No harm taken darling! If a PNM would like a "smaller" house, then AOII, Theta, Pi Phi, and Kappa are the ones for them! Yes we still have almost 200+ members but we are "smaller" and we are more into taking women from outside of Mississippi and the "deep south." For example, my chapter of AOII has a sophomore from Modesto, CA, two VA sisters, three girls from South Carolina, one from Chapel Hill, tons from GA, about 8 TX girls, a few IL girls, MO girls, LA girls, TN girls, KY girls, one from PA and NJ, and other great states in the Country. One of my best friends while I was collegiate was a sister with me from NJ and another from Ohio. Don't get me wrong though, there are girls in other "typically MS houses" from New Mexico, Florida, etc....Also, think about this, the majority of our students are from MS, TN, TX, LA, AL!

Also, to agree with TippieChick who was a ZTA at Ole Miss...I don't know why they left to be honest. I had two girls from my highschool go ZTA and they could have been anything they wants, the picked ZTA because they were legacies but also because they felt at home there. I know for a fact that they were beautiful, very smart, kind women who had class and grace. I thought their last two years at Ole Miss they got some awesome PNMs and I don't understand why they left. Some said it was for money and other said it was because of numbers and their national's did not feel they could compete with other chapters who were larger. However, I think they could have stayed and competed and GROWN. They had a gorgeous house on Old Sorority Row and they have and had great alumnae support since they were founded here in 1939 I believe. It is unfortunate that we lost them but I hope one day they come back. I know that it has affected the Greek community. I know for a fact ZTA at Miss State is awesome and at other Southern school, so perhaps in 20 years or sooner we can get them back. ADPi has the alumnae still here and around MS, it is just getting them back to campus.

Also, everyone keep in mind the new service sorority, Omega Phi Alpha is doing WELL and they are sort of filling the nitch for those who want a smaller sisterhood with less cost and less members. Also, it is a great way for other sorority members to join and meet women that might have gotten lost in the Recruitment syster and could be possible COB's.

Also, a final note folks, is that I don't think any NPC sorority is willing to take the risk and financial committment of starting a sorority here or bringing one back here. Even without a house, the cost of a major PR Blitz could be pricey and I would think that they would have to have an edge that the other sororities don't have.....just a thought...sorry to write so much....this is a hot topic for me, since I'm at Ole Miss working right now, well actually it is dead in the office today...anyway

Oh I forgot this, there are awesome non-greek women out there here! My roommate was not in a sorority, she could have been she would have been a 3x at Ole Miss Tri Delta Legacy, but she didn't want to do the sorority thing because she felt it wasn't for her. She is smart, in grad school here make straight A's and gorgeous. She is also a very giving woman and kind and a good Christian....there are tons of awesome women who are not in a sorority at Ole Miss.

The comments that OleMissGlitter posted seem to answer what I was wondering.

Granted I have limited understanding, but it seems that a new chapter is going to be small for almost a generation before it can fully compete because you need legacies from that chapter to come through, and slowly you will build up. If the school is so entrenched in tradition, it seems like the usual 2-3 years of major national support won't work. Rather you need to pull through for about 25 years and when those legacies start to come through you might be able to fill the MS quota that is needed. But from the ground up you need to have a unusual approach. Is it illegal for an NPC to get its area alumnae to help push their daughters to a school so they can form a colony? Then you have MS and legacies to start with... (though this is probably highly illegal)

It just all seems so foreign, I just wonder how many women who would like to go greek, don't because the school is so steeped in this massive tradition and protocol. (I'm honestly not judging, just trying to fathom this world that is called Ole Miss.) I think these organizations offer great things to the women they fit.

