North American fraternity and sorority housing
North American fraternity and sorority housing refers largely to the houses or housing areas in which fraternity and sorority members live and work together. In addition to serving as housing, fraternity and sorority housing may also serve to host social gatherings, meetings, and functions that benefit the community.
Phi Kappa Psi fraternity house at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania
Phi Delta Theta house at University of Illinois in Urbana, Illinois
Gamma Phi Beta house at the University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon
Fraternities and sororities
Fraternities and sororities, collectively referred to as Greek Life, are social organizations at North American colleges and universities. Generally, membership in a fraternity or sorority is obtained as an undergraduate student but continues thereafter for life. Some accept graduate students as well. Individual fraternities and sororities vary in organization and purpose, but most share five common elements:Secrecy
Single-sex membership
Selection of new members based on a two-part vetting and probationary process known as rushing and pledging
Ownership and occupancy of a residential property where undergraduate members live
A set of complex identification symbols that may include Greek letters, armorial achievements, ciphers, badges, grips, hand signs, passwords, flowers, and colors
The fraternity system in North America began at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, where Phi Beta Kappa was founded in 1776.
The Kappa Kappa Gamma house at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign
Wesleyan College in Macon, Georgia, pictured c. 1877, was the birthplace of Alpha Delta Pi and Phi Mu sororities
Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity members assist the Georgia Air National Guard during a George Floyd protest in Atlanta in June 2020