There are very few AI threads that have been posted on GC over the years that I haven't felt had some kind of negative vibe or snark involved. But, I freely admit that I could be wearing my own bias on my sleeve when I see negativity, and that very likely, none was meant at all. But, from my personal perspective, I generally agree with the OP. That does not mean I necessarily agree with the OP posting as she did - since she is new and may not necessarily understand all the nuances and history on this board.

At any rate, I will say that I always have a bit of a chip on my shoulder on GC about being an AI, because of the attitude I've seen displayed. That has NEVER, not once, translated into how I feel among my sisters in real life. I have felt encouraged, welcomed, honored, and respected for my contribution to my sorority.

I have no doubt that many of you will disagree, but the fact remains that from my perspective as a reader of thousands of threads on GC, GC members, probably unintentionally, tend to treat AIs as second class citizens. Unless it's the so-called "this is what AI is meant to be" kind of situation where the woman has been BFFs with everyone in the organization for 30 years.

This is by far my favorite post in this thread.

WTF. Definitely.

As an outsider, this is also what I have observed.

As another outsider, my sense is that it is almost always unintentional, but reminders of how things can come across are never a bad thing.

I could care less if a woman shops around as an AI. It's up to the individual groups to determine if she is a good fit or not. But it's dumb when someone is an AI and then starts posting on GC like she knows everything, having not had the collegiate experience.

Apropos of nothing in this thread, I love your avatar, amiblue?.

That avatar's got some joy-joy-joy-joy down in her heart.

And just a mite of roomatiz medicine.

I'm not sure I understand what you are saying. It is my understanding (which is based on almost solely on the the GC postings) that AIs are often already involved with the organization. Yes, some do "shop around", but the majority are women who are known to chapters ie mothers, area alumnae etc. Even those who do "shop around" tend to be involved more than Sorority Sue. I would prefer to listen to an AI member who has experience with chapters than a collegiate alumna who hasn't thought about her membership in ten or twenty years.

Sorry, this was a hasty post. All I'm trying to say is that the reason that some of us GC'ers raise an eyebrow at AI's is that there have been some around here that were trainwrecks in the past, that's all.

I know two AI's to my group, personally, one of whom was initiated into my chapter when I was a collegian, and they are both wonderful and contribute a lot.

Agreed. With one or two exceptions, I have never thought it was intentional.

I agree that GC members in general should refrain from giving advice about things they have no knowledge of. That's dangerous, regardless of the person's background. But AIs can and do have experience that makes the equipped to discuss certain topics on GC. Some AIs were once new members, but had to drop for some reason or another. Some were in a local sorority and had a very fulfilling greek experience in college. AIs can be chapter advisors, national officers, Fraternity/Sorority Advisors for an entire greek system, etc. To think that they should keep quiet solely because of their AI status does them an injustice.

Thanks! I was feeling a little old and feisty.

We had a rash of shopaholics on GC (with no prior connections to any groups) who were ever so anxious to share EVERY DETAIL of their journey. This also happened to be at the time when moderation for the AI forum was, shall we say, more laissez-faire than it should have been. A different moderator would have probably said to them "um hey, do you REALLY want to post this?"

AIs in my group (that I am personally acquainted with) have ranged from fabuloso to detrimental to the entire organization, so all I can say is if you haven't gotten the latter of that, you are super duper lucky. Then again, we can say the same thing about sisters initiated in college. It's just that AI is so rare that the sample is smaller and the impact of each person tends to be greater.

Quoted for truth.