sorority advice needed
 

So I have a few questions. I apologize if any of these things have been asked before however I am new to this site and seeking some info.
1st thing I rushed this fall quarter at my university for 4 different Pan-Hellenic sororities. On the first day of rush week I was not invited back by anyone. I requested to know why and the reason I was given is because I’m older (27) and upper classman and because I am a mom. So my question would be is there a rule about having moms in a sorority and if so I am curious if anyone is able to tell me why?
Second question being that I can't be part of any group because I am a mom I want to start my own sorority on campus for moms. I have done a lot of research on this and the rules would be the same as any other sorority only difference is no one would be discriminated against. In my research I have only found two other sororities that were started for moms ever. I tried contacting both of them and one never responded and one has dissolved. I know I need to speak to someone on my campus that runs the Greek affrications as well as the student leadership at my school. But before I speak to anyone I want to go in with a game plan. So I guess my question is what steps I need to take to do this. Do I have to be associated at a national level? How do I get funding? How do I recruit members? How do I come up with colors and symbols and philanthropy ect? How do I come up with fees? How do I decide how rushing and pledging works? How many members must I have in order to call ourselves a sorority? Sorry so many questions but any help I can be given is appreciated.

There is a long-running thread on Greek Chat called, "Before You Found a New Sorority." You might want to take a look at it.

http://www.greekchat.com/gcforums/sh...ad.php?t=93174

My strong suggestion would be to investigate community sororities such as Beta Sigma Phi. Google "community sorority" for other GLO's.

Unfortunately, in virtually all cases, if you don't join a sorority in your late teens, you give up any chance of doing so. And if you weren't IN college at 18, that unfortunately doesn't change that. While membership is for a lifetime and the nature of membership changes with age, level of involvement and geography, at the collegiate level it is a social group first and foremost. And the 19-22 year old members have the responsibility in toto of choosing who they want in their club. And if they don't want someone who seems really old to them, that is their prerogrative.

My suggestion for you is to look at Miss Cherry Pie's thread, and go the way she did. There are social sororities that would not "discriminate" based on your age (the child part is probably secondary to your age), and that's where I would focus your efforts. But as she has mentioned, you won't be having formals or date parties. It's a different kind of organization and you have to choose to be happy with that.

If you are a mom and a student, I can't imagine that you would have the time for sorority membership.

This! This situation never came up on my campus during my collegiate years, so I don't actually know what the outcome would have been for any of the chapters here. However, in my personal opinion, I think that a mother would have more important things to spend THAT much time and money on. My school had really low dues [all inclusive $585], and it might not seem like a lot of time on the surface but it really is. Are there perhaps other groups you can join, such as Junior League*, church groups, or service groups?

*Disclaimer- I have no experience with Junior League other than hearing about it on this board.

^^^ Ditto. We ALL understand the desire to be a part of a sisterhood, to have those special bonds with other women. BUT, if your school is a traditional 4 year university (meaning, not a commuter school with lots of older non-traditional students), then honestly.... I don't know why you would want to join a traditional NPC group. Do you want to hang out with 18-22 year olds? Do you want to be involved with the drama associated with that age group? Do you want to go to fraternity mixers and hang out with drunk young obnoxious students? Would you have the means to afford the financial obligations of a sorority? (We're talking potentially thousands of dollars your first year). Who would watch your child when you have chapter meetings at 8pm, or new member education sessions at 9 pm (both hypothetical)? What would you do if your child has a school event or big soccer game at the same time there is a mandatory sorority event? The difference in years between 27 and 18-22 doesn't seem like much, but the maturity level is worlds apart. Greek membership is like having a part time job, or even a full time job in some instances. Could you handle being a full time student, a real life job (if you have one), the "job" of being a sister as well as successfully being a mom? When I was 27, I had a full time job, a full time husband, a house and 2 small kids. No way would I have been interested in traditional undergraduate Greek membership at that point in my life. It doesn't matter how much those 4 groups may have liked you as a person. They know in their heart of hearts that you would not be a good fit for membership simply because of where you are in your life. The same rule applies for those who aren't invited back due to grade issues. (Granted I'm speculating here, because I'm not privvy to the membership criteria to those 4 groups). I'm sure there have been mothers who have gone greek before. But those cases should be considered the exceptions, not the norm.