I think there are some women who do not go through recruitment because they feel they won't fit in or they aren't the "right look." However, I encourage women to try because with recs and with our recruitment 6weeks into the school year, they have time to look at the GLOs and to meet sorority members. That way they can decide if it is the best thing for them. Obviously, this works because tons of girls sign up late, literally the day before, who did not sign up at the end of May when the forms go out. I think that there are also other non-Greek groups, such as academic groups and theatre troupes and comedy troupes and Church groups who met weekly who fill any void a woman might have if she is not in a sorority. We have tons of student orgs, like any other university, so therefore, I feel that even those who don't join a sorority they might get a sorority-type feeling living in the dorm, joining a religious org, or just volunteering at our local Leap Frog chapter to read books to kids. Yes, Greek life is a big part of Ole Miss, but I think anyone can be someone here if they are not Greek. We've had Presidents of the Student Body who were not Greek, breaking down barriers, and we have many other heads of student orgs who were not Greek. I think what Ole Miss is trying to do lately with having recruitment 6 weeks into the year is to have a balance between Greek members and non-Greek members. However, outsiders of Ole Miss must realize that Greeks have been very prominent since Ole Miss' founding in 1848. Some of our biggest alumni were members of GLO's here. However, I also know that we have many other alumni who were not Greek who donate money. I think what we have at Ole Miss is truly unique and I think the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill had a student do a disseration on us once, our Greek Life that is....I remember hearing about that. I also know we have had some of our own PhD candidates write on that sort of subject. It is quite strange that our campus is sometimes dictated by Greek Life. For example since I've been here (1996) the Homecoming queen and Miss Ole Miss have been greek. I don't know if that is because Greeks are wonderful at backing each other and supporting each other or their own member when they run for something. Either way you look at this, in order to truly understand our Greek System you either need to study it as an outsider for a long period of time or matriculate and pledge and become a member of a sorority or a fraternity. It is not the normal Greek System, but we are similar in one way, that all of our houses hold our letters close to our hearts and we all try to follow our GLOs' ideals. Sorry to go off on a tangent!

I think that another thing to point out is that Theta has an exemplary reputation as far as support and resources for new colonies - I believe they have never lost a colony. They came in with that behind them. I can't think of another NPC I've ever heard that about.

From the sounds of it, then Ole Miss. is unto it self. A very Cliquish School Southern Born and Bred till death do you part school!:)

There is nothing wrong with that at all. If that is the case, then just leave well enough alone and go about the business of being a Greek!

It would be fantastic if a lot of New Greek Soroities were going to go there just as Fraternities. It is a Status thing! LXA is Not there but at Miss. State.

But, the start up cost to do this would be prohibative for the if come of making it.

Whether anyone knows it or not, because of the Risk Management Cost of Insurance, all Greek Orgs are running a tight budget!

russel, you amaze me coming from a Northern State how much you seem to know about Southern Greeks:confused:

I do not beleive you are a Greek Social Organization Memember, is that correct?

Yes, I am Educated, with the School Sheep Skin from a State U. not one of the Iviest Of Leagues finest!:eek:

But it seems that there are a lot of schools out there who do give a great education to its students!

One of the finest Medical Schools it in St. Louois Mo. Harder to get into than many of the so called "Finest"!

I went to Florida State, which is in Tallahassee. Tallahassee, unlike Miami, is part of the Deep South.

Phi Kappa Psi is a social fraternity, a charter member of the NIC, and we are the second oldest fraternity in your alma mater's state.

We are also the second oldest GLO at Ole Miss, having originally chartered in 1857.

Mr. Earp,
I am pretty sure we use to have a chapter of Lambda Chi Alpha, but I could be wrong....I might be confusing my yearbooks up. I love to look at older yearbooks from the early 1900s and I've been through most of Ole Miss' and then I found some of my great-grandmother and grandfather who graduated from Tulane. Maybe it was Tulane....I'll try to remember. OH and isn't there a chapter of Lambda Chi at Milsaps College in Jackson, MS? I think they have a swimming pool....

OleMiss, yes, Milsaps is the only other Chapter in Mississippi!

Or as My ex lady friend used to MIcrookedletter crooked Letter, I Hump back Humpback i!

