MU Student Body,

I must tell you all it has been an honor serving you as your Missouri Students Association president. Even in the short time I have been in office, the experiences I have been given to represent MU have been life changing, and for that, I am forever grateful.

One experience has really affected my life: the opportunity to judge a variety talent show this past weekend. I’m referring to the 31st annual Delta After Dark, sponsored by Epsilon Psi chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated. Annually, these ladies work tirelessly to host this talent show, with the purpose of raising awareness about Domestic Violence and raising funds for a local charity.

These dedicated, smart, and hard-working women have been making this show happen for 31 years. This year, Delta Sigma Theta, a traditionally African-American, National Panhellenic Council sorority, partnered with Pi Beta Phi, a Panhellenic Association sorority, to team up against domestic violence. By merely holding this talent show, these two sororities made an impact on the Greek community that was bigger than just themselves and their chapters.

If you know anything about Greek Life here at MU you know NPHC, IFC and PHA chapters rarely work together, if ever. So often it is like an invisible line divides our chapters. It is honestly sad we don’t work together. Most of our counterparts at other Southeastern Conference schools sponsor a variety of programs together. Our failure to do so can be attributed to miscommunication.

But the ladies of Delta Sigma Theta and Pi Beta Phi did not let those barriers stop them from working together. The ladies created a program that was inclusive and one that featured many talents in song, dance and spoken word with participants from many diverse backgrounds. As a judge of this talent, I was fortunate enough to be a part of this event, and what I learned from the experience — about what our students can accomplish when they work together — was invaluable.

We need to collaborate and reach out to students from these diverse backgrounds, both within Greek Life and throughout the student body, just as Pi Phi and the Deltas have done. It is our job and our responsibility to pick up where they left off setting a new precedent for cooperation and coordination between student groups.

There are many ways we can collaborate together. We can incorporate NPHC chapters in Homecoming Talent and MU Greek Week Fling, or we can hold a collaborative step show. All of these are ways we can get involved and really work together — not just as councils but as a united student body.

Greek students especially need to look into our values on which our organizations were founded and start operating in a manner fit for our founders. As a Greek student myself, I know there are ways we can let our values shine through our every day activities as chapters.

So I write this editorial for two reasons. For one, to encourage coordination between student organizations and, especially, Greek councils. Find ways to co-program and learn about different ways you can support each other. Secondly, to urge you to look into your chapters’ values and challenge your brothers and sisters to live by them. This is how we can keep each other accountable.

Until we do this, we are selling ourselves short. And, in closing, thank you again to the students who made this possible and the latest example of what Tigers working together can accomplish.

For Mizzou,

Xavier Billingsley
MSA President
Delta Chi Fraternity Member