As for starting your own sorority for mothers, read that link above. Keep in mind there has to be a demand for it at your campus or in your general geographic area. It wouldn't be just "your" sorority. Then figure out how WHY it must be a greek letter group, and not just a local MOPS group (or something of the sort). If you're looking for a way to get involved, look into other service groups as well as clubs that are related to your major.

I'm sorry you're disappointed with the outcome of your recruitment. How you overcome and deal with disappointment is what defines your character.

[QUOTE=kallyssasmommy]I have done a lot of research on this and the rules would be the same as any other sorority only difference is no one would be discriminated against. In my research I have only found two other sororities that were started for moms ever. I tried contacting both of them and one never responded and one has dissolved. [/QUOTE=kallyssasmommy]

Consider some reasons why the one sorority dissolved.
Can you imagine being in a room with 10+women and 10+ babies/children and trying to get something accomplished? I can't imagine writing a Constitution with that sort of chaos.

Kids won't be allowed at meetings? Ok then imagine all the "sorry I can't be there... Kid's sick, can't find sitter, we have Kindermusik class then, it's school play night, ETC.

Being a member is time-consuming and financially stressful, let alone being a charter member.
I am an alum and am only required to be at meetings ~3hrs/month but when we schedule our meetings I still have to look at my nephew's schedule first. I can't imagine having to juggle a 3 year old's schedule with socials, recruitment, and weekly meetings.

Sororities do not "discriminate" against mothers. We do know how much time and energy it takes to live up to the commitments of a Greek organization. They did not want you to get in over your head, both time-wise and financially. Most organizations are limited in how many members we can have at any one time. We choose members that we believe can handle the requirements.

This is also the reason that the groups that you found for mothers are not active & thriving.

Dumb question, but wouldn't this one discriminate against those with no kids, since you said it would be a "moms only" sorority?

Point of clarification: sororities discriminate each and every time they choose one rushee over another. It's member selection.

Really, you don't WANT to be in a traditional collegiate NPC sorority. There is no way-back machine that will allow you to live the 18 year old sorority girl life, no matter how much you would like there to be. Your only alternative is to find a grown up alternative, and there are multitudes of those.

I would have to agree with ColdInCanada11's advice, that your next step might be making connections with Junior League members, as most all of their members are moms, and have to make other arrangements for child care while volunteering for their projects. I'm so sorry that GLO membership didn't work out for you. I was, and am a GLO alumna member, but discovered that many of my contemporaries in Junior League weren't in GLO's, and we all felt it was a very rewarding, as well as bonding experience.

