Panhellenic sororities experienced their first recruitment week during the school year, as opposed to the previous week before classes. The decision to reschedule was made in hopes of attracting more potential new members, and it proved to be successful.
After a steady decline in Greek Life interest over the last five years, the Panhellenic Council decided to make a change and set a goal this year of 120 sign-ups.
“This year we have a total of 128 potential new members signed up for formal recruitment,” said Mackenzie Welsh, Panhellenic president. “In comparison to last year where we had 98 potential new members signed up, we are extremely happy with this number.”
Beyond just moving the dates, the sororities hosted pre-recruitment events and tabling opportunities around campus where potential new members can meet the chapters and get to know them before the big week.
“I believe our pre-recruitment events really helped our numbers this year,” said Emily Hall, vice president of internal recruitment. “It gave potential new members the opportunity to meet sorority women in an informal setting, which is much less intimidating than the formal recruitment process.”
Current sorority members also found the experience personally beneficial.
“We were able to interact with the girls going through recruitment and get to know a bit about them at each event,” said Travianna Tighe, member of Alpha Phi.
Although pushing recruitment back a few weeks is great for numbers, it did add some extra challenges. With classes, sports and other extracurriculars already in full swing, more scheduling conflicts arose.
“Our amazing Vice President of External Recruitment, Jacey Wahlstrom, has worked really hard to make any accommodations to schedules a potential new member might need,” Welsh said. “We want absolutely anyone who wants to go through recruitment to have the ability to do so.”
The Panhellenic Council plans on continuing this recruitment schedule in the coming years. After navigating the new challenges in the first year, they foresee an even smoother second year.
Photos by Kosuke Yoshii / Antelope Staff
