One hour from the publication of this article, approximately 250 Oklahoma Christian University students, mainly sophomore men and women, will receive letters notifying them which social service club they will serve with during the next few years. After attending events throughout September and searching for a club they felt they identified with most, this morning, they will find out whether they are finally a part of their top-choice club.
For a few, they will be rejected.
Earlier this week, every club participated in interviews and voted on new members, which gave current club members an opportunity to review all the students wanting to rush their club before induction. Then, each club member voted and decided which students to allow membership. For some clubs, each student interested was accepted, while other clubs reserve the right to deny students into the club based on…what?
Are these students rejected because of their behavior, their grades, their personalities, their looks? Are they rejected just because someone in the club has a problem with them and the club is backing them up? How are these decisions policed? Is the Oklahoma Christian administration involved in these decisions at all?
When a group of college-aged men and women is put in charge of letting someone into their organization, there is a risk they will be unfair toward individuals who have every right to be a part of that club. Members of some clubs could still be holding on to the idea of everyone in their club having to be the “same,” which could mean some people feel left out.
Additionally, rush events only open to students who are invited further promotes exclusivity and could harm students who want to be invited and involved but are left out due to reasons they may not know.
According to Student Leadership Coordinator Liz McElroy, some students are not accepted into a club because they have expressed a desire to use it as an avenue to participate in activities such as drinking, which do not align with the the club’s values. However, if a club does not promote such activities, would it not be a good idea for that person to be influenced positively by the members of that club?
McElroy said each rush season averages a small number of students who are not accepted into their first choice of a club and while this number of students remains small, it still poses the question: What makes this exclusivity right?
As a Christian university, we should make every effort to ensure our methods are grounded in the teachings of Christ. Jesus taught us to be inclusive to all just as He was. He defied every social norm of His day just to make everyone feel included in His mission. Clubs should, similarly, forget whatever “image” they are trying to maintain for their club and involve everyone wanting to contribute to their mission.
The method of voting has been passed down since clubs have been founded on Oklahoma Christian’s campus, but I think we are blindly following a tradition without questioning its integrity or whether or not it is Christ-like.
I believe any student who wants to be a part of a club should have the opportunity to do so no matter their intentions, values, personality or track record. Clubs should provide students with an opportunity to serve—hence the name “social service clubs”—wherever they want and should promote good behavior, thus serving as a positive influence to those with ill intentions.
Jesus taught us to be inclusive to all, not picking and choosing who could and could not follow Him and be part of His “club.”
We should do the same.
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