No, it shouldn't. What she said. And 33Girl made a good point about Locals vs NPC orgs. I couldn't imagine wanting to pledge somewhere else after being a full member of Zeta - that just seems insane to me.

Then what is the point of loyalty and vows? If you can just change sororities as is convenient for you, then do your vows really mean anything? Our chapters are not clubs that one can join and leave as one pleases. That's why there is a 6-8 week period where new members are able to decide if they are able to make the lifetime commitment of joining a sorority.

What I CAN understand is missing the sorority experience. I would think that a good alternative would be for transfers (to schools without their sorority) being allowed to be involved with the school's Panhellenic Association.

SthrnZeta - You might feel differently if you were to transfer to a college with a Zeta chapter only to be told they wanted nothing to do with you. It does happen, more than any of us would like to admit.
violetpretty - Being involved in the Panhel Association is not much of a subtitute for actually being in a sorority.

I understand the reasons behind shorter pledge periods, however, unless education of new members continues after initiation, I fear this trend will continue. I think Chi Omega has a different approach, which I really like. I understand, at least a one school in my state, they have a longer new member period than most which extends over the semester allowing new members more time to bond with their sorority. ( I'm new to greek chat and may be totally off topic) I agree with violetpretty, loyalty and vows have got to stand for something. This is not a club.

THIS.

Not every female student joins a sorority. No one will die without it. There's no freedom of "sorority" There's nothing stopping her from joining a local, service, honor, or community sorority, nor from joining other community or school organizations. There are other options besides the NPCs out there including alum chapters of your org.

I guess I just find it hard to believe another Zeta chapter wouldn't want me as a member because I couldn't see myself feeling that way about a transfer to my chapter - all Zetas are my sisters. But you do make a valid point, sad but true though it may be. Drole also makes a good point that there's no rule saying a person couldn't join some other group with greek letters, rituals, etc. that's not NPC. We sometimes forget there are other groups out there since NPC is so big. I just would hope that if someone did that, they wouldn't forget about the first org they joined... It is afterall, a lifetime committment. Chi-O at my school had a longer pledge period as well, but I was told that it was because they wanted to make sure their NMs made grades, but that's another thread... I too fear that pledge periods will become too short and thus not allow for the proper contemplation about the commitment girls are about to make.

I fear they already have. I'm hearing on these boards that 6-8 weeks is the norm. IMHO, one semester is more appropriate.

I believe in ZTA , the NM coordinator for a particular chapter has a couple programs to choose from, anywhere from 7-9 weeks and I want to say mine was somewhere in the middle (Fall 01). It was enough time for me because I was pretty sure from the start but I agree that extension of the pledge period isn't a bad idea.

Happened to me. I was unable to affiliate with my chapter. Mainly because 4 girls I went to HS with (but hated in HS) didn't want me there and because I was from a struggling chapter so somehow I was going to "hurt" them. Totally lame reasons then and totally lame reasons now.

If I could have dropped out and rushed again, I probably would have.

I understand why the rules come about, but I also see the other side of the coin.

That just seems so sad to me. I remember had a transfer that wanted to affiliate with us and we all liked her well enough and invited her out to stuff but in the end I don't think she felt comfortable with us since we weren't her initiating chapter so she just stopped coming to stuff - not sure if she went alum or what... But I could truthfully say that any girl who came to me who was a Zeta anywhere else and wanted to be in my chapter I'd vote in - for the simple fact that she's a sister no matter what and there were some other sisters out there who wanted her in enough to initiate her so I should trust their judgment as sisters. But I'm only speaking for myself here... I'm sorry that happened to you and as sad as it is, I'm sure you're not the only one.

I can certainly see both sides of this argument but I firmly believe in one and one only when it comes to NPC. I can definitely see missing the sorority experience, hence me joining an alum group :)

Since BadCat mentioned that society allows women to change husbands, the same question could be asked about divorce and remarriage. What about their vows and loyalty? I'm not trying to say BC is right, and that the NPC rule needs to be changed, but her comparison is valid. It's an unfortunate trend that people all too often enter into something, take the necessary vows, and then change their minds later. Doesn't make it right... but it certainly happens.

And here's where I say that 6-8 weeks for an 18 year-old seems like a lifetime. I'm sure there are exceptions to the rule, but I would think that most college freshmen don't fully grasp the gravity of "lifetime commitment". I sincerely doubt that, within 6-8 weeks, they'll be able to discern whether they're prepared to make a lifetime commitment to the organization. Sure, they all think they do... but it's easy to say that when you're dying to be initiated! The "lifetime" part of the commitment can only be made as time passes.

I'm kinda rambling along here without a point... sorry. It's Monday. :p

you made perfect sense....even if it is monday.

i think that the pledge/new member period is too brief. zeta revealed a new new member program over the summer and whittled it down to about 5-6 weeks. i hope they ask all the collegiate vp-2's(new member coordinator) for input, since they experienced a different program as new members.

MySpace...strikes again.

If she hadn't posted anything on either sorority...she would have got away with it.

I don't condone it, but that is probably what would have happened.

