Chapter Advisor needed
 

Is anyone interested in being a chapter advisor for a local sorority in Eastern Washington? This woman must have been a member of a sorority (local or national), and now hold alumnae status. She would also need to be strong in recruitment, and able to communicate with the sisters and educate them. She must be willing to help the sorority grow and comply with our Alpha chapter. Anyone interested please let me know!

Thanks,
Heather

What sort of requirements does your university have?

Along the same lines as babylyne's post, our chapter is also looking for an advisor. Any advice on how to go about finding an advisor and what role they play in your own chapter would be appreciated!

An easy way to find out if there are people on your campus who are interested in becoming an advisor is to go to your Greek Life office and ask. Sometimes there will be newer (or older) staff or faculty who have asked about Greek Life or expressed some sort of interest that you director can hook you up with. I would strongly recommend sticking to someone who works in the college environment to be an advisor for you rather than someone from outside (either from your school or from one nearby) since they will be able to help you with connections on campus and will be much more easily accessible.
As sad as it sounds, try to find someone without a young family because they will be able to devote more time to your group and will be able to be random places at random times for you :)
If your greek life office can't help, try your student organization/leadership office or undergraduate affairs (whatever they are called on your campus).
If you still haven't been able to find someone who is interested, do some research and find out if any of your professors or staff members were in a sorority or fraternity. If you find on that one of your members is close with, approach them and see what they say about helping out.

While this may sound Negative, look again. Try to find a College School Member who may be interested.


Dependending on the GLO's there, it always a help to find a Faucility Member who may be of help.

They can be a laison with the school:) .

They can always do more.

Thanks for the advice, I have already been down that route and since we are a smaller school I havent had much luck. Our current advisor is a faculty member but isnt much help for us that is why we are looking elsewhere, we are required to have 2 advisors one linked with the university and an "other". That is why we are looking....Thanks though

You could initiate a local university alumna, or sorority sister's mom, with the goal to bring her in as an adviser.

ETA: Your adviser serves as a model of consistency within your chapter. She mentors the officers, helping them to meet their deadlines, counseling chapter members through personal issues and helping the chapter set and meet goals. The adviser enforces rules set in the chapter bylaws. She is not there to be the chapter leader-- that is what the officers are for. But with members graduating every year, and turnover in the chapter, a good adviser who stays active for a long time can help ensure your chapter's legacy.

If your advisor needs to be an alumna of any sorority, try contacting the alumnae panhellenic in your area. Some of the ladies there may be interested.

AIs generally DO NOT make good advisors...it's like the blind leading the blind. They'd be better off with an NPC Alum who has been through rush and ritual on both sides.

The last woman we initiated makes a great one actually. I'm not an AI and I find your post offensive.

I AM an AI and definitely find your post offense. I actually was a chapter adviser (amongst other advisery roles) shortly after my initiation and the chapter was going through a reorganization - and were VERY successful at it! I now currently hold an international advisery position within my sorority and it has been only a few short years after initiation!

I was initiated as a GAP (Graduate, Alumnae and Professional) member and I currently advise a chapter as well as having led an expansion process at The College of New Jersey. All it takes is passion, intelligence, the integrity to do things right and a strong desire for the welfare and success of the chapter and the organization as a whole.

What is your experience with this? My own sorority has a chapter located in a very rural area with the only alumnae support several hours away. Their chapter adviser is an AI. She is a dear and wonderful person who has learned along with the chapter. I have been a chapter adviser. Starting out, you don't know very much. That is what time and training with your sorority (or working with the faculty Greek adviser/equivalent) are for.

What are collegiate organizations supposed to do if they have no area alumnae? Not have any advisory support? I agree-- I think that someone who was involved in college may have a basic understanding of sorority principles-- not every group has this luxury. But they do have the benefit of time and a willingness to learn.

Alphafrog, as an AI myself I am horrifically offended by your post. I will now call you AlphaToad.

Read the OP. They don't want an AI, and they specify that. They want someone strong in recruitment, which is generally someone who's EXPERIENCED it. The OP might be from a struggling chapter, which is not a good place for a new AI.
There are definitely exceptions, especially for AIs who have been involved for awhile. But the poster I was refering to said that they should initiate a woman and then immediatly make her advisor. To me, that's like making a pledge president. I know that most chapters don't rely on their advisor(s) like they do their exec board, but from the OP, it looks like this chapter is expecting a lot from her.
AIs who have been a part of their sorority for awhile can make good advisors to solid chapters, but I wouldn't throw a brand new AI on a struggling chapter, that's just silly. Another reason is because I have come across AIs who don't know the basic info. I don't blame them for that, I blame whoever initiated them, but I still don't think that person would be my choice for an advisor.

