Published 2010-09-22T00:00:00Z”/>

Lindsay Woychick

GPA requirements for fraternity-bound students will increase from 2.25 to 2.35 in spring 2011 in response to a decision by the Interfraternity Council.

The <a href= “http://www.chicofraternities.com/page.php?page_id=5427”>new requirement</a> will raise the GPA by 0.1, with the goal to reach 2.5 by spring 2012, said IFC President Dustin Pesch.

“We think it’s time for us to step up our game a little bit because we have been accepting a lower standard,” Pesch said.

The GPA increase was devised to make forward strides in the Greek system, he said. By requiring greater levels of academics, fraternities will gain students who are able to handle more responsibilities.

Fraternities will be closer to the GPA standards of social sorority requirements, he said.

Currently, the social sorority GPA recruitment requirement is 2.5, said Panhellenic Council President Megan Alley.

The Panhellenic Council, like IFC, is the governing body for its respective Greek community.

The GPA requirement was set at 2.5 for all social sororities in 2005, she said.

The increased GPA requirement may lessen the number of eligible recruits for social fraternities, said Larry Bassow, adviser for IFC. This will create more opportunities for those with a higher GPA to be a part of Greek life.

GPA recruitment requirements are concrete, while those of current members can vary as long as the each chapter averages a 2.5 GPA, he said.

Closing the gap between the average of all Chico State males and the <a href= “http://www.csuchico.edu/sa/greekreport/greekgpa.shtml”>average of the fraternity chapter</a> is another focus, he said. The average GPA of Chico State male students over the past five years was a 2.63, while members of social fraternity chapters averaged at 2.48.

Students’ main focus should be school, followed by extracurricular activities, Bassow said.

“We are here to go to school, and if they can’t get that right then nothing else matters,” Bassow said.

The GPA requirement passed with 75 percent support from IFC members, said Larry Pinto, vice president of conduct for IFC. Opposition came from IFC members worried about the requirement’s potential to reduce the number of members in each fraternity.

“We would love huge fraternities with tons of people, but more than that, we’d love to have quality members over quantity,” Pinto said.

Students may have to wait to rush in order make sure their academics are in order, he said.

“You’re here to go to school, you’re not here to play frat,” Pinto said.

Lindsay Woychick can be reached at

<a href= “mailto:[email protected]?subject=RE%3A%20New%20GPA%20requirement%20raises%20bar%20for%20fraternity%20members”> [email protected]</a>