2016 Missouri Fall Rush
 

My DD2 is rushing at University of Missouri this fall. I am a bit anxious. The registration numbers are down reportedly due to bad national press the Concerned Student events elicited. DD1 rushed during the peak year in 2014 w over 2000 registrants. She was fortunately given a bid by her Number one house from the first round, but many others were not so fortunate. Her experience was rocky with lots of rejection and hurt feelings. Apparently the number has dropped to 1500 this year but reportedly going to be highly competitive again.

Anyone else in my shoes? Would love to share stories. I must say as a nonGreek mom with no real idea what she was getting into, my first daughter's rush week was by far the most stressful parenting experience of my life. I thought I had seen it all up til then. haha

Recruitment is competitive every year. Whether it is 2000 or 200 PNMs, if they all make it to prefs and sign bid cards, they will receive a bid. It might not be the PNM's first choice, but they will receive a bid. Good luck to your daughter.

Miz recruitment is crazy competitive. Even with smaller numbers, it's nuts. My oldest DD graduated this year and she always said recruitment is difficult from BOTH sides, and really doesn't give anyone time to get to know each other too well sadly. But, she loved her house and made so many great friends within Greek Life! I'm sure you and your oldest DD have prepared her for what's to come. It really only does take one and every house is really great at Mizzou.

My advice to your daughter would be to ask her rushers how things are going for them. Show some interest in their well being. It could be a kindness that would take her far!

My DD2 is rushing this fall at a smaller U so it should be interesting! Best of luck to you!

Thanks ladies. I think it will be quite a ride!

Good luck to her. Please keep us posted on her experience! My daughter is a sophomore at Mizzou and this will be her first time on the other side. :)

Will do- moving my junior back to campus next weekend followed by freshman the following Sunday! Not looking forward to my empty nest ��

Good luck to your daughter! Sounds like you'll be better prepared for what to expect, and I am sure your junior DD has coached your freshman DD well.

My daughter probably went through recruitment when your oldest daughter did, as she is returning for her junior year as well.

Just dropped my Junior off today as well! Hopefully, less PMNs will mean smaller groups at the socials and more chances to talk with the active girls! I'm glad to have survived Recruitment 2014 as well. I have another daughter graduating high school this year, but she is not looking at SEC schools. KCMom, does your younger daughter want to join her sister's chapter?

Hi everyone! kcmom my daughter is a junior as well and I remember that crazy 2014 recruitment. It was stressful for me too (more than I expected), even though I'd been through rush before! I'm sure your oldest daughter will give her sister some good advice, having been through recruitment. The sense of rejection is surprising to a lot of the girls, and really hard to take as their first experience of college. Please remind your daughter that everyone will be going through that in one way or another. With the way recruitment is designed now, the houses that have historically had the strongest recruitments are forced to make a lot of cuts early on in the process. My daughter was very lucky to end up in her first choice house, but she was cut by many houses that she really liked along the way, and it hurt. She should prepare herself to be cut from some houses she likes each round, take it one day at a time, and keep an open mind. We will look forward to hearing how it goes for her!

Dd2 does like sister's house but really hasn't had exposure elsewhere. She wants to keep an open mind and see if it is for her. We have prepared her for cuts to be deep but she has a pretty stellar unweighted Gpa w a lot of college credits ( nearly a sophomore) and Recs to all the more competitive houses. We are currently paring down her belongings to fit into a dorm. Wish us luck on that!

Keep in mind that this describes MANY of the PNMs. She will no doubt have a great recruitment because she is keeping an open mind but many of the women who will be dropped by houses they like will also have great grades and rec letters as well.

Certainly didn't mean to imply she won't have disappointments. She knows there are no guarrantees and has no expectations.

Good luck to DD2!

How's it going?

Well she texted twice. One to say the first house was DD1 and she wishes it wasn't first so she could be a little more comfortable with the format.She said she was really nervous and tried to hide it haha. But oh well! She just texted at 530 that she was done and walking to meet a HS friend. I think they have to find somewhere to eat dinner. She is going to call after she gets back and hopefully I will have more information.

Always good to have a day behind her! She'll be less nervous tomorrow, but remind her that the women in the sororities are nervous too! Keep us posted.

