Fraternity members competed in a less scandalous version of the annual Mr. Greek pageant last night, raising money for charity and having fun in the process.
The men competed against each other in a variety of categories in the fourth annual Mr. Greek pageant, which was organized by the Alpha Phi sorority to benefit the organization’s philanthropy.
This year’s events were tame compared to last year, when a few of the men involved in the pageant exposed themselves to the audience and performed provocative movements, prompting the Panhellenic Council to implement a previewing process before philanthropy events are approved.
The Panhellenic Council created the Philanthropy Advisory Board, which established new rules and guidelines for greek philanthropic events.
Courtney Ellis, an Alpha Phi member, said organizers screened the performances before the event to ensure that all participants adhere to the Philanthropy Advisory Board’s expectations this year.
Erin Cohen, a former Panhellenic president, said all philanthropic events are now expected to be free of alcohol and have no nudity or anything scandalous.
She said the performers or the hosts of the event are responsible for the content and will be sent to the judicial board if they don’t comply with the board’s rules.
Cohen said consequences for breaking the rules range from social probation and community service to education workshops.
All money raised will go to the Alpha Phi Foundation in support of cardiac care, organizers said.
Ellis, a pre-business freshman, said the sorority picked fraternity members who were diverse, had good personalities and were funny.
The nine fraternity members who participated practiced for six weeks to wow the crowd with the help of two coaches provided by the sorority.
The participants performed an opening dance and competed in the areas of swimwear, talent, formal wear and best pick-up line. For those who made it to the final round, there was a question-and-answer, Ellis said.
Robert Medler, president of the Interfraternity Council, said the sorority screened the participants this year in order to prevent what some considered indecent in last year’s pageant.
The fraternity members spiced up their swimwear with a variety of props ranging from a water tank to a pirate hat. The talent round was also very diverse, with some competitors singing and dancing and others reciting “”I love you”” in 15 languages.
Jared Cohen, a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon, won the competition. He said he liked practicing and meeting all the other participants, and that it ultimately didn’t matter to him if he won.
Jared Cohen, a communication freshman, said he thought his strongest point in the competition was his hip-hop performance mix, in which he mimicked Michael Jackson’s “”Thriller”” moves.
Jenny Schissel, an accounting sophomore, said she was surprised some of the men could dance well.
“”I like the begging dance,”” she said. “”You think guys can’t dance and they proved that wrong.””
Allison Kagel, an education sophomore, said she likes attending talent show competitions in general, but she enjoyed this one in particular because she knew some of the competitors.
“”(The performers are) doing really talented things,”” Kagel said.
Even though Jared Cohen had a lot of fun, he is unsure whether he will do it again next year and added that he wants to let others in his fraternity give it a shot.
“”I think I’ll make this a one-time thing,”” he said.
