Old Westbury is a smaller SUNY campus sitting in the middle of Long Island, and its Greek system reflects the character of the school — tight-knit, diverse, and rooted in community service more than the big party culture you'd associate with larger state schools.
The organizations here are mostly drawn from the National Pan-Hellenic Council and Multicultural Greek Council traditions. On the fraternity side, you've got historically Black fraternities like Alpha Phi Alpha and Kappa Alpha Psi, alongside Latino-founded organizations like Lambda Sigma Upsilon, Lambda Upsilon Lambda, and Delta Epsilon Psi. Tau Kappa Epsilon is also present, representing more of the IFC side of things. The sorority lineup includes Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta, Sigma Gamma Rho, and Zeta Phi Beta from the NPHC, plus Mu Sigma Upsilon, Omega Phi Beta, and Sigma Iota Alpha — all organizations with strong multicultural and Latina-founded roots.
That makeup shapes what Greek life actually looks like on campus. Intake processes for NPHC orgs are different from traditional IFC or Panhellenic rush — they're more selective, often happen on a rolling or semester-specific basis, and generally involve a more formal membership education process. If you're used to the open-house rush model, expect something different here.
SUNY Old Westbury doesn't have a Greek Row, and chapters don't have dedicated houses on or near campus. Events and meetings typically happen through campus spaces. The Greek presence is more about programming, step shows, and community involvement than it is about dominating the social calendar. Stepping and strolling events tend to be some of the more visible and well-attended Greek moments on campus throughout the year.
Overall, it's a smaller Greek community relative to the size of the student body, but the organizations that are here tend to be active and identity-driven. The multicultural and NPHC character of the system is genuinely central to how it functions, not just a footnote.
