Greek housing a possibility for new proposed residence hall

By Jodi Oliver

With talk of expanding housing on campus, the question of whether or not to provide a Greek Village has been on the minds of campus administration and Greek organizations.

Missouri Western currently has seven residence halls with the potential of adding another hall for approximately 250 students; however, there are currently no buildings designated for Greek organizations.

Student Governor Dillon Harp said the housing committee is working on a proposal to present to the president for an apartment style residence hall for junior and seniors that would require some shifting of the current housing plan. According to Harp, once the new hall is completed, the plan is to provide temporary housing to the Greek community.

“We are looking at the possibility of using Beshears Hall to accommodate the Greek organizations,” Harp said. “Ideally they would be able to have their own houses on campus but we are waiting on the Greek organizations to find out about funding before we can move forward.”

According to Missouri Western President Robert Vartabedian, the administration has been taking serious steps into looking at Greek housing on campus.

“In early November we [had] a Greek consultant come in to talk to various people to see what the potential is for a Greek Village,” Vartabedian said.
Acting Director of Residential Life Sean O’Reilly did not confirm that Beshears Hall would be used for Greek organizations. However, he recognizes that although the administration is bringing in a consultant, there are still more steps that need to be taken.

“We need to gather everyone together that can make the decision, as well as who the decision will impact…the students,” O’Reilly said.

The architects of Scanlon Hall, who recently constructed a $14 million sorority house on the campus of William Jewell College, have offered O’Reilly to tour the suite style sorority house. The new sorority house, which opened its doors this fall, features a 160-person multipurpose room, fitness center, two story foyer and social lounge along with open staircases and a fireplace.

“I would love to grab a group of Greeks and head to William Jewell to get an idea of what environment the students are going to thrive in,” O’Reilly said.

According to O’Reilly, Greek organizations benefit from residing on campus by becoming more visible to students and the administration, recruiting future students, as well as ensuring longevity for the Greek organization.

“Having Greek life on campus shows there is a partnership with the University,” O’Reilly said. “If a university doesn’t partner with their Greek organizations, then the organizations eventually will die out.”

Although it is standard procedure for Greek organizations to have funds put back for housing, Phi Delta Theta President David Wyble said it is not enough to begin building without a long-term debt.

“My fraternity has enough money to put down on a house to start building, but we don’t want to take out a huge loan,” Wyble said. “I assume that other organizations could be in the same boat.”

Wyble said his fraternity has looked into building off campus because the university has not agreed to lease land but admits having a house on campus would be more beneficial for the future of his fraternity.

“It would be difficult to get people to come to an off campus house,” Wyble said. “We recruit 70 to 80 percent freshmen who don’t always have cars to drive five miles or more off campus to go to a fraternity house.”