Of course, she was from Tenn!

russel, thank you for the update!:)

You are still amazing!:D

Simply amazing!:D

There's also a Lambda Chi Alpha chapter at Mississippi State University. The Lambda Chis there were a bunch of nice guys. :)

So I am trying hard to avoid studying for my med surg final and I thought I would compare the two chapters at Ole Miss that I am most familiar with for obvious reasons. My numbers might be off a bit, however, I realized (though I already knew) that it really backed OleMissGlitter's point:

Delta Gamma (Not only founded in Oxford, but a GLO with strong Mississippi ties)
260 (+/-) members... 62% are from Mississippi; 33% are from TN, TX, LA, AL (though I included Georgia) and 5% are from other states.

Pi Beta Phi (There are only two chapters in MS):
236 (+/-) members... 24% are from Mississippi, 51% from TN, TX, LA, AL, GA and 25% from other states.

OleMissGlitter--- I love Alli from Cali!!! She is like best friends with my cousin who is also a Phi Mu.



Anyhow...I am sorry but most of the people on here just don't understand. Ole Miss is like a whole other world. It takes $$$$ to survive on the Ole Miss campus. And while not all the houses are the same size...there are a few that are slightly smaller in numbers...they have the numbers to pay the bills. The ones who closed just couldn't get the numbers. They were not terrible groups of girls, but it is extremely difficult to keep up without numbers...and it is difficult to get numbers without a reputation.

And to the person who said that less than 50% of Ole Miss girls are greek...THAT IS HUGE. Do you realize that most schools only have about 10% that are greek? My sister went to University of Tennessee ans only 17% were greek there...and they have a great greek system...so saying that ONLY about 50% of ole miss girls are greek is a HUGE #..

**Ole Miss only has about 13,000 students.

You really just have to understand the school, the state, the tradition...and all of the current houses are so established...I don't know how girls would respond to a new group. SWince Kappa Alpha Theta was chartered in 1979....2 other chapters have closed So many other organizations are afraid to invest in a new chapter that could very likely fail.

Even though not all the houses are the same size...they are all still strong groups--even the ones who are slightly smaller in #s

Oh and whoever said for the new organization to only pledge drop dead gorgeous girls...that would never work because ALL of the Ole Miss girls are drop dead gorgeous. It's disgusting ; )

Here are links to Ole Miss GLOs in case anyone wants to check them out..

AOII - http://www.olemiss.edu/orgs/alphaomicronpi/

Chi O - http://www.chiomega.com/tau/

Tri Delt - http://www.olemissddd.com/

DG - http://www.olemiss.edu/orgs/dg

KAT - http://www.olemiss.edu/orgs/kat/

KD - http://www.olemiss.edu/orgs/kd/

KKG - http://www.olemiss.edu/orgs/kkg/

Phi Mu - http://www.olemiss.edu/orgs/phimu

Pi Beta Phi - http://www.olemiss.edu/orgs/phimu

I think you've summed things up very well. It's a whole new ballgame at Ole Miss, and I think that those who do understand but aren't Ole Miss alumnae are just in awe!

Hoddytoddy, that is a terrific post. I think I am going to have to quote you the next time I'm asked about Rush/Expansion/Etc. at Alabama. Our campuses are similar in several ways.

I agree with Bama_Alumna, our campuses are very similar....my cousin is a DEKE at Bama and my best friends were Kappa's, Pi Phi's, Alpha Gam's, AOII's, and Chi O's at Bama....very similar campuses.....BTW, I love Bama's sorority houses, all of them are so pretty!

Oh my God...I just looked through those webpages...you aren't kidding, those girls are gorgeous. I'm just going to go and hide in my hole of mediocrity. :eek:

Don't hide SDTSarah...each Ole Miss co-ed is gorgeous in her own way. I will say that we do attract some beauty queens....my own sister won Most Beautiful this year, but the guys are hot too! However, I've seen other sorority and fraternity websites and I think most Greeks are good looking people! We all seem to pride ourselves on our looks and our appearance because we are representing our GLOs. Therefore, I think we all spend more time on our hair and makeup and clothes. Thanks for the comment though. And get this, Ole Miss has smart co-eds as well.....