BOY Oh Boy do I have alot to say in responce to everyone. I was just asking questions for help and feel like I was a little attacked and judged. MissCherryPie thank you for your great advice and for being supportive of what I am trying to do. Blue Skies thank you I will deff being checking that out. AmIBLue you don't know my situation so please don't judge me I am very good at time management and it takes a strong women to be able to do it all but trust me I make it work and could and still can handle anything time wise thrown my way. ColdinCanada11 I do not know what junior league is and as far as money goes yes there are other things I can spend my money on but my daughter is very well taken care of I pay for school by myself and all my bills are payed and never once been late. So finance wise I could have and still can afford it without taking away from any other responsibiltys. Irishlake my school is a commuter school with people of all different age groups. And for me its not about being around 18-20 year olds it doesnt matter someones age in this world their are oppuntunties to be friends with and learn something from people of all ages. I know your just asking questions but I feel like I am being super judged. Yes I can afford it yes i can make the time without taking away from other commitments and responbilties. If anything being a mom is an advantage because I know time management I know commitment I know what it means to be the women who as ive said before does it all. As a mom I take on ten jobs at once daily taking on an 11th I could do it. When you want something bad enough you find a way. btw I agree with this complety How you overcome and deal with disappointment is what defines your character. Tpa85 kids would be allowed at some meetings as there were in the soriety for moms that was started at the other school. I do not know why they dissolved so I can't speak on that but as Ive stated many times I know juggling things would be hard but its not undoable. Thetalady I do believe I was discriminated against because I wasn't even given a chance to show that I could handle it all. The soroity that was started before for moms lasted for a few years and although small in members it did thrive I know this because Iv'e done some reasearch why it disvolved tho I do not know. AnotherKD no such thing as dumb questions. I never said it would be only for moms if you go back and read what I said it says I would not discrimante against anyone. Yes it would be primarly for moms but if non moms wanted to join they would be more then welcome. Dubasis your right I don't want to be a part of a traditional soroity. I don't want to be part of something where girls are judgmental and discriminate against people. That is why I want to start my own where people are lifted up regaudrless of their situation. And how dare you suggest I try a grown up alertnative I take that kinda offensive even if you had no bad intentions behind it. ElvisLover Like I asked ColdinCanada11 I am not sure what junior leagues are. To all those who said they were sorry this didn't work me thank you for that. I just want to do something to be involved and support other women in a sisterhood. I feel like most of you as well as the girls who didn't accept me as a member view being a mom and being older as a bad thing. When it doesn't have to be that way. As I mentioned before being a mom can be benefical and being older only means I have maturity and maybe theres something i could bring to the table and teach and inspire the younger girls. I just wanted a chance. but being I didn't get that I want to start my own group and with the help of greek members on here or not it's something i plan on trying to proceed with because I believe all women should have the chance to experince bonding and a sisterhood.

qfp

Junior League: http://www.ajli.org/?nd=home

As to the financial aspect, I was trying to make the point that we are at the extreme low end. There are many schools where you are looking at upwards of two thousand for each semester. I was not making any comment whatsoever on your financial situation, I was attempting to explain the thought process.

I in no way view motherhood as a bad thing, and considering that a large percentage of the posters on these boards have their own children, I'm sure they would agree. I believe that many of us were trying to say that you will be at a different (NOT WORSE) time of your life.

I'm sorry that youhave had an experience that has left you with a less than good impression of Greek life. Had I been one of your rec writers (you did get recs, right?) I would have called the chapter's attention to just these things that we are indicating are usually a negative for older PNMs, especially those with children, and explained why I -as an alum and rec writer - think you would could overcome the conflicts and concerns. I would also have advised you to bring this up the first night in conversations with the chapters. It would have been the elephant in the room, so to speak, and bringing it up yourself would be a positive.

All that being said, membership selection is private but we can usually ferret some things out as we know what these chapters look for in NMs. Do you have the time to commit - and this typically means 4 years? That's one reason why upperclassmen have a problem. The chapters spend a lot of time, energy and money on recruitment. They want someone who will be there for the long haul. What are your other commitments?
Academically, personally, financially. And what are your grades? You never mentioned that. While I may have errors in this post (it's 6 AM and I haven't finished my first cup of tea!) I'm not trying to get in - and your two posts leave something to be desired from grammar and spelling standpoints.

And before you say you wouldn't discriminate, we are all correct when we say you would. Are you going to admit a gang member who is out on bail for a murder charge? Of course not. But the bar may be there but I assure you that there will be SOME membership criteria and someone could say you discriminate.

And lastly, we do not hyphenate Panhellenic (if all the groups to which to refer are NPC groups). So be careful about that as well. We wish you luck. I also strongly suggest Beta Sigma Phi. I think it's just what you are looking for at your stage in life.

This can't be said enough: membership in an NPC GLO is voluntary. We are private organizations. Membership selection is not discussed on this board, nor should it ever be discussed outside of the privacy of each GLO. You have no idea in reality as to why you were not invited to return. Neither do we.

Take time to step back from a situation when it creates a strong emotional reaction. It is always a good idea to write out things and get your feelings on paper, and then set aside what you've written for a cooling off period. You can return to it and edit it, not only for grammatical and punctuation errors, but for cohesiveness and clarity. That way you are responding and not reacting. This process develops self-control, insight, and perspective-taking abilities. There were many great points made in the responses that were written to you. You focused on a few things that you thought were judgmental and disciminatory, and didn't process the help that was being offered.

