The Most Exclusive Greek Organization On Campus

It is Greek life's best kept secret. Members are comprised of the top 3% of Greeks across campuses. I'm talking, of course, about the
Order of Omega—the National Greek Honor Society

While many sororities and fraternities highlight the importance of academics in their respective constitutions and bylaws, members of these Greek organizations are seldom recognized for their scholastic achievements. If anything, the stereotype surrounding sorority and fraternity members is that they are socialites first and students second. 
 
Parker F. Enright established Order of Omega in 1959 at the University of Miami. Enright, the fraternity advisor at the university, saw that an honorary society was long overdue for fraternity members. Later in 1977, the society became a co-ed organization, offering membership to Greek women as well. Currently, there are more than 500 chapters across the United States and Canada, and the society is ever-growing.
 
I joined the Lambda Tau chapter of Order of Omega at Loyola Marymount University during my junior year of college, and became President of the organization last spring. I am truly proud of the ideals this society promotes, as I believe they are not stressed enough within the Greek community, itself. Too often, both prospective and active members of Greek life overlook the greater contribution of Greeks to their university's academic mission. We become caught up in aspects of our individual Greek organizations, like our philanthropies, campus events, and social activities. While this is certainly not a bad thing, it often draws our focus away from the grander purpose of Greek life in respect to the university as a whole, a major part of which is contributing to high academic standards.
 
Joining Order of Omega allowed me to realize just this. Not only do members within the honor society achieve a high degree of academic success, but also they take this ideal and promote it within their respective Greek organizations—something that I find incredibly critical and rewarding. Also, many Order of Omega chapters hold other campus events and promotions for Greek students on campus. For example, my chapter at LMU rewards an individual member of Greek life each year who demonstrates academic excellence and service to others with a monetary grant of up to $500 to go towards his or her chapter dues. Things such as this are inspired by Order of Omega’s desire to give back to those who are contributing to the scholastic excellence of his or her university and Greek community, and the society’s motivation to foster this excellence in all members of Greek life.
 
Aside from academics, however, one of the best parts about being a member of Order of Omega is seeing the interfraternalism the society promotes. Members come together from a variety of different Greek affiliations for the same purpose and with similar academic goals. Oftentimes, as is natural, we stick to our respective Greek organizations and may not always have the right opportunities to get to know people in other sororities and fraternities. To not only be a member of Order of Omega, but also to have the chance to lead this group has allowed me to experience firsthand the ways in which students from different Greek organizations have come together to emphasize an important facet of Greek life in respect to the entire university.
 
Overall, my desire is to continue to promote Order of Omega’s mission of encouraging high ideals of academic prosperity within the Greek community in hopes that this society won’t stay secret for long.