‘It’s 24/7’: Inside the lives of Panhellenic sorority house moms at SU
Every day is different for Syracuse University sorority house moms. From making sure houses are intact to ensuring the houses’ residents are safe, each day is a different adventure. Madison Cox | Staff Photographer, Courtesy of Michele LaRocque
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UPDATE: This story was updated at 11:41 p.m. EST on Sunday, March 1, 2026.
From 1994 to 1997, Michele LaRocque served as the “house mom” for Syracuse University’s chapter of Alpha Gamma Delta. Years later, she would be the bridesmaid of one the then-sorority members.
LaRocque returned to SU’s AGD in 2024 and is now the house mom at SU’s Alpha Epsilon Phi chapter. Living in a house with “career-minded women” and hearing about their goals, aspirations and beliefs is most important to LaRocque.
“I would live vicariously through their Friday and Saturday nights, hearing about all their escapades and what they did,” LaRocque, who is 63 years old, said. “I think the women are the most fun part of this job.”
All 13 sorority houses of SU’s Panhellenic Conference are independently owned and operated — and thus, run by a house mom. House moms are responsible for upkeeping the building, making sure residents abide by the rules, ensuring that the house is cleaned and more.
For some, it’s their second career or a full-time job while others work a 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. shift during the day. While some sorority house moms, like LaRocque, have been doing it for years, others are practically the same age as their residents.
Despite being employed by different sorority chapters, all of the SU house moms communicate with each other in a group chat — some planning walks around Walnut Park or coffee chats.
Some of SU’s sorority chapters, like Alpha Chi Omega, have houses that are more than a century old. The older the house, the more issues the house mom has to resolve, Clara Berg, A Chi O’s house mom, said.
Since Thanksgiving break, Berg said she has tracked more than six different leaks in the house — including the roof, pipes and radiator.
“There’s always something kind of breaking or something going awry,” Berg said. “But it’s nothing so chaotic that I’m like, ‘Oh, no, this is too stressful, I can’t handle it.’”
Berg’s primary role is to maintain the sorority house and keep everyone safe. Berg officially moved into A Chi O this school year — her first year ever being a house mom. Delta Gamma’s house mom, 64-year-old Carol Forrest-Gookool, though, has been doing this for eight years.
“I’m like a neighbor looking after the young ladies, versus someone who is going to be more like a prison guard than a neighbor,” Forrest-Gookool said. “This is the best job, I love all the energy, it’s great living in a house of happy, healthy young women.”
Forrest-Gookool has been house director for the University of North Dakota’s chapter of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity and University of Michigan’s Alpha Omicron Pi sorority . She said SU and DG are her favorite places to live and work.
When people hear that Forrest-Gookool is a house mom, she said they always say “that must be crazy living in a house full of sorority sisters.” In reality, she said her residents at DG mainly study and don’t play loud music — unlike the fraternities that she was a house mom to for four years.
Berg said the hardest part of being a house mom isn’t the everyday responsibilities like locking the doors and making sure the radiator works. She finds the nostalgia of living in a sorority house makes her miss her college years, despite going to a community college without any Greek life.
“Sometimes they will be playing music at a nearby frat house and a part of me really wants to go out and dance with them,” Berg said. “Then I realize I’m 35 years old and that would be kind of weird.”
House moms are a “watchdog” for her residents, Forrest-Gookool said. To ensure the safety of her residents, LaRocque can be up until 4 a.m. some weekends, keeping track of her residents and making sure they return home after going out.
No matter the hour or day, a house mom has to be ready for any pipe to burst, carbon monoxide alarm to go off or get medicine to a quarantined resident.
“It’s 24/7, you have to be ready for anything, any hour, any day,” LaRocque said. “There’s really not a job description. It’s property management and so much more. No day is scripted.”
Every day is different as a house mom, Forrest-Gookool said. In her free time, she reads one of her estimated 100 books or plays her guitar. Outside of her bedroom door is a sign that shares her contact info, offering anyone to “stop and say hi.” She also has a sign that reads, “Need sewing? Happy to oblige!”
Forrest-Gookool enjoys when her sorority girls take advantage of her sewing skills. One of her favorite memories in her house mom career was this year, when one of her residents bought a dress for a date night that was “made for someone that was 6 feet 2 inches” — which she was not. Forrest-Gookool tailored the dress and the resident was able to wear the dress.
Moments like the dress or going to see her sorority residents’ play make the job worthwhile, Forrest-Gookool said. For her, it’s about helping residents and contributing to their happiness.
To determine the success of a house mom, a strong sign is a weekend without any hospital visits for your residents, LaRocque said. Despite sleepless weekends, she said that her priority is to act like a parent and care for the house.
“The best part about it is just the women and every day is different,” LaRocque said. “I’m really lucky.”
Disclaimer: Lily Zuckerman is a member of Syracuse University’s chapter of Sigma Delta Tau. Her affiliation did not impact the content of this story.
Clarification: A previous version of this article included a fourth house mom. The source has been removed from this story due to privacy concerns.
Disclaimer: Lily Zuckerman is a member of Syracuse University’s chapter of Sigma Delta Tau. Her affiliation did not impact the content of this story.
