2008 Woodie Awards
Have a Greek Week
Recruitment Comes to a Close
By Melinda Bartel
9/10/07 - Features
After a week of information sessions, house tours, food, and house-sponsored events, Greek Recruitment has officially come to a close.
Dane Karras, the Rush Chair for Kappa Sigma, said that, over the years, it has become harder to recruit students into Greek life. According to Karras, the school makes it difficult for fraternities to talk to freshmen because they are not allowed to walk around the dorms, stand in the student center, or outside classes. Instead, fraternities have to attract the freshmen to them.
To intrigue the freshmen, Kappa Sigma sponsored their traditional activities: going to a Rockies Game, eating dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings, playing at Boondocks, and having dinners with the sororities. Other fraternities put on similar events, like taking trips to Hooters and playing poker. This gave freshmen a chance to get out of the dorms and meet the older guys in the house. If nothing else, they came for the free food.
The week ended with bid day, where each of the 7 fraternities offered their potential members a position in the house. If they accepted the offer, they became new members of their respective fraternity and started various, non-hazing, initiation traditions. Kappa Sigma calls their new members pledges and they go on a 60 day "trial run," where they learn about the history of their house, get to know the brothers, and see if the fraternity is a good fit for them.
Sorority recruitment ran a lot differently than the fraternities. According to some, it was more structured around spending time with the girls of the house as opposed to being entertained. Their week included an information session in the ballrooms, guided tours of the houses, "philanthropy night" (where each house does a community service project - Kappa Sigma made flower pots for a retirement community), a formal preference night, and ended with bid night.
Rebecca Hubis, an active member of Sigma Kappa and the Panhellenic President, explained that a lot of girls came to recruitment just to see what it was all about. Hubis said; "Sisterhood is a big thing in a school dominated by males." She also noted that it is a chance for girls to find a home away from home with 40 close friends. Also, the scholarships, the help from older members, and the networking opportunities are very important.
Dane Karras, the Rush Chair for Kappa Sigma, said that, over the years, it has become harder to recruit students into Greek life. According to Karras, the school makes it difficult for fraternities to talk to freshmen because they are not allowed to walk around the dorms, stand in the student center, or outside classes. Instead, fraternities have to attract the freshmen to them.
To intrigue the freshmen, Kappa Sigma sponsored their traditional activities: going to a Rockies Game, eating dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings, playing at Boondocks, and having dinners with the sororities. Other fraternities put on similar events, like taking trips to Hooters and playing poker. This gave freshmen a chance to get out of the dorms and meet the older guys in the house. If nothing else, they came for the free food.
The week ended with bid day, where each of the 7 fraternities offered their potential members a position in the house. If they accepted the offer, they became new members of their respective fraternity and started various, non-hazing, initiation traditions. Kappa Sigma calls their new members pledges and they go on a 60 day "trial run," where they learn about the history of their house, get to know the brothers, and see if the fraternity is a good fit for them.
Sorority recruitment ran a lot differently than the fraternities. According to some, it was more structured around spending time with the girls of the house as opposed to being entertained. Their week included an information session in the ballrooms, guided tours of the houses, "philanthropy night" (where each house does a community service project - Kappa Sigma made flower pots for a retirement community), a formal preference night, and ended with bid night.
Rebecca Hubis, an active member of Sigma Kappa and the Panhellenic President, explained that a lot of girls came to recruitment just to see what it was all about. Hubis said; "Sisterhood is a big thing in a school dominated by males." She also noted that it is a chance for girls to find a home away from home with 40 close friends. Also, the scholarships, the help from older members, and the networking opportunities are very important.
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