I agree with SDTSarah...I take very good care of myself and I think I'm quite attractive, but if I'd been at Ole Miss at age 18, I would have taken one look at those girls and assumed I was too ugly to join. If I walked into those houses, all I would be able to think about is how my pasty skin and frizzy hair would look next to all that tan sleekness.

I remember an earlier thread that posted links to houses at Mississippi State...I swear, somebody mixed up the sorority pics with backstage shots from Miss America. A person would think homely girls just don't grow in Mississippi! Maybe they are sent North at birth. ;)

IvySpice you are tooo funny!!! I had to laugh at your comment, because you hear that from southern boys quite often!!!

I posted the links to MS State last year for my cousin's rush (she pledged KD), her little sister pledged DG this year at Ole Miss!!!

Southern girls come in all shapes and sizes, they just learn early in life to dress-up head-to-toe (even if they are dressed down)!!! I would say that is a main difference I have noticed since moving to the New England!

Just wondering, is the fraternity system as competitive as the sorority system?

Hahaha...yeah the girls here so dress up...most people can't fathom that we wear dresses to football games.

But it's not like we dress up for class or anything...most girls wear t-shirts with their letters, shorts that you can't see because their shirts cover them up...they do have on a full face of makeup usually and a paper cup un hand when walking to class.

BTW, my picture is on the Phi Mu page

I would say yes, depending upon the house you are interested in. Check some earlier threads with Ole Miss Fraternity Rush in them. Fraternity Rush was on the History channel this past Fall about the pledgeship of one pledge at Phi Delta Theta.

Alpha Tau Omega--pretty hard to get into but they do take non-Mississippians
Beta Theta Pi--they are re-organizing after leaving campus for a few years, they use to be huge, but they are a great group of guys, they are working very hard and representing themselves great on campus lately to come back
Chi Psi--A smaller fraternity but I think they are nationally a smaller fraternity
Delta Psi / St. Anthony Hall--You have to have very good grades to get into Delta Psi
Delta Kappa Epsilon --Re-organizing, they left for a while, but they are back, they were started here a long time ago!
Kappa Alpha--Awesome bunch of true Southern Gentlemen
Kappa Sigma--Great bunch of guys, lots of my New Orleans guy friends were Kappa Sig's here at Ole Miss, they've been around a long time as well
Phi Delta Theta--Been around a long time, very prestigious fraternity here at Ole Miss, very large at least 200+ members, the Chancellor of Ole Miss, Chancellor Khayat, was a member of Phi Delta Theta at Ole Miss and so is one of the vice chancellor's of Student Life, Dr. Sparky Reardon. They rebuilt their house in 1998 and it was like 3 million to build a new one!
Phi Kappa Psi--been around for a long time here, they left for a few years to re-organize and now they are strong and they have a gorgeous house!
Phi Kappa Tau --They came here in the late 60s I believe and they are a strong fraternity, they have members from all over the place
Pi Kappa Alpha--They have been around for a long time as well, they are very strong and I believe nationally they have won many awards.
Sigma Alpha Epsilon--Strong but smaller fraternity, meaning they don't have 200 plus members, they have like 150!
Sigma Chi ---I think this is one of Sigma Chi's Flagstaff chapters, they are very strong and very good.
Sigma Nu--Trent Lott, Eli Manning, Archie Manning---all members of the Epsilon Zi chapter of Sigma Nu, they are an awesome fraternity. They have a swimming pool....
Sigma Phi Epsilon- The men of Mississippi Alpha of Sig Ep are my sweeties! They are very good and they take men from all over. They were founded here in the 1920s and then left for a while in the late 80s and now they are back, back in 1990, and they are awesome. Very good parties.


sorry for any mis-spelled words

As far as the frat system goes...it's definitely more competitive than other schools, but not even close to the sororities. There are the top frats that their daddies were in and they give a ton of $$...but there are more "middle of the road" frats where as all of the sororities are strong and large in #. Not all of the fraternities have high numbers. But there are also like 15 or so frats.

