How about a scavenger hunt in the house? Would that work?

Man, remember the scavenger hunt on MTV's Sorority Life? That episode in itself is enough reason to illustrate why they are banned now!

Only if the staircase banisters are properly greased.;)

Honeychile,
i'm actually an alum, this thought was just a general feeling that was prevasive in my chapter around the time of my initation. We survived without any of that stuff. And when I posted I really wasn't thinking from a risk management perspective.

I do agree with some of the girls from other organizations though, I think we give a little too much responsibility too soon. In my chapter at least Alphas could hold non- e-board offices and we could vote at meeting. I remember this creating some problems as we diddn't know the girls well enough or understand the issues well enough to make informed decisions. A semester in the chapter wouldn't have hurt us before extending those priveleges.

But, if you spend that semester in the chapter being separated from the rest of the group then you don't learn either. Attending meetings is a good way to learn it. No, new members don't attend ritual, that is the difference between them and the initiated members. But, there is no reason that they can't sit on committees and begin to learn the whole process. This is the perfect opportunity to begin teaching them about how we have to handle risk management, what types of activities give us a good reputation on campus, how to plan, how the budgeting works, etc. It also begins developing their leadership skills so that they are able to step into offices sooner. I also always hear study hours thrown out there as "hazing". They are only hazing if the whole chapter isn't required to do them. And why wouldn't you require study hours of the whole chapter? And why not make study hours integrated so that a new member who is struggling with a class has someone available who has taken that class already? I would say that making them do a philanthropy project on their own, without guidance and assistance from the other members gives them too much responsibility too soon. Put them on the philanthropy committee and have everybody do it together! Integrate them into the chapter as much as possible so that they see the more positive leadership role models of the juniors and seniors (if the class is mainly freshmen). Don't make it so that this is just the responsibility of the big sisters (sister-mothers in AGD) or the officer "in charge" of them.

AGDs official stance is that they become sisters when you extend a bid and they accept. If you were unsure about them, you shouldn't have extended them a bid. They are not probationary members, they are new members, who have a lot to learn about the organization in their first few weeks of their lifetime committment. And, we should strive to continue to treat each sister as we do during Recruitment. That doesn't mean you "take anybody" and it becomes just like "any other club". It means you are very selective during Recruitment.

The women who were initiated members when I was a new member knew what they were doing. They were always telling me that they saw me in big leadership positions. I think they "groomed" me to be a leader by boosting my confidence up and helping me find those skills within myself. They expected the best out of me and I gave it to them. If they had treated me like I was a lower life form, I probably would've fulfilled those expectations. We did do some of the silly things that are considered risky now (like a scavenger hunt) but I honestly can't say that it built up our unity. It was just a silly thing to do on a Friday night.

Dee

Then why aren't they initiated immediately? I'm not trying to be witchy, but why bother with a pledgeship period when apparently it doesn't matter?

It's all well and good to say you should be super careful in the bid giving process, so a pledgeship really ISN'T necessary, but when you spend a total of 4 hours time with these women before bidding them, it's really hard to never ever ever make a mistake, unless you have them spied on or are clairvoyant.

I wouldn't want a doctor who was allowed to give prescriptions his first day in med school, or a President who just registered to vote yesterday. You might think that's a little extreme, but if we keep initiating people and giving them too much responsibility before they're ready, it will harm our organizations greatly.

We always say that GLOs are a lifetime commitment. What's 6 weeks out of someone's life to spend in a learning period? That doesn't mean you are treating someone like a lower life form :rolleyes: :rolleyes: it means that you care enough about them to give them a little time to watch and learn before they have the responsibilities that an initiated member does on their shoulders. I don't know when it became a crime to say that you should know something about a group before you join it fully.

I think there's a quote along the lines of "that which is given easily is appreciated little." It would behoove us to remember that with our organizations.

I agree that new members need time to learn the organization and am not endorsing having them hold offices immediately. But, a learning period and a "probation" period are different things.

And, often, you still end up with some less than ideal members even after a 6 week new member period. Otherwise, you wouldn't be seeing all these posts about chapters being closed for hazing and alcohol violations. I believe that all sororities have some form of suspension of membership and occasionally have to use it because of those who still slip through the cracks.

In my experience, most members, by the time they are juniors and seniors have eased out of the "partying phase" of college and are more focused on academics as they realize that they are really going to graduate and will have to find something to do in the "real world". I think that new members will benefit more from having more exposure to these women, being mentored by them on committees, and interacting more with them than they will by doing things on their own.

I can see the Greek system as a whole moving to an immediate Initiation eventually, if the hazing doesn't stop. It will be a matter of survival from law suits. That doesn't mean the newly initiated members would be able to immediately hold offices or would be free from a learning period, they would have their learning period after Initiation instead of before Initiation. I don't necessarily endorse this, but see it as a potential consequence.

Dee

I wasn't saying that new members should'nt attend meeting. I just think that spending time in the chapter learning what it was all about before extending voting priveleges would have been helpful thats all.
i.e. my chapter was in a "growing" stage when I accepted my bid. We had full voting priveleges from the get go. Homecoming time came along, the alpha class had been hanging out with a small but friendly fraternity house on campus, we diddn't know anything about which houses were the top houses and how fraternity relations can affect membership. So when they asked us to do homecoming with them the whole alpha class voted in favor. Meanwhile, the older girls knew that one of the most respected houses on campus was planning on asking us too, but our votes combined with a few sisters who were dating in the smaller chapter carried the motion and they never got to ask us. These things seem silly now but at the time they were important, especially since at the time my chapter was making a jump from middle of the road chapter to prominent chapter.

This is exactly how I feel (and from the impression I've gotten, how Phi Mu feels) about the Phi program. I just wanted to state my support for your ideas. The entire point of the new member period is to create a smooth transition into the chapter. Our new members (with the exception of ritual) do everything that chapter members do. That way, when initiation comes along and it's time for their first chapter meeting as an initiated sister, there's no big surprises. I think it really aids in retention, because it is a big difference between 6-8 weeks of sugary sweetness and presents and then 'POP' the Phi Mu bubble bursts after Initiation.