Leaders of Greek organizations met twice with Dean of Student Life Rick Sawyer and Assistant Dean of Student Life Maggie Balch to open lines of communication between the Greek organizations and the Brandeis community, President of Zeta Beta Tau Daniel Gutman '12 said in a group interview of Greek leaders with the Justice.Assistant Dean of Student Life Jamele Adams also attended the first meeting with the Greek leaders but not the second, said Adams in an interview with the Justice.

Sawyer wrote in an e-mail to the Justice, "Twice this year [the dean and associate deans of Student Life] have been invited to meetings by leaders of fraternities and sororities."

"Their agenda items have included conversations about their desire to be more involved in campus activities including both philanthropic and social," he wrote.

According to the 2010-2011 Student Rights and Responsibilities handbook Appendix B, "Exclusive or secret societies are inconsistent with the principles of openness to which the University is committed. Therefore, social fraternities and sororities, in particular, are neither recognized nor permitted to hold activities on campus or use University facilities."

The leaders of fraternities and sororities stressed that they are not seeking official recognition from the University.

"Our primary goal as unified Greek leaders is to open discussion about Greek organizations making a positive contribution on campus through social events, philanthropic initiatives and a general sense of school pride," wrote Gutman in an e-mail to the Justice.

Due to the fact that the University does not recognize fraternities and sororities, Greek organizations cannot attach their names or their letters to events that are held on campus.

For example, President of Phi Kappa Psi Marc Eder '12 explained in the group interview, "Last year, Phi Kappa Psi tried to host a 5-kilometer in conjunction with the Student Union, and [as a result Phi Kappa Psi] received a warning from the dean of Student Life, as did the Student Union."

President of Sigma Delta Tau Jaclyn Lewis '12 noted that there is "a lot of bad stigma surrounding Greek life" and that the Greek community is trying to "break down those barriers."

Sawyer wrote in a separate e-mail to the Justice that "the ideas and suggestions are earnest and well developed."

Sawyer added that although he has had interaction with the Greek community over the past 25 years, "meetings with Greek organization leaders all in one room, and hearing concise and focused goals with a rational vision is new over the last couple of years."

Greek organizations have grown substantially at Brandeis over the past few years, according to Eder and Gutman. For example, there are currently 373 Brandeis students involved in a Greek organization, which is about 11 percent of the undergraduate population, said Gutman.

Co-President of the Greek Awareness Council Brett Byron '13 added that Greek organizations have gained about 100 new members in the past 2 years.

President of Delta Phi Epsilon Marisa Tashman '12 noted in the group interview that the recent meetings between the Greek organizations have served to unite the different fraternities and sororities, allowing them to work together.

"One of the best things that has come out of this is all the Greek organizations working together, especially the leaders, which is something that I don't think has really happened before," said Gutman.

Currently, the Division of Student Life is working "to explore appropriate ways for [the Greek organizations] to develop more visibility and more involvement with the campus community within the current limitations regarding chartering and recognition," according to Sawyer's e-mail

President of Alpha Delta Phi Nick Petrocchi '12, however, wrote in an e-mail to the Justice that he was unsure about the effectiveness of the recent meetings.

"Greek life reached out to the deans; the administration did not reach out to us, [thus not] indicating some newfound respect or desire to incorporate Greek into Brandeis," Petrocchi wrote.