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Audit Reveals Majority of Songfest Revenue Comes From Blackmailing Participants

By Century Swingers , in Greek Life , at October 20, 2021 Tags: , , , , ,

The Department of Student Affairs is placing official sanctions on the Texas A&M chapter of the Chi Omega sorority following allegations of financial hazing in the fall 2021 semester. This decision comes after dozens of hazing reports from student groups competing in the sorority’s fall philanthropic event, Songfest. One such report claimed that official delegates “pressured, enforced, and even bullied” participants into buying official Songfest t-shirts in order to win the competition.

Songfest is an annual event put on by Chi Omega, in which a fraternity or men’s organization teams up with a sorority or women’s organization to perform a complex dance number for two nights in Rudder Theatre, with the groups competing for prize money for their respective philanthropies. On top of the performance itself, there are additional competitions, including a t-shirt sale competition. The ranking in this t-shirt competition determines the performance order, with first place getting first choice of time slot in addition to a generous monetary prize.

The t-shirt sales competition is what put Chi Omega under heavy scrutiny this year, as they had to dramatically increase revenue after last year’s Songfest did not meet the projected revenue targets. Alena Maric is a freshman in the Alpha Alpha Alpha sorority, which is paired with the Club of Aggie Gentlemen in this year’s competition. “One night after practice, we were led into a dark shed,” Maric said. “Our Chi Omega delegate, along with our coaches, barricaded the door until we had either bought or sold five shirts each. Some members didn’t manage to reach that and had to stay for hours after practice rehearsing their kick ball changes.”

Following Maric’s story, the Chi Omega sorority put out the following statement via their Instagram story Wednesday morning, stating, “We are so sorry you feel that you’ve been hurt by our actions. Everything we do is for the kids. Please don’t report us to Student Activities. We’ve learned and we will never do it again!”

To attempt to make amends for their mistakes and help repair relationships, Chi Omega is granting Alpha Alpha Alpha and the Club of Aggie Gentlemen a philanthropic stipend of $5,000 to donate to their respective causes. While they may no longer be competing, the team will be using the stipend to supply champagne for their afterparty, reminding us all what Songfest is truly all about.

— Century Swingers