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From Student Life (www.studlife.com)

Student Life - News
Issue: 02/21/03

Panhel selects Chi Omega as new sorority
By Justin Choi

The Greek community plans to expand its family next year with
the addition of a new sorority chapter, Chi Omega.

Nearly one year ago, the sorority community voted to open itself
to expansion. This act gave the green light for national sororities
to solicit colonization. Leaders made this move because over the
last few years, Washington University's sororities experienced
growing pledge classes. As a result, sororities at WU had
overwhelming total memberships.

A goal of the expansion is to ensure that those who are interested
in Greek life will be accommodated.

"One of the main reasons we wanted to bring in another chapter
was because the chapters, right now, are too large," said Emily
Reinhart, president of the Women's Panhellenic Association.
"They're getting to the point where after we do rush there are
130 to 140 girls in a sorority, which is huge. They're going to bring
an outlet, basically for our numbers to dwindle, which is needed."

Information packets explaining the situation on the WU campus
were sent to all 26 national sororities, including the five already
present on campus.

"We send [the packets] to everyone just so [the sororities] that
are on our campus know what's going on," said Reinhart.

Of the 21 sororities that are not represented at WU, 19 expressed
interest in colonizing and submitted applications. A committee
composed of 12 individuals, chaired by Reinhart, subsequently
reviewed the applications.

The extension committee narrowed its applicant pool down to
three sororities and extended invitations to them for on-campus
interviews.

Two of the three sororities, Kappa Delta and Chi Omega, accepted
the invitations. During the interview process, committee members
unanimously determined that Chi Omega would be the best fit for
the WU campus. This decision was reported to the Women's
Panhellenic Association, and subsequently all of WU's sororities
agreed to invite Chi Omega to colonize the campus.

A decision on the timeline of this colonization has not yet been
finalized, but people close to the voting process anticipate a fall
2003 founding class followed by a spring 2004 rush.

Part of the reason why committee members favored Chi Omega
over Kappa Delta was that its philanthropy is different from those
of the already established WU sororities. As a result of Chi
Omega's installation, students should expect Breast Cancer
Research to be added to the list of sorority philanthropies.
Additionally, a benefit of bringing Chi Omega to Hilltop Campus is
its national support system.

"[Chi Omega] has a good national support system as far as their
national headquarters, and that was one of the things about Chi
Omega that we liked the most," said Reinhart. "They are going to
have someone move to St. Louis and basically live on campus for
six months to help set up the sorority. [The chapter advisor is]
hired by the national sorority, which is great because that makes
it easier on us as the sororities that are already here in that we
don't have to constantly be extending our resources to them."

Existing campus sororities are, for the most part, very supportive
of bringing Chi Omega to WU.

"[Chi Omega's introduction] will also decrease individual pledge
class sizes for sororities, which will strengthen each individual
sorority in that they won't have quite as many members so that
it'll be easier to meet people within the sorority," said junior Lydia
Cote, president of Kappa Kappa Gamma.

The Women's Panhellenic Association felt that this increased
intimacy within sororities would result in more active members.
Instead of five large sororities with less active memberships, six
optimally sized sororities with active memberships will strengthen
the entire Greek Community, members said. Furthermore, a
founding class opportunity may attract women who might not
have otherwise considered Greek life.

"In the fall, they're going to be rushing sophomores, juniors and
seniors because no one is allowed to rush freshmen in the fall,"
said Reinhart. "In the spring when they rush everyone else, it'll
basically be the same pool of women. But in the fall, when they
try to get their founding class of sophomores, juniors, and seniors,
I think they're going to get a lot of women that are sorority
women but who just never joined a sorority."

Reinhart notes that Chi Omega's greatest challenge will be building
its founding class, though the support of Washington University's
Greek system will lessen this burden.

One woman who had previously chosen not to pledge does not
see the addition of Chi Omega as a possible reason to join the
Greek community.

"It doesn't really affect me because I was never interested in
sororities to begin with," said freshman Kristin McGrath.

Current sorority members, however, see the advantages of a new
sorority.

"Although I'm already pledging, I think it'll draw a lot of people
because it's a chance to be in the founding class or first pledge
class of a chapter," said freshman Danielle Durso, a Delta Gamma
pledge.