Greek life on Penn State’s campus has changed drastically. But two chapters are working together to show their positive impact in the community.
The Greek community at Penn State has undergone major changes following hazing scandals on campus.
But Drianna Buonocore, a member of Alpha Omicron Pi, said for her, Greek life is good life.
“I found my home in AO Pi because service means so much to my sisters,” Buonocore said.
There are 81 fraternities and sororities in the State College area.
Kristen Koshko works for Centre House of Housing Transitions, a business neighboring fraternity row.
“The Penn State students are here for four years. They’re living here in our community, they’re part of our community,” Koshko said.
Centre House is a homeless shelter that provides basic needs for people or families trying to get back on their feet.
“People don’t realize that homelessness is an issue here,” Koshko said.
“I walk past it every day and it didn’t occur to me that people really rely on those resources,” Buonocore said.
Housing Transitions needs $145,000 a year in donations to keep its programs running.
Seeing a neighbor in need, Buonocore’s sorority teamed up with Beta Sigma Beta for a spaghetti dinner that’s open to the public.
Each plate costs $5, that will go towards Centre House.
David Yazdani, a member of Beta Sigma Beta, said “I think we have a lot of resources here that can really help out like the rest of the neighborhood. And we though why not use them.”
Despite other aspects of Greek life in the spotlight, David Yazdani said community service has always been a top priority.
“I can’t really comment on the scandals of that type of stuff going on in the greek community, all I know is we’ve been doing this for a long time and we really enjoy it. So we’re just going to continue to do it,” Yazdani said.
“I think our service and our passion for helping our community has always been there and I think it’s just continuing to grow,” Buonocore said.