Feel whatever you wish to feel (no one can control what anyone else thinks, feels, says, or does). But be careful: feelings are not facts. Call it being judged, being discriminated against, bottom line is that you were not selected for membership and that is a FACT. How you then move on from that fact is what differentiates the outcome. The choice is yours.

Being older does not mean a person has maturity. It only means you have celebrated more birthdays. Being a grown up is not equivalent in any way to being an adult. (read David Richo's books for explanation of the difference). I know some 60 year olds who have less maturity than many 19 year olds.

You're right. I don't know your situation. I'm sure you're a great time manager. You'd have to be with the responsibilities in your life.

You don't understand what sorority membership entails. It's not just mixers and parties. There are mandatory events. If you don't attend mandatory events, guess what happens to your membership. What do you do if your child is sick or gets hurt? (For which there is no way in the world that the world's best time manager to plan.) Most mothers choose their child.

Apart from the mandatory event attendance scenario, don't you want to spend time with your child? I break my neck every day to get home from work at a reasonable hour just to spend time with my daughter before her bedtime. You don't get the childhood years back. Once they're gone, they're gone. Watching my daughter grow and develop has been the single most interesting and fulfilling (and hardest) thing I've ever done in my life. I can't imagine wanting to trade that for anything.

Good luck to you.

Just to make sure, could you give us the names of some of these "Pan-Hellenic" sororities?

No one knows why you weren't asked back. Who told you that?

On a tangent, I'm so tired of hearing "OMG a 28 year old has NOTHING in common with 20 year olds." #1, it's not so much age, but where you are in life. Obvi if you are 28 and have a child you probably can't relate to a 28 year old who is in grad school and still working fast food to pay the bills. #2, not all schools have a Greek system where all the members are 21 or under. At a school made up of mostly commuter students, I'm guessing no one would blink an eye at a 28 year old. And at such a school, it's more likely that the amounts of events and the time commitment would be less than at a school where the majority of Greek members are "traditional" students.

This all being said, a child takes a lot of time, and don't expect anyone (in any aspect, not just a sorority) to cut you slack because you chose to be a mother.

Red pen. Where's the red pen??

Grammar and spelling nazi aside (really, this place has spell check!!!), there are a million reasons why you might not have been chosen for undergraduate sorority membership, none at all having anything to do with motherhood.

This is my guess, but I think that bunch of 18-22 year olds in a sorority are probably not specifically looking for someone "older" (I'm guessing you equate this with wiser, which is not always the case, but let's go with that for a minute) to inspire or teach them. Honestly, that's what the alumnae and advisers are for - women with experience in the organization.

You also come across as very defensive. I can't assume to know how you carry yourself in person, but I can form opinions from how you handle yourself online. Which brings me to another point - when you go through recruitment (or go to a job interview, or a date, or anything these days), don't think for a second that members don't look you up online. It may seem trite, and some may think it's an invasion of privacy, but anything you put online can be used to form opinions about you. It's public, and you made it that way.

I am sorry that you didn't achieve your desire to be in a college sorority. I suggest finding some thing or things that give you the social and emotional experiences you seek, because fighting others about this particular issue is not going to help you move on, it will only keep you lingering in a negative state.

Good luck.

What I read from you saying not once but twice, that you don't know what the Junior League is, is that you are venting about why your life sucks and you are not at all interested in input, advice or research to solve your problem. Rush failed for you. We can give you a whole bunch of reasons, but you already know them. There is such a thing as freedom to associate, and club members can choose whoever they want for whatever reasons. So the NPC sororities don't want you. What next? That's what we've been trying to give you help with and instead you have chosen to be bitter because those mean girls who are 10 years younger than you, unmarried and childless, think they're better than you.