Her feedback
 

Don't want to give too much away (don't want to reveal her identity)
She went to 8 houses.
She loved DD1 house- but feels she may not have done that well because it was the first.
She talked to so many girls all day and she felt they were all really nice.
She said conversations flowed with no awkward moments ( a real feat as she isn't the chatty type. Guess she is growing up. This whole recruitment thing is stressful but really does teach alot of valuable life lessons!
She spoke with sophomores, juniors and seniors and at some houses up to 4 girls.
She said they all seem alot alike and that the time went really fast. She had thought it would be hard to talk to a stranger for such a long time. (parties are only 25 minutes)
There were three houses she didn't think would be at the top of her list. But depending on how the houses today are, they could swing up into the 11.
She is going to 7 houses today. Then they pref 11 as a 1 score, then 2,3,4,5. She can get a total of 11 invitations.
She said many of the houses are absolutely beautiful.
Two of the houses (one she visited yesterday) is in construction so they met at a frat house. She didn't mention it so I think she may not realize it yet.
It is kind of weird how she was most attracted to the same houses that my DD1 liked as well. I have reminded her that her sister got dropped from some of those houses, so don't get set on just those. She said she could probably be happy in all the houses except one.
I think she has a great attitude. Thanks for letting me vent. It isn't nearly as stressful as it was two years ago when I knew absolutely 0 about greek recruitment.

Something to consider about the two chapters that are building new- this pledge class will have the opportunity to live in an amazing new home, so that awesome!

AGDmommy I agree--next year's sophomores for those two chapters will be living in an amazing space!

kcmom it sounds like your daughter is having a great time. Fingers crossed for her that she gets invited back to some houses she really likes. If she thinks the conversations are going well, then at least some of the people she's talking to are bound to think so as well! You're wise to remind her about her sister's experience--deep cuts are the norm now at Mizzou and most girls don't go back to 11 houses. I also know of girls in the last few years who got invited back to 11 for second round, and then had most of the houses cut them for the following round. As long as she has at least one she likes every round, that's good! She only needs one to work :) We'll all be waiting to hear about her second round. Thanks for keeping us posted!

I know the new houses would be amazing, but she even commented on a couple of houses that were beautiful, but she didn't gel as well and a couple that she really liked and the house was just ok. So, I think she is looking at the right things, loving the girls and looking for a family.

Yes you're right kcmom. It really is all about the relationships, not the building. I just wouldn't want someone NOT to join a group where they were otherwise a good fit, just because they didn't have a house this year. It sounds like your daughter will make a choice for all the right reasons. Good luck to her in the morning!

I am out of the loop. Who is building a new house, and where? I know ChiO rebuilt and Tri-Delt as extensively remodeled. This will be the third? year for Tri-Sigma in their built-for-them house.

There is a former frat house on Richmond that I so wish AGD could move into (if we were invited back).

It would be great if AGD could come back--Mizzou could use another sorority chapter! Zeta and DG are both rebuilding their houses this year. What are they using that former Frat House for (are you talking about Richmond Place?) I always wonder what it is when I drive by. Is it just regular housing?

DG is building an amazing house on the site of the old house. They are all living together in Brookside, so it's really nice for them to stay together. The chapter is using DU for recruitment as its the same builder who is doing the new house.

That's great that the DGs worked out a deal to all stay together in Brookside.

Kappa Alpha Theta is completing a capital campaign and will be doing an enormous renovation (not cosmetic) that will increase bed space, rework living spaces and also reallocate space including the house mothers room. From '06-09 the Chapter received extensive mechanical improvements and renovation. I was on the facility board during that process and am excited to see the upcoming changes as well.

The Kappa Alpha Psi former chapter house (it was the Alpha Chapter) on Richmond has been before the City Council for high density student housing (apartments). I haven't seen much else on that front but the City had suspended some of its permitting processes pending ordinance review and other City matters. (All this information subject to check; I haven't looked at it for awhile).

Neither the City or the University seems inclined to preserve the old homes; Columbia, MO is very strongly in favor of large student housing development projects constructed by private developers. The new Council has not show any departure from this approach.