OleMissGlitter--- I have some friends who are Sig Eps...but my sweeties are the Kappa Sigmas!! I have hung out there since my freshman year!!! Ain't nothing like South Seas!!
I like going to Sip Ep's Haul Crawl --sp??? Those are fun.

Umm, excuse me?? Your picture on the GreekChatters site is absolutely gorgeous so quit your yipping! lol ;)

When was azd at ole miss? I dont think anyone can undersatnd ole miss until they went to ole miss.

AXD was at Ole Miss inthe 1970s, they did not have a house, they used Barnard Observatory, near the Union, for meetings. My best friend who was an AOP, her mother was an AXD at Ole Miss back then. I know after they left,KAQ came in 1979. DZ was also here from 1928-1953.

I just found this thread & had to post b/c I am from Mississippi myself!

The majority of my high school classmates/friends have gone on to become Ole Miss Tridelts, Chi-Os, or DGs. One of my tridelt friends told me this year they had more legacies to their house than they could take for quota! I am sure that happens to those 3 houses fairly often.

In the GreekLife board there is a post about the NPHC sororities and frats--about how they are woven into the community fabric so they aren't solely limited to collegiate type activities. This is very common here in Miss for all Greek life--I remember hearing about someone's mother being a "Tridelt" when I was in fifth grade. Sorority affiliations are touted everywhere--bumper stickers, t-shirts, activities--and not by collegiates but by alumnae!

Because so many Mississippians go to Ole Miss and MSU (State) and stay in the area, sororities become a form of networking--they stay friends for life. In high school, two of my best friends' mothers were both Delta Gammas (& best friend's mother and stepmother were both DG too ;)) at Ole Miss. Social groups are facilitated by sorority affiliations--and if you read the deb profiles every Thanksgiving the girls are proudly and rightly so listed as actives in DG, Tridelt, and Chi-O.

This culture can't be changed overnight--or even in a decade. The Thetas in MS still feel like they're "fighting" for their respect even now. My mother (who is a Theta legacy herself--not from MS, but moved here when I was younger) is a member of the local alumnae group and they are continuously working to help the Ole Miss chapter

Sorority life also relies on the reference system HEAVILY. When I was going through rush at my own school in NC, I found out that various Mississippians--mothers of my friends, associates, etc, had ended up writing a total of about 30 recomendations for me for various chapters. I never asked for any of those recs either! Of course I ended up at the one sorority where I didn't get a single rec--funny story there, I was wearing an ADPi t-shirt around my friend's brother and sister-in-law who both when to Ole Miss (she is a gorgeous blonde typical Tridelt :) and he was a Phidelt) and they asked me what my t-shirt was for. They had never heard of ADPi and they asked me if it was local...
What this means is that a sorority without a local "image" would have a difficult time.

:eek:

Wow, news to us!! Kappa Alpha Theta is consistently one of the largest houses on campus and takes quota every year. The EZ chapter is active and involved in many aspects of campus life. Of course, the college chapter still needs and welcomes help from the growing numbers of Theta alumnae. We are preparing our 25th anniversary celebration at Ole Miss this year.

I agree. Thetas have no need to "fight" for respect. I just graduated in December, and I know that they are a strong chapter. They do have a lot of members that are not from Mississippi. Perhaps this is not a chapter with a lot of Mississippi legacies because it has been on campus 25 years compared to others who have been there 75 or 100 years. But Theta has a great group of girls.

I was just wondering what some of you consider a lot of money in terms of the greek system. I've seen ridiculous numbers from some of our chapters spending 100K on rush every year and I'm amazed I guess. How expensive are the houses at campuses like Miss?

-Rudey
--I was always so curious about these kinds of greek systems.