Ugh. I know my opinion is completely politically incorrect but I think the new member period should be way longer and that all pledges (yes, I said pledges) should be required to know the sorority history as well as chapter history before initiation. I think they should know the names of all the sisters and pledge sisters as well as where each is from along with their majors. The fraternities do that and I really feel as though the fraternities brothers have a much stronger bond to each other than I ever could have had with my sisters. I don't think hazing is ok but I don't see anything wrong with initiating the girls at the start of the next semester after they learn more about their sorority and sisters.

I still like the idea of having to make your grades before you are initiated - which requires a semester-long pledgeship.

agree with you sister!

:D I was a charter member of a recolonization pledge class. My pledge period was oh about 9 months long... so, yes, I think 6 weeks is too short!

Agree 100%. I know that with 200 person chapters that can be hard, but you should at least TRY. Some people make a habit of squeaking by with the bare minimum.

Chi Omega still requires grades prior to initiation. We never changed & I think it's a very good thing.

at my daughters chapter, each sister makes an infomation page about herself , including hometown,major, photos, family info.(real and greek family) interesting facts about them, etc. they give this to the new member trainer who makes copies and inserts them in a notebook-one for each new member.

the new members are not quizzed on this information, but it does help the new members get to know the older girls.

We had a list kind of like that too - just name, home & school address, age, pledge year, big/little and what they collected (in case they turned out to be our secret Santa and we needed ideas).

After I graduated they started having the pledges make a scrapbook page about themselves - one side informative and one "fun" side.

Or just deferring recruitment so you only give bids to PNMs who have proven themselves academically.

Eeek, no -- then you'll be sure to have smart pledges, but fewer of them! ;)

There are pros and cons to fall and spring FMR but this isn't really the thread for that.

Oh, but this is the thread for discussing whether or not to initiate pledges prior to obtaining grades? :confused:

what happens if she did that during informal? could she have gotten away with it? you dont meet all the other sororities during informal, the president probably wouldnt even know she was on the campus.

Just because you don't meet the other sororities during informal recruitment doesn't mean she won't be found out.

Sure, women have gotten away with holding dual memberships, but depending on their lack of discretion and how careful they are/aren't -- they can very easily be outed.

maybe...

at the school I am at people dont really care. I've been told by girls I know in some sororities that they know sisters in theirs that have transfered and re-rushed.
it is sad though

I can think of 3 examples where someone pledged, but NEVER INITIATED. They then left that campus, which severed the pledge bond that they had to NPC Group #1. They then INITIATED into NPC Group #2 later at different campus. That is okay, because they only initated into 1 group.

It's definitely forbidden to initiated into more than one NPC group, and trust me, in the world of Facebook, MySpace, Google and the internet, it would be very hard to keep something like you are describing a secret. Unless that person got large scale cosmetic surgery, changed their name, and basically went into equivalent of witness protection, getting found out is virtually guaranteed. To initiate into a 2nd group, that person would be constantly on tenterhooks, wondering when they would get "found out", which to me, would not be a very fun way to live one's life. I'm just saying......<shrug>

I totally understand and agree with the NPC rules, but I do feel for some women who might feel the need to join another group.

When I was a collegiate, we lost a chapter the semester after I initiated. I new a few girls that were in this group that initiated the same semester I did. I cant imagine getting initiated into a group, just to be told the following semester that your chapter is closing and you will have no more sorority experience for the rest of your college career. We had deferred rush, so that would have made the women I knew sophomores. It would have been awful for me to have had 1 great semester and then sit back and watch for another 3 years. Just my 2 cents!

This is interesting! A fellow transfer students at my university wants to rush and has made a lot of friends in this one sorority and has already been unformally extended a bid. However, at her old school she was in a sorority but it got kicked off...I was under the assumption that she told them.

Because her sorority got kicked off her old university, do you think she elligible this time around? Or should I warn her about the consequences?

If she was pledging this sorority and hasn't been initiated, she's eligible.

If she was initiated into an NPC sorority, I don't *THINK*...I *KNOW* she is INELIGIBLE to join any other NPC sorority, regardless of if her original sorority got kicked off her first campus (the theme of this thread).

If you already know about her situation, then it's only a matter of time before the sororities do, too.

First, she should see if her sorority is on her current campus, and consider affilliating with them. If they're NOT on campus, there IS an option. Many schools have a "Stray Greek" club, called different names. It's for members of sororities (and fraternities) which aren't on the current campus.

If she hasn't found one like this, she should certainly think hard about it. I think it's one of most Panhellenic things one can do.

I can also think of 2 instances also where women were initiated, and then not only was was their charter revoked, I think that they lost their membership too. So, not only are you not a member of Group #1, you can never ever join another group either, since you already were initiated (and then stripped of membership).

Nice.

How many schools still have something like this? I've heard a lot of talk about it, but never heard of a school that had one. I would have loved it if my second college had one!

If the sorority went so far as to strip them of membership, they probably did something to deserve it. It's very, very rare for every member in a chapter to be terminated by the national organization.

We're very clear with our girls. We are careful to word it so that they understand pledgeship is flexible, but once you are go through that initiation ceremony, you're done.