How does the economy affect numbers?
 

So we all know that the economy absolutely sucks. The unemployment rate is the highest in quite awhile, people are losing jobs and taking pay cuts right and left.

Do you think that this is having an affect on numbers and on greek life in general? Both girls going through rush and girls that may pledge or are already members?

My school was a more working-class kind of school (it's a hybrid private/public), so it was nothing unusual to have one or two girls drop because of money, or decline bids because of it. Then there are always sister struggling to pay their bills (almost everyone in my house held a job, only a few people's parents paid their sorority costs). I wonder how this year's new members and sisters will fare....

We really never had a serious problem with the economy impacting numbers--I was VP-Finance, and everyone who needed a payment plan or forebearance came to me, so I was pretty familiar with everyone's situation. Our dues are very low (less than $300/semester), and compared to tuition, room, and board--it's merely a drop in the bucket, and manageable for most families as well as the women who worked to pay dues. We had one new member pull out for financial reasons, but that was due to the ineptitude of the new member educators not telling her the amount in advance.

Yea, when compared to rent in San Francisco, dues, which are around $100 a month, are just a minor thing for a big return. Everyone in my chapter has jobs or are looking for them. I was wondering about it at other schools though and how that might effect numbers.

Rumor is that registration is way down at Illinois this year. :-(

HMMMMMM Since Mizzou just be U I l. :)

In Kansas and Missouri, it seems like every school listed % increases, not only Major U.s, but State and Private Schools!

In situations as the Country is in, more people are opting to stay in school and there are more grants and scholarships that most do not check into students check into!:(

Dang do I wish I was still school!:D

I can't speak for final numbers since a lot of girls won't sign up until orientation (Tuesday), but rumor has it that pre-rush registrations are up at Wisconsin. As of the middle of this week we had 150 online registrations via the new website alone.

Recruitment numbers have improved since the economy has gone south.

Collections have more to do with the treasurer and his tenacity than the members (I had a zero balance for most of my term:D )

My school is having a record breaking recruitment. We are really excited. The most girls to sign up since 1980. Anyways, almost all our girls have jobs, too and have to pay their own dues.

Last year, UK had a huge recruitment...there were almost 900 PNMs. This year, there were only about 750, but that's still more than there were when I went through rush (about 600) so I don't think the sucky economy has impacted number thus far.

LSU numbers were up as well. Yet, I know my son's, roommate's sister quit her sorority (LSU) because of money. Not that it was too expensive, but that it was too expensive in terms of what she got out of it. That is a statement made by her mother. The first year she didn't work. The second, she got a job. She resigned at the end of the second year. It was the "extras" that got her. The vacations she couldn't join with her sisters and such.

When a ton of girls quit...as they did LAST year...it permeates through the community. Locally, we had about the same number sign up, but this year, many dropped out if they were cut too heavily. Some went to pref and didn't sign. I'm starting to wonder if it isn't more the attitude of our area. ***We had a record number of young men pledge this year!!!

I don't think TV or movies has much to do with it. Oh sure, maybe one or two will see it as "the devil". Maybe instead of just looking at the campus situation, it would be informative to look at who feeds into your college and what the current situation, be it economic or general attitude toward Greek Life, is at this time.

I suspect this is a big factor in why girls leave for financial reasons after they're initiated--since, in a lot of chapters, they pay more the first semester than they do all other years combined. I imagine that it's hard to go shopping with your sisters when they can shop at Prada and you're stuck at Old Navy, or going out to eat and ordering less than you really want because you can't afford to do the same things as everyone else. After the first year or so, I think it's more the social pressures than the actual cost of being in a sorority.

I was in college when the first George Bush was president. There was also a terrible recesssion which impacted my state and ultimately my chapter. I attended a state university so most people didn't have money to burn. Unfortunately when the recession hit, the parents of some of my sisters found themselves unemployed. One of these sisters had to go inactive for financial reasons as a result. We had many friends whom we believed were potential sisters, but they didn't rush because of financial concerns. When people struggle to pay tuition, room, and board, greek membership is a luxury that they can not afford.

Exactly, to a "T".

I am an advisor at Georgia State and I know our numbers have been slightly down and I had never even thought of the economy as being a reason. Thanks for some great insight!

Recruitment numbers at the University of Tennessee Knoxville are WAY down this year. I think it is the economy coupled with another tuition hike. I was talking to a friend of mine who was at UTK and she said a few years ago numbers were around 1500 for Recruitment...this year I believe it was around 750 and a lot of sororities participated in COB who usually dont.

My school is having a horrible time recruiting. We are doing everything that we can and it still isnt helping. I even posted about it earlier this week. Titled "low Rush Numbers". Anyways, normally FAU gets about 100-150 girls to go through, well Wednesday we had 16 girls signed up and now I think it's at 36. Recruitment starts SUNDAY! AH! Im sure everything will be fine, but the girls seem so snotty about it this year when we ask them if they are interested!
Maybe it's the economy? maybe it's sorority life by mtv?

Hang in there, Nicole! I know we had a HUGE jump in numbers of girls signing up in the last 2 days of sign-up and now we are at about normal. Let me know how it goes. Also, I think you guys just had AOTT colonize at FAU--how are they doing??

Right state wrong school. ;) We charterd at Florida International in 2001. We also chartered at Rollins in 2002.

This year we had the second biggest number of women come through recruitment in the school's history - 508 women. I am hoping that this is going to be a continuing. We unfortunately have an upward trend of a lot more single intention bidding (suiciding) on pref day now, and the results are not good. Last year, almost 40 women either dropped or suicided and didn't get matched on the last day. This year there weren't as many drops, but there were more suicides.

Other Reasons?
 

I wonder if it's something other than the economy here. I sure a high percentage of the Greek community at UIUC comes from the Chicago suburbs. My daughter was planning to rush through most of her Senior year. Then then hazing at Glenbrook North happened and she was convinced that if she joined a sorority she would have to subject herself to that type of abuse. Ultimately she decided against going Greek, at least for now.