Some NPHC organizations have a minimum number required to be an active chapter with and without needing "special dispensation" (or some equivalent, depending on the organization).

If the NPHC sorority chapters are really (meaning, I think the OP is too ignorant to really know) 1-3 members at a campus of 30,000+ students, those NPHC chapters are already doing, or working toward doing, what they need to do to remain active chapters. Thus, they do not need any favors (based on predictable stupidity and ignorance) from the OP and his fraternity chapter.

Aside from what sigmadiva and DrPhil said, some chapters enlist the help of other members in their regions (alumni and collegiate).

I would be absolutely shocked if the OP actually knew how many members the NPHC groups are actually in the chapters on his campus.

;)

Exactly.

Unfair!!! You know that puppy is my weakness. :)

On our campus the number of members for ALL greek orgs are published along with their average GPA.

Undergraduate chapters of Theta Nu Xi range from two members to twelve members with the average being about seven members. We cap membership at thirty members per undergraduate chapter, though we haven't yet had a problem with any chapter exceeding the maximum.

Others have mentioned in this thread the importance of local and regional support. While our chapters are distinct, our national identity is more relevant. Even if you see only two members on a campus roster, there are twenty+ other people behind the scenes making the magic happen. There have been instances where everyone in a chapter graduates leaving no members, but intake is still held the next semester and the work continues without missing a beat.

For Theta Nu Xi, and others, the number of members isn't as important as the work output of the individuals. We'd rather have three members who are working hard than fifteen members who aren't doing much.

Do those people behind the scenes tend to be alumnae from that chapter, a local association or from the national hq? I am really curious as to how involved they are. Do they help out like they were active members or more like an adviser?

Exactly.

While it may seem like these organizations aren't doing much, there are typically far more pressing matters that we're concerned with. Organizing a voter registration drive at a local community center is often more important to us than earning blue ribbon points for Greek Week, so don't be surprised if our members aren't tripping over themselves to practice for lip-sync or t-shirt time.

Not disagreeing with your post at all, but as "importance" can be a relative or even context-dependent thing, I'd say soimething more along the lines of "is much more important for our group/some groups." This is a prime example of differences in priorities and focuses/raisons d'être from one group to another.

The support comes from members in the area, whether they are alumnae from the chapter or not. Usually, the only people serving as advisors are the formal Chapter Advisors, who are recognized by the National Board. Everyone else who contributes gets involved with the direct work. They'll assist in many areas from tabling to marketing to event planning and execution. The arrangement is informal, so the chapter and their supporters come to their own decisions about what type of involvement is needed.

You could say that they participate as if they were active members, but there is a distinct line and the decision-making comes from the active chapter members, unless responsibilities are specifically delegated.

Yes, sir.

Even if it wasn't stated, I took it as implied that knight_shadow was referring to organizations like his own. In terms of each group's raison d'être, something I find interesting is that the end result is often the same. Members of GLOs graduate from college with life skills that help them get jobs, maintain great networks, etc. The methods to get there are often very, very different though.

Duly noted (and edited :))

I did too, actually. But knowing how some people can read these threads, I wanted to avoid any misunderstandings.

MysticCat's edit is appropriate even when knight_shadow's distinction was implied. We want to stay away from even the appearance of ranking concerns and experiences.

On that note, my chapter's experiences mirrored knight_shadow's post and it caused a lot of tension among some of the Greeks on my campus, including the idea that NPHC GLOs are not "real GLOs."