Sonya Sexton
Staff Writer
Sigma Gamma Rho held its “Meet the Poodles” event on Sept. 5 in the Abraham Campus Center.
The intimate event was designed to help the sorority recruit new members for the upcoming school year. French toy poodles are the mascot for this sorority, but no actual dogs were at last week’s recruitment event.
Current members provided potential recruits with information on the sorority’s history and what it takes to become a member of the Black sorority, one of the “Divine Nine” sororities, founded in 1922.
There was also time for Q & A for potential recruits.
Sorority advisor Sheree Rome, a 2023 alumna, and sorority member Kendall Stanley were in attendance to help facilitate the event.
Each of the current members of Sigma Gamma Rho spoke about what drew them into the sorority, as well as the struggles that they have endured during their time within the organization.
Sigma Gamma Rho member Kristal Sullivan, a senior chemistry major, said that at the other schools that she attended she never felt comfortable enough to fully be herself.
“I wanted that opportunity to be surrounded by educated Black women and get that sense of identity that I wasn’t necessarily missing, but I craved,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan also connected with the values that Sigma Gamma Rho embodied and the community service opportunities available. Sullivan wanted a wider platform to complete community service than what basketball offered her, and Sigma Gamma Rho made that possible.
Stanley, part of the graduate chapter of the sorority, said that she had not planned on joining a sorority. But once she did some more research on the Divine Nine and this sorority specifically, she realized that this was something that she wanted to be a part of.
Stanley advised prospective members to learn about the various sororities on campus and choose the one they feel is the best fit.
Rome always knew that she wanted to be a part of a historically Black sorority, but was unsure of which one. She was nota aware that Sigma Gamma Rho existed until she started her college journey at Cal State San Bernardino.
Rome said she appreciated that she could bring her own personality to Sigma Gamma Rho, instead of having to fit into a specific box or stereotype.
Rome said she learned life skills via the sorority – how to dress, how to conduct an interview and more. And her sorority sisters have become lifelong friends.
Autumn Smith, a sophomore biology major, who calls herself a “military kid” who moved around a lot growing up, said she had never found a community of Black people. She had not planned on joining a sorority, but she felt she fit right in with Sigma Gamma Rho
“I kind of see it as a salad,” Smith said. “You know that’s a tomato, you know that’s lettuce, you know that’s the carrots. I really like how everyone comes together and it’s not this one thing; it’s this beautiful array of Black women,” Smith said.
Seeing educated Black women who are successful in their fields also drew Smith to the event since her goal is to become an optometrist after she graduates.
Sonya Sexton can be reached at sonya.sexton@laverne.edu.
Sonya Sexton is a junior journalism major with a concentration in broadcast journalism, and a transfer from Chaffey College. She is a staff writer for the Campus Times.