So instead of finding a group of women who WOULD accommodate your situation and would provide you lifelong bonds, leadership opportunity and fun, you want to invent an organization from scratch, one that makes little sense and would have VERY little appeal to other women. But hey, go for it. You have lots of time on your hands and don't need help, so I would go for it and prove me (all of us) wrong. I'm sure your sorority, since you have it so under control, will be celebrating it's 100th anniversary (as many of ours have already and the others will be celebrating soon - both NPC and NPHC) in no time flat. Because the nearly 2600 years of combined experience among the NPC sororities probably reflects no gained knowledge over time that could be shared or learned from. BOLTY.

Totally agree. I was all :eek: when I looked.

You know what, I'm remembering something(s) that happened when I was eighteen.



I didn't go to college right after High School, but did live and work in a dorm situation for about eighteen months after Graduation. Holy cannoli! Twenty women in one large attic between the ages of 18 and 23....I was too young and naive to "get" what the 22 and 23 year olds were doing...and they did their thing and we girls around our age would do ours. I made friends with the eighteen and nineteen year olds who were around, and the older girls would give me the heebee jeebies when they'd want to hang out with us younger girls. It was a "Hello....they're OLD! They don't get us....GO AWAY!"

There was this RA who was 26, and the way she'd always come up to us and say "Let's hang out! There's this coffee shop in town that you HAVE to go to!" made us want to run for the hills. We wanted to go hiking, and go camping and do our own thing and we thought that she was extremely creepy for wanting to hang out with us.

Looking back on that (hadn't thought of those times in....ten years....), I can see clearly how the women in the NPC groups on campus saw me, at twenty-eight wanting to hang out with them.

Tres Creepy.

Kallyssasmommy, I hope that my story didn't offend you.....but think back to when you were eighteen. Did you honestly want to spend an inordinate amount of time with someone who was twenty-six, twenty-seven or twenty-eight when you were that age? Perhaps this offers a bit of insight.

First link I found definitely gave me info that could be side-eyed during recruitment.

