The annual Greek Week was effectively canceled Thursday afternoon, as the Panhellenic and Interfraternity Council executive boards stated they stand with the National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) and Multicultural Greek organizations’ decision to abstain from the rest of the week’s events.
The day prior to this announcement, Bradley’s NPHC announced the boycott on its social media, citing the Office of Admissions “failed to properly represent the historically black and multicultural Greek organizations” in its virtual Greek life panel event for admitted students last week.
“Bradley’s National Pan-hellenic Council and Multicultural Greek organizations are tired of being overlooked and included only at the direct benefit of the university,” stated the press release on NPHC’s Instagram page.
Greek Week, seven days full of activities designated for all Greek life members, was originally scheduled to run from Monday, April 5 through Sunday, April 11. Scheduled activities included speakers, a trivia night and a dance competition.
As of 9 p.m. on April 8, the university has not responded to the admissions incident in question or the student-led boycotts within the Greek system.
In an April 3 post submitted to The Scout by a student in the Bradley Student Admission Representative (STAR) Facebook group, senior sociology major Kiara Watts wrote the group that she was “disappointed but not surprised” by admissions.
“While I am no longer a STAR, I did enjoy my time there and hoped admissions would take diversity and inclusion more seriously, especially given everything that transpired over the summer,” Watts stated. “Our multicultural Greek organizations do a lot for Bradley and deserve to be highlighted just as much as white Greek orgs do.”
Later on April 3, Watts’ post prompted a reply from associate director of admissions, Cory Craig, who commented, “We did not intentionally leave anyone out of this session. We are running about 10 Zoom events each week and trying our best. For this session, we reached out to the STARs that were part of NPHC, and all of them had class or were busy or were not able to attend.”
In her reply, Craig also stated that NPHC was mentioned at the Zoom event, but promised more “thoughtful planning” at future sessions.
The Scout is currently awaiting responses from NPHC and Bradley admissions regarding further details on the Zoom panel.
Bradley has always underestimated the power and unified voice of its Greek system. The same system that holds a disproportionate number of future leaders and successful professional compared to the general student body.
Good on NPHC, IFC and Panhel for recognizing the moment. I hope this results in more discussions and sustainable change on campus and in the actions of the admin office.