Greek Life
Continuing from the point above, what makes Greek Life affordable in SEC schools is that many of these schools are not in large Metro areas, which keeps real estate costs down. In otherwords, a mansion on Alabama Row will costs 2-3x more on Scott St
UH is focusing most of its investment on athletics because that’s what’s going to improve and grow the UH brand the most overall, which then leads to better academic resources and recognition
UH could’ve had a Greek Life if the demographic of its campus continued pre-SWC, but with the demographic changes of UH over the pas 3-5 decades, UH has lost its generational wealth to continue Greek Life traditions
I think Greek Life at UH could improve, but it won’t be to the vein of LSU/Bama unless major old money started attending UH. Most of the Old Money kids in Houston attend out of state schools, or at the very least, UT/SMU/TCU.
UH could have a similar Greek life setup to Auburn, who has a Bayou Oaks style setup (apartment/townhome Greek Row)
Yes sir, totally agree here. Not saying we need a major investment, but I think a little bit would help get things going.
The least the university can do is not suppress it so much. A lot of people are very uninformed about Greek life at UH and I think Greek life gets a bad rep from higher ups. If we try to involve Greek life more with athletics and other things around the school you could see an up tick in attendance at games and other school events.
Typical of UH, they want to monetize everything. They disbanded independent Greek houses and forced them into UH owned “houses” that are nothing but glorified dorms. Just like for football, something as fun as tailgating, they want you to hire them to set them up for a big fee.
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Can you be more specific on what investments they should make?
Seems UH does have land by mcgregor park and other places so I don’t think they have to buy land. Hugh please email Dr Khator bc just telling us here gets no action. She’s responsive so just email her your ideas which I think are valid for future donors who could then give back to athletics etc.
I was in a fraternity’66-‘70. Student body was around 19,000. The average undergrad was 26 and married. It was truly a commuter school. Any campus atmosphere was generated by the Greeks. Yet there was little to no support from the Student Life Deans. At best they humored us. Fouke/Yeoman supported us because we attended the games.
Now the Greek System started in the early ‘50s when UH was a private school….yes we were once a private school. Many of those houses are gone for any number of reasons. However, they all produced a lot of alums that enjoyed a more traditional campus experience. We are always gripping about attendance. Why not have a Greek Tailgate? I had friends in other fraternities. The school ought to be able to promote it and generate some interest. Likewise UH ought to invite those chapters no longer on campus to recolonize their group. They all have alums in the area. Just an idea.
Most of us were working part time to pay for school. The notion that Greeks only come from the wealthy is totally false. Yes Alabama, Ole Miss have the pinnacle of a Greek row, but there are a lot of successful Greek systems that have more modest facilities. I never could figure out the antagonism against Greeks. When they needed volunteers guess who they asked first?
If an individual is smart enough to be admitted to our university and if they are interested in that lifestyle, there is plenty of information available.
It was not for me, but I understand that for many it is the right choice.