1st and foremost let me address the issue of spelling and grammar so many of you brought up. A. I was typing my responses back to some of you very late at night and was tired. B. In the moment I didn't care about spelling or grammar I was just responding. C. Even if I did really use bad grammar and suck that bad at spelling who gives a hoot. Janetgrisell Thank you for a nice response and for not being rude like some of these other people on here. I will look into Beta Sigma Phi. ColdinCanada11 Thank you for the link I will look into that. I appreciate your response and thank you for clarifying what you were trying to say. Titchou Not sure what Rec writers are must have been something that we didn’t have. I did address the issue with all 4 chapters and they knew from day one my age and that I was a mother. I understand that they prefer a 4 year commitment however I know for a fact that a few girls I rushed with who are upperclassmen got bids. As far as my other commitments academically I am a full time student, I am part of 2 clubs, I have my own charity that I started, and I do a lot of community service projects and I work a part time job. I have a 3.2 GPA which has been maintained throughout all of college and as far as money goes let’s just put it like this I can afford to pay the membership fees quarterly. As I said in the beginning of this post I understand that there were spelling and grammar mistakes however I explained how I feel about that. Yes I agree 100 percent there does need to be criteria let me tell you and everyone else who questions this what it should be. A Member must have good grades I think that is very important. A member needs to be a good person someone who cares about others and helping others. A member needs to be someone who is determined, honest, and hard working. A member should be a women who is strong and knows herself and isn’t afraid to be herself. A Member should be someone who is trusting and loyal. A Member should be someone who knows what sisterhood means and lives by the philosophies established within that sisterhood. So would I admit a gang member, call me a liar call me crazy ect. But I won’t say that I wouldn’t. Not saying that I would either, but everyone has a story and everyone makes mistakes and I am a strong believer that everyone even gang member murders deserve a second chance. I hyphenated Panhellenic because that is how I saw it on something I looked at online. Thank you for wishing me luck. AZTheta I do that was the reason why because I was told. Whether or not a person was allowed to tell me or got in trouble for telling me I do not know but I was told that was the reason. I found what you said here to be kind of funny and yet interesting at the same time. That way you are responding and not reacting. This process develops self-control, insight, and perspective-taking abilities. There were many great points made in the responses that were written to you. You focused on a few things that you thought were judgmental and disciminatory, and didn't process the help that was being offered. I did very much so process “THE HELP” being offered. What I did not and will not process is the hostility and rudeness of some people. Those who I believe helped me in answering my questions and giving positive feedback I did acknowledge and thank. I am quite capable of doing all the things you said Thank you very much. You spelled something wrong too should I become the grammar police. I wouldn’t do that though because I understand sometimes people are tired or typing to fast and make mistakes and are too tired to read through things and fix them. I know the choice is mine of how I handle it and I think I have handled it quite well. This post was never about how I handled it though or what my fiancés looked like or me not being selected. I could care less about not being accepted. I have dealt with the fact that it was not meant to be doesn’t mean though that it is any less upsetting when you are told to your face the reason you were not invited in is because of your age and being a mother. I agree with you that your age does not make you mature I was not pointing out that it did I know lots of people older than myself who are more immature then a child. I was simply just stating that in my case my maturity could have been something that was beneficial had I been given a fair chance. AMIBLUE I do understand the time commitment it was made very clear and I have lots of friends in sororities and I know it’s a lot of work and not just about parties. That is one thing that attracted me to the sorority lifestyle the fact that so many girls give back to the community, education is important, sisterhood is important ect. I respect all of those things and want them for myself it was never about being able to go to mixers or party’s. Of course I want to spend time with my child but there are things in my life that I choose not to disclose that would of and still do make it possible that I can have it all. I spend lots of time with my daughter and she knows she comes first but I do not think there is anything wrong with having me time. Thank you for the good luck wishes. 33girl I will disclose the 4 sororities Kappa Delta, Alpha Delta Phi, Zeta, and Alpha Phi. Thank you for addressing the age issue. I agree my daughter does take a lot of my time but I am able to manage my time well. Also I never once said I expect anyone to cut me any slack. I would hope to be treated the same as anyone else mother or not. REE-XI I never said being older makes someone wiser I was stating that I am pretty mature and I understand there are advisors to inspire and teach the younger girls but being older means I have more experiences that I could share. As far as whom I am as a person offline or online I am me end of story and me is perfect just the way I am. If somebody doesn’t like it I think it’s their problem not mine. I don’t want to be affiliated with a date or a job or in this case sororities that don’t want me for me. Please Please tell me how I handle myself online????? Because the way I see it all I’ve done is ask for help to start something that could be a good thing. All I’ve done is be upfront and honest. All I’ve done is explain myself over and over again which I shouldn’t even have to do. A person shouldn’t be attacked and have people be rude to them when they ask for help. Yes I did come off a little defensive but when I feel disrespected and judged when all I am doing is asking for help yeah I am going to go on the defense a little bit. Furthermore, I am not fighting with anyone if someone wants to turn it into a fight as some have seemed to try and do I have no desire to even go there because I am more mature than that. However, I do have a right to respond and speak my mind. Oh Dubaisis I was so overjoyed to get to your post what a delight you are. Rush did fail for me so what I have moved on to greater and better things and am trying to start my own thing which is the whole reason I asked for help. I did not ask for help to get pettiness unsolicited judgments. You speak about mean girls and being bitter A. my friend I think you are a mean girl maybe you should watch the movie. B. No ones bitter at least not on my end. I never said I had anything under control obviously you turned this post into something ugly when it did not have to be. I never claimed that anything I start would be better or equivalent to anything already existing. I just wanted to create something for all of the women who feel discriminated against regardless of the reason. As far as appeal to other women I didn’t know you were an expert in sororities for moms good to know and good for you.
At the end of the day I just came on here seeking advice I am not trying to fight with anyone I respect everyone’s opinions as I wish mine would be respected.

Not Offended you have been one of the nicest people on this chat. When I was 16 I had friends in there 20's so to me age was never a big deal. I understand how to some it could be but I just wanted a chance.

QFP.

OMG! tl;dr

Ow. My eyes hurt.

A little better?

I'm still not going to bother reading this, though.

