GoGreekNow, an app founded by Sigma Chi fraternity brothers from Iowa State University, strives to be an “all-encompassing, one-stop shop” for Greek life across the country, according to co-founder Mark Hagen.
Hagen and Nick Scott, who were roommates and good friends in college, began developing GoGreekNow in fall 2014 and officially launched the app in April 2015.
Living in different cities after college, Scott said he and Hagen kept in touch. They began talking and realized there wasn’t a central hub for all things Greek — a way to locate members, get the latest news and share experiences or memories with fellow members.
Scott, who works with design, production and marketing for GoGreekNow, said he wanted to enhance the Greek experience.
“It’s a lot more than a friendship,” Scott said. “It’s an understanding and a bond that I think all Greek people tend to have, and that’s kind of why I hold it pretty close.”
Hagen and Scott said they kept finding outdated fraternity and sorority chapter websites, which made finding members hard, so they created the app.
“We would get in contact with people who would say, ‘Yeah, that would be great, but I graduated two years ago,’” Hagen said. “And it just kind of seemed like a headache.”
Hagen said they wanted to create a place where fraternities and sororities could promote what they were doing and even connect different chapters across the U.S.
GoGreekNow has campus ambassadors on 45 college campuses such as schools in the SEC, the Big 10 and the PAC 12, according to Hagen.
The app has a nationwide photo and video stream and a section of Greek-related columns written by 40 staff writers, according to Hagen and Scott.
Scott said columns range from serious topics such as hazing to lighthearted topics such as “Top 10 Ways Recruitment is like ‘The Hunger Games.’”
GoGreekNow has a news section, which features media related to any fraternity or sorority in the country.
Additionally, there is a user section where other members can be searched.
To register for the free app, an educational (.edu) email address is required. It can be downloaded through iTunes or Google Play.
Emily Browning, junior in nursing and president of Alpha Xi Delta at Auburn, said Auburn’s chapter of Alpha Xi Delta hasn’t planned events with other chapters at other colleges, because they are still growing nationally.
However, she said if a sorority or fraternity had the option to work with other chapters, the app could be a great way to connect with other campuses
Browning said she thinks it is important to know about national Greek news, however she said it needs to be positive.
“I feel like the media sometimes they only focus on the negative parts of Greek life, and Greek life has a lot more to offer than what the media portrays it as,” Browning said.
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