I hope all PNMs focus on the women and not the buildings. It's the people that are your sisters for a lifetime. The tear down and rebuild of homes recently says a lot about the strength of sorority and friendship and how a building is a home because of the people you share it with not the other way around.
Go Tigers! IlliniKAT

Second round invites
 

DD2 got 8 out of 11 possible invites. She is perfectly fine with that as her two top picks are still on the list. She did get dropped by two that she really thought she would be happy with. Her sister has told her that the houses can identify who fits in better than you can. Only one that she didn't rank top 11 showed up on her schedule. A few of the houses she thought might work out aren't on her list. However when talking last night one house emphasized that all girls are involved in more activities/ groups on campus than just the sorority, and she isn't enthusiastic about that. She is focused on grades and making sure her activities don't detract. So we concluded that it wouldn't be a great fit, but she really liked the girls so she still ranked it as a 1. My girls claim to be very different, but they really are more similar than they think. The same houses that DD1 couldn't understand dropping her also dropped DD2. In some part that may be because she doesn't fit, but also they are also houses that know DD1 and the legacy thing may be playing a role. We shall see how the next two days go. One great thing about this recruitment is the opportunity to discuss how things went. She's usually not that talkative but kept me on the phone for 1 1/2 hours last night. I am really impressed by her insight and her maturity in this process. A completely different vibe than DD1 who was hit harder by the disappointment. ( DD1 usually had gotten everything she wanted in HS and was a very social popular girl in HS. DD2 is more of the reserved, few friends and less confident.)

Wonderful news all around kcmom! Very glad both for her good results and also for her philosophical approach. Sounds like she learned from her sister's experience and is taking it all in stride. Good for her (and for you, that she talked to you for 90 minutes last night! That must have felt great). Good luck to DD2 in philanthropy round! Thank you for the update.

Thanks for the info on Richmond Place. I was curious about that. It's really too bad that the city isn't interested in preserving these beautiful old homes.

I completely agree with you that while renovations are fun and exciting, sisterhood is the top priority. We are lucky to have such a strong Greek system at Mizzou, rooted in deep friendships that often last for a lifetime.

I have read about the Theta renovations and I think they are going to be wonderful. The new patio and the dining room they've already completed look fantastic. Glad the girls can continue living in and using the house during the renovations. Thank you for your work on the Facility Board!

I think there is truth in that the chapters know better who will fit in. My daughter, in hindsight, sees that 2 of her day 1 favorites, would not have been a good long term fit for her. She loves her chapter and I don't think can imagine herself elsewhere now.

I'm not saying it's a perfect system. Nothing ever could be. And it's hard when girls are disappointed. But life is full of disappointments....along with high moments and successes.

Can't wait to hear how the rest of the week goes. I know my daughter already found a "rush crush" on the first day ;-)

On the news in KC right now: 2 dorms are closed at Mizzou because of that big of a drop in students. Hard to imagine.

I'm glad your DD2 is being so positive and looking at each house's sisterhood carefully. It's all that really matters! Keep us informed we are all pulling for her AND you!

The Alpha Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi is at Indiana University, where they were founded in 1911. I know, because I visited that chapter house a couple of times to study/trade notes with members. There is was a plaque in the chapter house commemorating their founding. The chapter at Mizzou is a double letter chapter.

first day of philanthropy
 

She visited 6 houses today and said it went pretty well. However, some houses she loved initially she is not so sure about now. Time will tell. She has one of her favorites tomorrow and another that she liked. She didn't seem discouraged that she had friends with full schedules. The advisor told them average is 3 or 4 so she is very thankful she still has options. She isn't a high energy person and is more laid back so she wasn't surprised that some houses that seemed "over the top enthusiastic" didn't ask her back. She did have a recruiter that said she was a breath of fresh air compared to the super intense pnms. I am encouraging her to be herself and things will work out. She is off to the annual midnight barbeque that is served to freshmen. The official all school move in was today so the campus is fully loaded and ready for the semester. Good thing all the dining halls will now be open.

Continued good wishes for your daughter!

Oh yes...it is good that the dining halls are now open! I remember that being kind of a drag.

Sounds like things are going well for her!!

Thanks for the update kcmom! Sounds like DD2 is sailing through with her positive, laid back attitude. Good for her.

That BBQ dinner is fun! Glad she is positive. Makes such a difference with how stressful it can be!

I noticed that the Preference Round will be limited to no more than 2 houses visited on Saturday instead of the usual limit of 3 which is what they have done in year's past. Does anyone know why they changed it to two houses and whether that increases PNM's chances of matching?

I don't know in this particular case, but I think the thinking is that girls are ok with getting second of two choices but tend to be unhappy when they get third of three. With RFM being what it is, you don't NEED a third option to guarantee your match, so it's ok. It just means they get cut harder earlier.