You can start your own student organization (local or nationally affiliated) at nearly any university. Check with your school's requirements for minimum number of members. Once you submit this paperwork, you are recognized as a student organization and can receive funding.

So I suggest that the first thing you do is to advertise around campus to drum up interest to see if there is any interest in this group you want to form. If there is no interest, you are on your own and you will see that this is not going to work out. In that case, time to pick a new activity or join another established group.

However, if there is interest and once you have a core group, you can meet and decide together what your name/officers/colors/symbols/philanthropy/recruitment process will be. Once you have that core group, you can apply to be recognized as a student org and get funding. There may be deadlines per the school. Talk to someone in student affairs who oversees student clubs and organizations to find out the min number of members required and the applicable paperwork and deadlines you need to fulfill.

If the national groups dedicated to moms aren't responding to you, I'd suggest forming a local group.

You might find fellowship and much more time saved by investigating the available student groups on your campus and in your community, but best of luck if you decide to start an org from scratch. It is a lot of work.

Why hasn't this thread turned into a train wreck already?:confused:
Hmph! I taking my popcorn and flouncing away!:rolleyes:

OMG. I know, right?

Enter key is BROKEN!!! Enter key is BROKEN!!!

One more thought.

Let's presume you do start a sorority for moms. Perhaps you gear it initially to those who have young children - pre-schoolers (or whatever) - since one presumes you will be seeking those who are similar to you. After all, that's what traditional sorority chapters do.

Children grow. Soon they're off to different activities, and the moms find if they had no other experiences in common, they grow apart. You'll find that's what often happens to mom's groups built as part of alumnae chapters. If the women are of a like age, and perhaps went to the same school, they may bond over more than their children, but if the only thing they have in common is the age of their children, life gets in the way. Not saying this MUST happen, but the likelihood is high.

Thus there would be a difficulty in maintaining a common thread for the women in your sorority, and it would (probably) require significantly more work than other organizations.

Just another thing to consider.

lol
I sure hope DubaiSis is ok after that zinger.

You should if you expect people to (A) spend their time reading what you typed, (B) understand what you're trying to say, and (C) take you seriously. You're in college. Write like it.

And it's not just grammar and spelling. Puntuation and paragraphs are your friends. Without them, you end up with a monstrous block of text, and everything you took the time to write will come across like this:

http://jerrysjuicebar.com/blog/wp-co...lah-ginger.jpg

One question lingers for me with all these recent postings by late 20 somethings (and it seems we've had quite a few lately): WHY do you want to joint an organization where the majority of women are 5-10 years your junior? Take away the letters, take away what you see in the media - Why a collegiate social sorority?

Is it for sisterhood? Philanthropy? Leadership? Similar ideals or values? There are THOUSANDS of organizations out there that provide the same or extremely similar experiences for women your age, such as Junior League, Beta Sigma Phi, religous organizations, philanthropic organizations, mommy groups, MeetUp groups, Quarter Life Crisis Groups, etc. Your university may also have a group for older students as well.

The reality of the situation is that by the time you are 25, obtaining membership in a collegiate social sorority ship has most likely sailed. Sure you can say "I know of someone who joined when they were 27", but those are very few and far between. And if you say "OMG, I know 10 people on my campus who are 30 and got bids", well then, the sororities just did not choose you for membership. You were not discriminated against because of your age or being a mom. They simply liked someone else more than they liked you. It's like dating - sometimes their just not that into you.

^Amen.


I just don't understand the purpose of forming a sorority on campus specifically for older non-traditional students with children. I can understand forming a club or group, perhaps, and certainly the desire to have contact with other mothers on campus who have similar interests, but I cannot see how being initiated into a Greek organization, or wearing Greek letters, further legitimizes or is necessary for that experience.


When my children were small, I would have considered selection and initiation into Mu Omicron Mu, in order to get together with other moms, just silly.


We were all initiated into that group when our children were born.


ETA: There actually is a MOM sorority -- just googled (after posting) to check. It does not appear to be recognized by a national org:

http://www.angelfire.com/ab9/mo0/