I have definitely seen Baby Thetas and Baby Kites, though it is not too widespread thank goodness. I also seem to remember some missive put out by HQ requesting that the term "baby" not be used with regards to new members. I have been surfing around on the HQ website, but can't seem to find it. Maybe it was via their twitter/facebook feed? Maybe it was through The Bulletin? Who knows. But I do know that there has been some element of communication with members to stop using that term.

And I agree with the poster above- life was much simpler when we used the term pledge. I can't think of anyone who was offended by that.

Okay, I have a theory:

The word "pledge" was eliminated around the time I joined, like, late 90's - early 00's. It seems like some groups came up with official replacement words: phis, pearls, alphas, while others just expected "new member" to be sufficient. Nobody likes using "new member", so instead, chapters locally made up their own, usually as some version of "baby [insert mascot here].

So, my conclusion is that if orgs don't want their new members referred to as "baby X", they need to come up with something else to make part of the chapter lexicon.

ETA: This is easier for some groups than for others, but Alpha Phi could certainly use "lilies" to refer to their NM's. That's kinda cute.

I am so all over calling your pledges Thetartots! And it is SOOOOO much cuter than Theta Baby. I will admit, however, that I could see your headquarters not thinking it was quite as hysterical as I do.

Yes, bring back PLEDGE. Yes, ditch Baby anything forever.

Yeah, I'm done to death with the "baby (insert mascot here)" thing.

Of course, I fought the losing battle all through college to get my sisters to stop referring to themselves (and others) as "girls".

I had no problem being called a pledge - I survived and have no scars mental or physical from that brief time in my life.

But, I'm sure that 20 years from now, there'll be a new trend and the Baby Quatrefoils/Crescent Moons/Palm Trees of today will clutch their pearls in horror and remember the good old days.

We call our new members "Little Green Sprouts" because they will eventually bloom to be the Killarney Roses of Delta Zeta.

















Nah, I'm just kidding :)

There are commenters on the blog post that Jen linked to in her initial post who defend the use of "baby," but the issue's kind of clouded by the blogger's calling it hazing. I think it's meant as an endearment, but as Jen says, it's infantilizing. Why would organizations that value intelligence and ability want to call their members children? And you'd never see fraternities call their new members something like "Baby Kappa Sigs."

Our national headquarters discourages the use of 'baby violets', 'baby sailboats', etc. I personally think it's ridiculous for our organization, because we don't have an animal mascot, we have a sailboat and a skull and crossbones. Neither of which has been or will ever be a baby. I don't mind the idea in theory, as all new members are 'babies' in their new organization, but I also know that it sounds demeaning and infantilizing to others.

I kind of wish we could do something like ADPi or Phi Mu and call our new members 'alphas' or 'phis', however that is the unfortunate downside of only having one letter. :p

Also, a pledge is a promise, not a person. What I learned from my new member period. :D

I think just "violets" would work, though, wouldn't it? Or do you have a jewel? I think the jewel always works.

As far as I know, ASA pledges have been Pearls loooooooooong before the 90's, whether they were commonly referred to as such or not.

Pansies.. also don't think that would catch on.. lol

Hmm...stars?

When I was pledging all the initiated sisters called me "baby Squirrel" and I loved it. I didn't know who most of them were, but they'd see me on campus in letters and just shout "Baby!" and it just made me smile. I can understand why some wouldn't like it though. And if any of the other pledges didn't, all they had to do was say so and it stopped.

Probably so, except new members were called pledges for decades before the change. My org was founded in 1870, and I don't know for sure when the "pledge" term came into vogue, but I'm pretty certain that new members were pledges for at least 100 years before the change was made. Does anyone have any further info on this?

Some of the groups on my campus, NPC and local, use "baby ____." My group and others called new members "newbies" or "newies," which I prefer, but all the freshmen "babies" seemed to love it.