This week’s Greek Spotlight article is putting a lens on the Omega Phi Chi (ΩΦΧ) sorority and their core values of sisterhood, academic excellence, community involvement, diversity, and culture. A young sorority, OPC was founded in 1988 at Rutgers New Brunswick, New Jersey and has since grown to inhabit colleges across California, Florida, Arizona, Texas, New York, and Indiana. The NJIT chapter of OPC is brand new, having been founded in the spring semester of 2016.
The sorority was brought to NJIT due to the comparatively fewer number of sororities on campus. NJIT has a lot more men than women, so it makes sense that there would be more fraternities than sororities; however, this means that the women at NJIT have fewer choices. OPC seeks to correct that, as well as to provide a place where women can develop their professional lives. In addition to promoting academic excellence, OPC also hosts workshops designed to help female students prepare for their future careers.
Beyond career help, OPC also wants to help nurture and develop the various culture groups at NJIT. The sisters of OPC believe that NJIT does have culture, but they also believe that this culture needs a helping hand. OPC wishes to become a sorority where people of all cultures can come together to celebrate their unique backgrounds. The sorority hopes they can bring their own perspective on the matter of culture to the table as well.
Every fraternity and sorority is involved in charitable efforts, and Omega Phi Chi is no exception in this regard. The majority of the NJIT chapter’s charitable efforts goes to benefit Americans with disabilities. A staggering 20 percent of Americans live with some form of physical or mental disability or some type of long-lasting condition. This makes Americans with disabilities one of the largest minority groups in the country. OPC is still a new sorority, so they haven’t thrown too many benefit galas yet, but the sisters are optimistic and hope they can start contributing to charities that benefit the disabled soon.
In summary, the core tenets of this new sorority are academics, professionalism, involvement, and the promotion of rich and diverse cultures. Omega Phi Chi is a sorority for professionally minded woman from any background and they wish to expand more here at NJIT. They aren’t too large yet, but they hope to gain more of a presence on campus in the coming year.
