fraternity and Sorority Memorabilia

Fraternities and Alfred:

Fraternities have a long and tumultuous history with Alfred University. Severe hazing incidents led to Alfred Officials making the difficult decision to ban non-academic frats from Alfred. Fraternities are still present at Alfred State, and the Greek History is still palpable in the town. Before the Collegiate was lost in the November fire, Greek Paddles decorated the restaurant. These paddles were made out of wood and shaped as oars with carvings of members’ names in them. There are typically holes on the top of the paddle to enable them to be hung on the walls. Greek Paddles represent the brotherhood of the fraternity or, in the case of women, the sisterhood of the sorority. Non-academic fraternities were banned in 2002 after unsettling hazing incidents. Some of these frats included Sigma Alpha Mu, Kappa Sigma, Alpha Chi Rho, Delta Sigma Phi, and Zeta Beta Tau. Currently, those paddles are the only indication of these once proud organizations.

Paddles have often served as a ledger for remembering a group of fraternity members. It serves to differentiate between different fraternities and serves as an identity formation. Paddles sometimes have the misfortune to be thought of as a hazing method (ie: paddle spanking of fraternity pledges) however their primary focus is to identify frat membership. Made of wood and very simple, paddles serve as a popular method for group identification, not just for frats, but for other organizations such as Boy Scout Troops as well.

Paddles still serve their initial function to identify members of the group. The paddles serve as a long wooden block where names must be carved in. This engravement is much more long-lasting than writing a name in pen in a ledger. Wood can withstand many elements of weather and are enduring. Hopefully, none were damaged as a result of smoke damage and hopefully they will be resurrected in the new Collegiate Restaurant, which is still under construction.

In a way, the paddles serve as both a social ritual and identity formation. They serve as a social ritual, because practically all Greek Organizations participate in this function. A fraternity without paddles is a rare thing indeed. The paddles clearly serve as an identity formation because unique Greek symbols and the names of the pledges and members distinguish the different fraternities.

Greek Paddles are marketed towards prospective members. They symbolize group unity, a concept that is attractive to many new students. Most people have a sense of belonging and Greek Organizations provide networking and friends to their members. In Alfred, they are simply to enjoy and also may provide a sense of nostalgia to former members or long time town residents. As a result of the hazing problems, they may also serve as an unfriendly reminder of bad times to local residents. Clearly, there were positive contributions that fraternities made at one time to the campus and it is impossible to erase either the good or bad memories that came with that.

This is a relatively simple design and can be mass-produced. The paddles typically indicate the year, the fraternity organization, and its members for that year. All of this information is carved and imbedded into the paddle. The paddles are usually heavy enough and indicate strength of the organization which it is representing.

The paddles are usually enjoyed by most consumers or onlookers. The design is simple, but what the design represents is what creates these different emotions that were mentioned earlier. A person with a positive outlook may look on the paddles with enjoyment. That person may appreciate the symbolic meaning of group unity or may like the Greek Symbol for that particular unity. People with a more negative opinion of fraternities may look upon the paddles with displeasure. Certainly victims of hazing incidents will have a different view of the paddles than a former college student who was part of an enjoyable fraternity. It is not the wood or the carvings of the paddles that create the public opinion, but rather the perception of what the paddles represent which are the frats.

The design does not really improve us or not improve us. It is what it is. It is a wooden paddle that is used to demonstrate group affiliation. It is a representative object and if the form or the presentation of the paddle is changed it will still serve on the most basic level as a representation of the fraternities.

There are presently not many competing ideas. The wooden paddles serve as a testament of time, and this is evident when you would look at the dates on the paddles in the restaurant. There was a wide range of dates. Paddles serve as the optimal way to indicate group membership. Why fix what is not broken?
As long as the paddle can be hung on the wall so that it is visible, it serves as a responsible design. There is clearly no change in sight and paddles will be used to represent membership for years to come. If not in Alfred, then it will be in other institutions.

Do you think that the design or what the design represents determines the emotions behind it? For instance, the paddles represent fraternities and frat memberships but could also trigger the idea that paddles are served as a hazing method as well. Would you argue that because of this, the wooden paddles are an irresponsible design?

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Frat History (more info. added 3/27/10)

Greek life represents a group of individuals who are united. It still represents brotherhood and sisterhood today as it did before it was banned from AU in 2002. (Fraternity comes from the Latin word frater meaning “brother” and Sorority comes from the Latin word soror meaning “sister”. Many Greek organizations participate in community service (philanthropy) such as Hot Dog Day. (FAHDD which stands for Fuck Alfred Hot Dog Day is now an annual tradition taken upon some Alfred Alumni after the University disbanded all fraternities and sororities. FAHDD is held every year the same day as the traditional Alfred Hot Dog Gay but in different locations every year. FAHDD represents to some alumni what Hot Dog Day used use to be before 2002.) Greeks also thought of ways to contribute to their campus as well as participated in sporting events. (Before the band on Greek life, many fraternities participated in intramural sports.) Being part of a fraternity or sorority symbolizes belongingness and a team spirit. Anyone who has belonged to a Greek organization and has pledged and signed one of the paddles is considered important, maybe not to others but they consider themselves important.


Hazing has been a problem among sports teams as well as the Greek population for years. Hazing is more frequent during “rush week” where fraternities and sororities are in search of new members. A common form of hazing among Greek members is binge drinking. Binge drinking among the Greek population increased throughout the years as well as other forms of hazing. Alfred University abolishment of the Greek system took place in 2002 after an incident in February the same year. A ZBT brother was found dead in the creek behind their house on Main Street. The cause of death was believed to be due to a beating from his “brothers”. Another incident that got Alfred University Greek life noticed in a bad light was in 1978 when a Klan Alpine brother died in a hazing-related incident.

Historically paddles were used for punishment or hazing but since then the meaning behind paddles has changed and formed a tradition. Paddles are mainly used for decorative purposes only, not disciplinary. Now paddles sometimes come with warnings imprinted on the wood which say, “violation of state and federal anti-hazing laws” while others come with a warning declaring they are for “decorative purposes only.” (http://www.dailyillini.com/blogs/on-the-town/2010/04/21/carving-new-traditions) Some Greek organizations decide to make their own paddles while some prefer to purchase them or use officially printed paddles. Paddles can come in all shapes and sizes. Many Greeks have pledges make several as a “project”. Different companies can sell or engrave paddles. Some paddles can be purchased on web sites such as greeklife.com. Paddles can be made/bought for a single member or for the group. Paddles can be considered a gift and members dedicate a lot of time to this personalized gift. Paddles are given and received between members of Greek chapters to signify friendships throughout brotherhood and sisterhood. Paddles in this case represent memories and what the person’s friendship means. Paddles are also commonly hung in houses to represent the years pledges and memories. These are commonly hung in the halls to represent and show the history throughout time.


Six Sayles Street –Former Pi Alpha Pi Sorority House
(Changes of the building)
Was origionally a private residence then was the home for Pi Alpha Pi Sorority from 1923-1963. Until the mid 70’s Six Sayles Street was also used for the campus radio station which operated in the dining room, a residence hall and for Steinheim storage. It also housed OZ Hotline (24 hour emergency counseling service managed by students). In 1986 the basement was used for the Allegany County Family Planning Center and in 1994 AU benefactor Lea R. Powell provided the funds for the renovation of the house into a new home for the Lea R. Powell Institute for Children and Family Services as Au, as well as the Center for Rural School Psychology and the Rural Justice Institute.