For the past five years, anyone driving up Harder Road hill would notice the predominately Greek insignia plaques lined up along what some have coined Greek Hill. In the next month, the view will change and expand to include many more non-Greek organizations.

Megan Lebre, adviser and programming coordinator for Student Life and Leadership, said they began the process six months ago because the plots had not been updated since 2009. Much of the paint had faded since the update and they wanted to increase the amount and diversity of organizations that were represented.

The 14-by-14 plots will be split in half to include the insignias of two campus organizations instead of one, Lebre said. The 16 plaques will now represent more than 30 different organizations on campus.

Eighteen of the organizations that will be featured are fraternities and sororities, while the other 14 represent a broader range of organizations, such as the academic and religious, Lebre said.

The applications were sent out to all 102 officially recognized organizations on campus in May 2014, resulting in a total of 38 applicants.

“If they were already on the Hill they did have first priority, but still had to turn in an application that said they had been following the programming,” Lebre said.
Lebre said a committee with staff from across campus selected the organizations based on their overall philosophy, what kind of programming they were doing, and how they were representing Cal State East Bay.

“All these clubs will be reviewed annually,” Lebre said. “They were not only accepted because of the programs they’re doing, but they have to maintain those programs.”
In order to maintain its position on the Hill, each organization must have a minimum of two programs for the campus community per quarter, or six in an academic year. The programs can range from the academic and service-oriented to the cultural and social.

CSUEB officially got involved with the Hill in 2009, when 13 Greek and cultural organizations were represented, to give it a cleaner, more unified look by setting up 16 concrete plots, according to a 2009 CSUEB press release.

The 13 organizations got first priority, while the other organizations were put into a lottery, according to the 2009 CSUEB press release. That was also when the name changed from Greek Hill to University Hill.

Prior to 2009, organizations used colored bricks, wooden blocks and chalk, among other things, to put their organization’s letters on the Hill, according to a 2006 CSUEB press release, a tradition started in the late 80s by the women’s softball team.

Along with an application, each organization submitted its own design.

“For the last 3 months, we’ve been working with the stenciling company,” Lebre said. “Facilities will end up painting them, and it should be happening in just the next couple of weeks.”

There were a couple of delays in the production of the designs, but barring any unforeseen hurdles, Lebre said the painting process should be complete by November.