Truthfully, I don't know how much we spend on Rush, but I know it's a lot. Probably about that much. I know just the fabric to cover the walls one year for skit was something like $25,000. But I don't know how much we spend as a whole. I'm sure all of the Ole Miss sororities spend a lot. Rush down here is pretty extravagant. OleMissGlitter may have a better idea on what is spent.

I have a question. What about affiliates? What about the girls who "know" or "understand" that they may not make it into one of the "Mississippi" houses. They enroll at another school with one of those chapters, become an active, then transfers to Ole Miss. What usually happens? Does she get to affiliate or is the process just as severe as rush?

By the way, a high school friend of mine went to Ole Miss. She had it going for her. Academics, social, looks, active in church and community. You name it. All around great girl. However, she was from out of state. Now, her mother's family was from Mississippi and she was a chapter legacy to one of the "Mississippi" houses. She had recommendations from many Mississippi alumna of this chapter as well. But she did not get in - I think she was cut right before preference - and was crushed. Not so much because she wanted this house (she did love the house) but more so because so much emphasis had been put on this particular house my her mother's family. They have many generations of this sorority in the family. Turns out that she joined the group that "her heart" preferred.

I think we only had 1 or 2 affiliates the whole time I was in school. I think we may have had 1 or 2 try to affiliate that really were not like the girls in our chapter. We were nice to them and all but I think they just realized that maybe they didn't fit in with our chapter. We were willing to let them affiliate. I don't think we've ever been put in a bad spot as far as affiliates go.

This happens a lot. But it's usually for the best. I'm sure your friend is much happier. You always hear rumors too that many of the "Mississippi houses" don't always get to choose the girls they want to be members because their alumna take over. I don't know if this is true though. I know our house isn't that way.

I actually ran into some sisters of my friend (we shall call Scarlett) at Pat O'Brien's in New Orleans. They were pledges on their walk-out. I mentioned that I knew Scarlett and grew up next door to her. They started going on and on about how great she was and that they had visited her home and knew where I lived etc... In any case, what really amazed me was that one of them - flat out - said that they knew that Scarlett was a legacy to another house and that she wanted it but didn't get in. They also "understood" the pressure to do so and - for lack of a better way of putting it - did not hold it against her. This was when I realized that Ole Miss greek life was quite different. Even from the other SEC schools.

I know THAT'S right!!! The University of Georgia has 22 sororities and 28 fraternities, not including the non-NPC/NPHC/IFC Greeks that the school doesn't recognize as Greek. :mad: A friend of mine founded Delta Phi Lambda Asian Interest Sorority at UGA but STILL hasn't gotten in with Greek Life. I know there were talks of a Multicultural Greek Council there, but that kinda fell through (something that isn't supposed to be talked about in public...)

preciousjeni

So in theory, a girl - knowing that she would not be an ABC if she went through rush at Ole Miss - could go to another school, be initiated as an ABC, transfer back to Ole Miss and affiliate. Given that she had the grades and met any other ABC requirements.

ole miss doesn't have the monopoly on girls trying to affiliate with hard to get in sororities. it is happening in other parts of the south(and maybe other places too) as more legacies "come of age" and the value of being a legacy is lowered. being a legacy doesn't have the clout it once did.

I had a friend who went Tri Delta at Miss. State and affliated with the Tri Delta's at Ole Miss. I knew one girl, and I won't say which GLO, who was a member at the Southern Miss chapter of this sorority. Anyway, she was not allowed to affliate with the Ole Miss chapter for whatever reason and she ultimately went early alumna. At Nu Beta chapter of AOII at Ole Miss, we've had two girls affliate with our chapter. I would think anyone transferring to Ole Miss who was a member of chapter of a sorority we have would want to affliate since all of the houses are so strong and so good.

Also, being a legacy means different things when it comes to donations and time and support your mother/sister/grandmother has put into your sorority. I had a friend who was a triple legacy at an Ole Miss sorority and she was released because the sorority really did not know who her relatives were. It's all about being involved and staying involved and money can play a big part.