I'm with you ... somethings are just taken to the extreem of un-common sense.

and then there's the story of the chapter that got fined because PNMs left the house with glitter stuck to their shoes. :)

Slightly OT, I was dirty rushed and had absolutely no idea that going to a party a week before recruitment was not allowed.

Back to what you were saying, we're very mindful of the girls leaving the rush room. We did a question/answer round with different questions relating to what color Starburst the PNMs had. We made sure to collect all of the wrappers as we talked to them and placed girls at the door to make sure no one was walking out with anything.

Another sorority on campus gave out information packets; they claimed they had permission, staged an uproar at Panhel that they were being treated unfairly and that they got permission, and the Greek director said they absolutely did not. Their punishment? Picking rooms last for recruitment events (we don't have houses). Whoopdidoo.

Yes, on most campuses, the CPH has zero teeth, so there is really no incentive not to dirty rush.

I have mixed feelings about most of the rules.
I don't want to see girls be promised bid that they don't receive and I don't want to see groups undermine other groups by suggesting that PNMs not rush them.

But on the other hand, the IFC groups seem to get by with a pretty much free for all, and it seems like there'd be a happy medium.

I think every group should give out an information package for the PNM to take with them. Maybe they could submit them to CPC and CPC could even make the copies to make sure people didn't change them. The info could have the usual trivia about the orgs, and a breakdown of very realistic financial information that the girls could look at really carefully later and tell their parents about without having to be worried about what the group would think.

It's hard to think of info. packets as being a bad thing if everyone did them.

To me the only thing wrong with favors was that the groups competed and got excessive. There's no reason to ban girls taking a napkins or even plastic cups out of parties.

A campus culture that involves reporting groups for PNM taking napkins, talking to family friend during rush, or using the wrong shaped beverage glass, isn't healthy or productive, and if that's what recruitment rules with even the best of intentions yield, we need re-think it all.

recruitment at my school is super relaxed and with a defered recruitment and there are only 3 sororities with about 45 girls in the fall in 60-65 after recruitment and on each sororities informal party we give out an info packet for all pnm's.

it contains all the basic info on us and then i loved this part (each sorority does it differently though) info about each sister, my sorority did each sister had a half page with a few photos and some funny questions along with the basic ones. it was great to look through and see all the girls you've seen around campus and didn't know and find out more about them and who they are.

I remember reading about the glitter! That has to be one of the craziest Rule interpretations I've ever heard.

Here's another one. Actives must stay in their houses while greeting or saying goodbye to the pnm's. That's pretty logical in theory, right? Well it's been interpreted that "outisde" means the plane of the door frame. So if a hand waving good-bye crosses the door frame you get a fine.

Hearing all of that kind of stuff makes me want to get involved in NPC in some way. So, if a PNM can't have any contact with an alumna all summer, how do they get recs????

Well said, although a lot of campuses do info booklets that get handed out at registration or over the summer or something.

Baylor's get handed out at registration, I think. Either then or in the fall informational session, but I know it's early. There's pages about each sorority, costs for each, recruitment regulations, and a little bit of everything. I really like the one big book because there's a lot of emphasis on why going Panhellenic as a whole is a good idea in there as well.

go with your gut
 

Okay, so the thing is if it is during formal, there should be no contact with pnms at all outside of recruitment events. However, many organizations do it if they can keep it under the radar. You are not responsible for this decision, the chapter is. So I wouldn't worry about it too much because it's the chapter who will get in trouble if caught. However, if it bothers you that they are being unfair then go with your gut. On another note though... if it is not during formal, taking girls to dinner or having lunch together may be considered a COR for that chapter and there is nothing wrong with that as long as they aren't bid promising or buying your dinner. I mean if it is dinner in the dining hall, that is way different than to a 5 star restaurant.

at my school, we have all local sororities and deferred rush. Therefore, there are no rules on contacting pnms and the term "dirty rush" doesn't even exist because it's pretty much required.

Check with your sorority's exec board or Panhel representative. Some schools have passed really strict rules regarding myspace & facebook and it's better to be safe than sorry.

So.. our school calls the restrictions placed on actives before FR "normal social contact." Am I the ONLY one who finds this title ridiculous?? I'm sorry, but not being allowed to study with 'potentials' is NOT normal social contact. Having to refuse a Facebook request (which, for those of you who haven't hopped on that bandwagon, is akin to slapping someone in the face almost) is not normal social contact.

I wish they would just be honest and call it "acting like a stereotypical stuck up sorority girl that won't talk to you" conduct.

I honestly think not adding a pnm as a facebook is stupid. I understand that the rule is there to try to stop dirty rushing, but the truth is it really doesn't. People who are going to dirty rush are going to do it anyway. There are too many ways on facebook to talk to someone with out being there friend that there really isn't a need for the friend on facebook rule. I doubt someone who is bold enough to dirty rush is going to be bold(stupid) enough to do it out in the open and get caught.

This is why deferred rush gets a bad rap.

I would tell the Panhel that denying these things goes against one of the major tenets of deferred (i.e. PNMs get to know sorority members outside of the structured rush environment) and try to get them changed.