Jeanna Dressel

This week's Why Alpha Chi spotlight features Jeanna Dressel, a spring 2013 initiate of the Theta Tau chapter. 

When I started at Rutgers, I never imagined I would join Greek life. I had seen it played out in movies and bought in to believing the stereotypes. I spent most of my days on campus to my self; I was a commuter, and—I only hung out with my friends from pre-college. I didn’t have a whole lot of luck making friends with people in my classes.  My junior year, when my friends were planning to study abroad, I decided to step way out of my box and participate in formal recruitment.  Doing it alone was pretty scary!  But, every time I walked into the Alpha Chi house the sisters made me feel something that I didn’t feel anywhere else.  It was like a sigh of relief! I never felt like I had to try hard-- these girls wanted to know me and I felt like I could be myself always, one hundred percent! Because I took a risk-- and accepted my bid from Alpha Chi, I have so many incredible memories and opportunities I wouldn’t have had otherwise!

Jennifer Ross

This week's Why Alpha Chi spotlight feature Jennifer Ross. 

I joined Alpha Chi and the Theta Tau chapter my freshman year in spring 2007. Before college, I never thought about being a part of a sorority. To be honest, I didn't know much about them until I came out to a COB event. My distinct memory of that night was the overwhelmingly warm welcome I received at the little green house on Union Street. Through conversation, I found girls just like me in our interests, our ambitions and our collegiate experience. I knew immediately this was where I wanted to be.

Joining Alpha Chi, I found friends I could talk to, complain with, laugh with, and who I wanted to spend the majority of my time with at school. It was one of the best decisions I ever made. I knew Alpha Chi and Theta Tau were where I belonged and I made sure to make the very best of my experience.

Through my leadership experiences at Alpha Chi, I learned organization, patience, and how to teach and learn from my sisters. Alpha Chi taught me to be more charitable and selfless. In my four years as an undergraduate, I supported many causes and continue to do so as an alumna. Some of my favorite memories are participating and marching in "Take Back the Night”, dancing at Dance Marathon, and playing volleyball/dodgeball for a cause, all alongside my sisters.

Alpha Chi taught me a great deal about friendship, especially how to be a listening ear and soundboard. Some of my very best friends are Alpha Chis. 

And so when someone asks me why Alpha Chi, I‘m proud to explain in the most certain terms what an amazing experience it is having sisters for life.

Lauren Kinard

Today's Why Alpha Chi spotlight features Lauren Kinard, a Spring 2009 initiate of the Theta Tau chapter. 

Going to a large school can be a very intimidating experience. There are so many options and so many choices to make. Many people become friends with the people on their floor, since they are all sharing the same experiences at the same time. As a transfer student, I did not get to experience that. 

I was looking for a way to make a giant school like Rutgers seem smaller. I was looking for friends with similar interests to mine. I had trouble making female friends in high school and knew I wanted to change that, so joining a sorority seemed like a no-brainer. Going through formal rush was a whirlwind. I talked to so many girls. I remember speaking with Vivian Feldman at preference, I was so nervous, due to my lack of confidence and inexperience of talking to other girls my age. 

I was thrilled when I got my bid. I was so excited to meet my new member class. I had girls to eat with, to study with, and to explore Rutgers with. Rachel Fine was always willing to do something with me. I fell asleep more than once on her bed while watching TV or helping her craft later on, when she took Amanda as her little. Joanna Wojton loved all things girly with me. We became roommates and it was the best year ever. We’d go out together, vent to each other, and laughed a lot. Michelle Behling and our epic spring break trips. My big, Sherri Smith, was always there whenever I need her. She still is. I’m so excited that I get to stand up with her while she marries the man she loves. My two amazing littles, Kara Borshof and Brittany King, I was so proud to watch them grow and become these amazing strong women I know today. 

Why Alpha Chi? Because of the friends I made. Alpha Chi gave me my future bridesmaids. Alpha Chi gave me a family.

Ali Patel

This week's Why Alpha Chi spotlight features Ali Patel, a Fall 2004 initiate of the Theta Tau chapter.

I chose Alpha Chi Omega because that is where I felt home away from home. I immediately bonded with my soon to be Big Sister and also met others who are still my best friends. The sorority became a place where you could be yourself and grow into the person you wanted to be. 

Meghan McGrady was my roommate when she joined Alpha Chi Omega in the Fall of 2005. She was a special sister and being a part of Alpha Chi Omega allowed her to shine. She took joy in being the sorority’s historian and became a mentor to three younger sisters. Meghan had her quirks (she loved vampires before Twlight became popular), but she had a great heart and loved every minute of being an Alpha Chi. Her sudden illness came as a shock, and her death brought many of us together to celebrate just how devoted to Alpha Chi Omega she was. She is missed every single day, but her memory lives on at every Tealing Rutgers event.

