New circle aims to foster better relationship between CMU, Greek community
By the end of this week, the Central Michigan University Greek community will have left a mark on campus for years to come.
In between Warriner Hall and Grawn Hall, a 12-foot circle will be constructed in the ground, with the letters and founding date of approximately 30 fraternities, sororities and multicultural organizations on campus.
The circle is expected to be completed by Friday.
Alpena senior and Alpha Sigma Phi President Nick Stepaniak has been involved with the project since last fall. It all began, he said, as a class project for LDR 200 G: Introduction to Leadership.
“We had to do a project that bettered the Greek community. My group decided that bettering the relationship between CMU and the CMU Greeks was something that was very important,” he said. “We wanted to be represented on campus, and this project worked out since the concrete was going to get redone anyways.”
Since CMU already had construction plans, the overall cost of construction was covered, but each organization that is represented paid a $200 fee to cover the cost of the engraving.
“There were 30 spots available in the circle,” Stepaniak said. “We opened the idea to multicultural organizations as well, and we filled all but four or five spots.”
It is unknown whether future groups will have an opportunity to join the circle.
“I’m hoping that this is a starting point toward a better relationship between Central and the CMU Greeks,” Stepaniak said. “If they’re able to add on, I’d like to see groups that come in the future to be added to the circle.”
Director of Student Life Tom Idema taught the LDR 200 G class, in which the idea was born, and said the project is a great addition to campus.
“It’s nice that each Greek organization gets to have their letters on their campus,” he said. “I think there’s a great appreciation for the Greeks (on campus) and (the circle) is a huge acknowledgement from the university for the fact that when we need to count on a group of students to get something done, there is a huge Greek population that we can count on.”
Stepaniak said this is the first step in forming a stronger bond between the Greek community and the CMU campus.
“This shows Greeks that the university supports us enough to put our letters on campus,” he said. “It’s a stepping stone of what the university and the CMU Greeks could do together in the university.”
