I think they will announce before recruitment. But I could be wrong. It is a very exciting time for our Panhellenic women at Ole Miss!

That's the impression I was given on Sunday too.

Okay, why am I now hyperventilating??

Anyone have a strong (relatively unbiased) hunch which group it is going to be?

Because it's just like the final four (or whatever number) of a beauty pageant! :D Panhellenic isn't my area, but I was told all the presentations went really, really well. Sounds like it's going to be a nail biter for everyone, but Ole Miss is truly excited for this!

My money is on 2 at once with the other 2 slated for a later date, maybe 2015 or 16? And since I have no horse in this race, I'm going to guess ADPi and Alpha Phi, for no reason whatsoever. Well, except I think AGD might be fully committed right now. They might make sense for a 2015 or later colony though. Maybe they'll do Arkansas one better and colonize 3 at once, with one to come in a few years.

Obviously I'm rooting for ADPi. Our chapter there closed in the late 90's (96 or 98 I believe). Since I wasn't there for presentations, who knows. It is in the hands of Panhellenic at Ole Miss now. We shall see.

How in the world are they going to decide? Such strong groups!

Don't forget LSU recolonization next fall! :D

I would like to see the following:

1) delay the announcement until recruitment is complete.

2) bring on all four at once. Seriously. How impressive and exciting would THAT be? Trail blazing; it would set the bar really high. Not to mention, it'd certainly shake a few trees.

Okay: now I'll wait for all the naysaying posts, but since you're all from the South, if you flame me, I expect it will be so gentle and subtle that my Western brain won't even process it. I do love all of you guys, I do! I have learned so much from my Southern sisters... sigh... but I will always always always be a California girl, even if I was born in TN.

Panhellenically yours, AzTheta!

AzTheta, I agree. The system can accommodate that much growth. This adds to my thinking that they will wait until after Arkansas is done. If it goes well (and we're all assuming it's going to be more than fine), they will feel more confident to go outside the box a little.

The system can accommodate that much growth? I don't know that we know that. I believe most/every chapter at Ole Miss has just expanded their chapter houses. How do they pay for that if chapters go from 350ish to 125ish in only a couple of years (graduation attrition combined with much lower quotas)? Plus, if the new chapters want to bid up to average chapter size, that would mean 4 chapters times 350ish which is roughly 1,400. That is a whole lot, especially because these colonies would want to be extremely selective. Not to mention that that many colony members could overwhelm the system. That is a lot of folks who don't know the ropes all at one time.

I'm all for expansion at Ole Miss (and lots of other places), but I think biting off too much at once will inevitably cause one or more of the new chapters to fail. That would be tragic considering the cost to colonize.

Do you think two are possible and/or necessary?

I understand the thinking that two groups at once helps avoid some sort of stigma attached to a single new group, but we've seen lots of successful colonizations in the SEC in recent years, and I'm not sure that the new kid necessarily comes in at a disadvantage. Often, it seems, many women would prefer the new group over one that has a less popular reputation.

ETA: I didn't realize there are only 9 groups there now. That means that every new group is a serious hit to quota (over 10%).

I think bringing on 4 at once would create more opportunity for stigma than letting each group have their moment in the sun. I think it might be more plausible to bring on 2 and then stack the other 2 for future expansion if conditions are still favorable. If I were one of the 4 presenting and all 4 were chosen, I would back out.

Oh, no way would 4 work, I was just wondering if you see 1 at a time or 2 at a time as a better way to go.