 In the years since graduating, Alpha Chi Omega still holds a special place in my heart. As an advisor to Theta Tau, I had the opportunity to attend leadership trainings as well as attend the National Convention in 2012 in St. Louis. Through these meetings I had the opportunity to bond with Alpha Chi’s from across the country who share my same values of service, friendship, and leadership. I believe in Alpha Chi Omega’s message of being Real. Strong. Women. And I am proud to be one of them!

Ashley Garrison

The August 27th spotlight features Ashley Garrison, a Fall 2006 initiate of the Theta Tau chapter.

I chose Alpha Chi Omega to meet new people and have new experiences.  Rutgers is a large school and it is important to make smaller communities within the larger Rutgers community. I went to a Meet the Sisters event because of a friend in AXO.  I loved it. The girls I met were personable, fun, and interesting. Mainly, it was the girls themselves that made me join AXO. They were easy to talk to and made me feel comfortable being there.  There are other great things about AXO: philanthropy, social events, and more but it was really the sisters themselves that made me want to be a sister of Alpha Chi Omega.

Looking back on my time in Alpha Chi Omega, it has changed me for the better.  I have my job thanks to a sister in AXO. I also ran for the executive board and gained experience and confidence in leadership positions.  I also made strong friendships; two of my bridesmaids are Alpha Chi's.

Being in Alpha Chi Omega has changed both my college and alum experiences, and I would not have it any other way.

Amanda Marziliano

The August 6th spotlight features Amanda Marziliano, a Spring 2007 initiate at the University of Richmond. 

I arrived at the University of Richmond in August 2006, a shy freshman who thought wearing a "polo" meant going to Old Navy or Target and buying a $5 cotton shirt. Instead, I found a school where the students looked as if they had stepped straight from the pages of a J. Crew catalog. My grandmother, whom I was very close with, had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer the week before I left, and she passed away four weeks into the semester. I wasn't interested in drinking or partying, and I didn't make many friends right away. Luckily for me, UR assigns big sisters to all its freshman girls, and my big sister lived with two Alpha Chis. They immediately set out to convince me to go through formal recruitment. As a girl from suburban New Jersey whose only experience with sororities was watching Legally Blonde, I was reluctant. But once they began introducing me to their sisters, I was hooked. These women were leaders on campus--involved in mock trial, student government, sports, music, every activity you could imagine. Women who had the type of social life and friendships I envied so much. I knew I had to be a part of this sisterhood, that maybe a group of sorority women who weren't the norm were exactly what was missing from my college experience. During rush, I couldn't wait to get to Alpha Chi, and realized that while with the other chapters, I was nervous and shy, with my future sisters I could truly be myself. I didn't feel judged, and finally felt at home on campus. I was thrilled to accept my bid a few days later.

In my four years as a collegiate member, and my subsequent years as an alumna, I have learned so much from my sisters. I developed from a shy girl into a confident young woman. Four years of recruitment gave me the ability to make small talk with anyone, and the skills I learned there have been incredibly useful as an adult--from job interviews, to academic conferences, to meeting my fiancé's family! I had opportunities to be a leader, both as a collegiate executive board member and as an alumna advisor. My sisters and the opportunities and support they have given me have helped me develop to my full potential. The friendships I share with them have truly changed my life, and I am so grateful every day for the gifts Alpha Chi Omega has given me.

Genevieve Blesch

The July 30th spotlight features Genevieve Blesch, a Fall 2010 initiate of the Theta Tau chapter. 

Alpha Chi Omega has been in my family for two generations prior to me, but I only learned the true meaning of this fact after I had made the decision that Alpha Chi Omega was right for me. My father’s mom, Lela Jutton, and her two sisters, Mary and Dorothy Jutton, were all in Alpha Chi Omega at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The mother of those three women, Mary Busey, was also an Alpha Chi Omega at UIUC. Because my father is an only child, Alpha Chi Omega had to skip a generation, but when it became my turn to choose a sorority, my father did not want to overly influence my decision. I had always heard stories about the sorority that my grandmother was in, but I did not realize the significance of joining that sorority until after I accepted my bid to Alpha Chi Omega. My father and I were both thrilled that I was going to continue the Alpha Chi Omega legacy! The sisters and best friends that I made through Alpha Chi Omega are the ones I want to keep in my life forever. I cannot even begin to imagine what my life would be like without my experience in Alpha Chi Omega.