Once again, I SERIOUSLY beg to disagree! Recruitment is sales - plain and simple. Recruitment is ALSO not rocket science in that sometimes all it takes is a fresh pair of eyes to realize the problem areas. You wouldn't necessarily need an initiated member to help with recruitment planning and training (membership selection, that is a different story). Basically what you are saying is that to be a recruitment advisor you need at least four years experience (one as a rushee and three as the rusher) to be worth anything?

Once again, my story as Chapter Adviser was that of a struggling chapter on a large university campus (Big Ten, not SEC). I became Chapter Adviser about 6 months or so AFTER my initiation (during that 6 months I was External programming adviser - so PR, Social, PanHel, etc). No, this was not as specifially recruitment adviser - but I sure had to know quite a bit about recruitment and membership selection!! After my year as Chapter Adviser I moved from that area to where there are no AOII chapters (collegiate or alumnae) for about a 4 hour drive. Four years later I am an international volunteer supervising 2 collegiate chapters! My recruitment experience has changed very little, but I still need to know a LOT about recruitment to help the chapters when needed! Does this lack of collegiate recruitment experience mean I won't do a good job - no. Why? Because recruitment is nothing more than sales and marketing!

Problem is you are only now refering to the OP when people started getting on you about being discriminatory.

Some AI's are not going to make good advisors, BUT some "regular" alums are not going to make good advisors either. It has nothing to do with how you joined the organization but has everything to do with how committed you are to the organization and the specific chapter.

The very nature of being an AI usually means that the member is more committed than the average member. Collegiate members have this handy thing available to them called recruitment, last I checked there was no recruitment in that sense for AI's, instead the commitment to search out the organization and the membership was needed.

An AI also has a definate advantage when it comes to advising. They are not going to get caught up in the "that's not the way we did it in college" junk. THey don't have that experience and so can bring fresh new eyes to the table.

Now if the OP doesn't want an AI, that's fine but it is unfair to say no AI can be a good advisor.

She's not saying that. She's saying that a struggling chapter should not look to a NEW AI who may or may not have any other sorority experience to advise them.

AIs are great people. New AIs may not be the best choice to guide a chapter that needs a lot of help.

Exactly. Like I said before, I'm not talking about people who AIed years ago, I was refering to AIing someone to immediatly be an advisor. I'm aware that it does happen that Alice AI is initiated on Jan 2nd and on Jan 3rd becomes the bestest most spectacularest Advisor that Lamba Lamba Mu has ever seen, but that's an exception more then a rule.

The OP specifically stated that her sorority is looking for someone who has been a member of a sorority to become an advisor. This is because they want someone who has had experience with being in a sorority and know what sorority membership entails. Beryana, I know that you were in a local before you became an AOII, but not every AI had the same story as you. It would not be beneficial for the OP's sorority to initiate a woman just so she could be their advisor, because she would most likely not understand their needs.

So basically you are saying that an AI hasn't been a member of a sorority????

Now that's COMPLETE BS.

A woman who joined in college umpteen years ago and just happens to live in the area probably isn't going to understand their needs either. Things are a lot different now than they were even 15 years ago. And actually a mother or friend who has been around the chapter and has some ties to it probably WILL know a few things about them.

All it takes is someone willing to take the time and figure out what the girls need and how best for them to succeed. That's not rocket science.

Exactly.

Have you ever thought about being an advisor???:)

Oh that's right, you are.;)

You're getting very upset and taking things about two steps further than what was actually said.

If their chapter was thriving, I'd agree with you. But it doesn't sound like there IS time for someone figure things out. Action needs to be taken ASAP. Another sorority alumna with advising experience would be ideal. But you're ignoring that the OP wasn't looking for a NEW AI. If they had an AI who had already been around for a while, it would be different.

AIs are just as capable as anyone else. AIs are people too. We all know that. It's simply a timing and experience issue.

Umm no.

Selling shoes at Macy's is sales, plain and simple.

There are quite a few more things (most having to do with human emotions) that go into sorority recruitment.

And you were in a sorority in college, so there's NO way you can look at it the same way that an AI who never participated in collegiate Greek life could. Even if you weren't a rush chair, you rushed women in a collegiate setting and you have that experience in your memory bank.

ETA the initiating an active sister's mom to do any sort of advising (or even a mom who is already a sister or another sorority's alum) can be fine or a complete bloody trainwreck...been there, done that, t-shirt...so proceed with extreme caution. Basically it can be like working in a family business which can be very very good or very very bad.

And let's be honest, rush can be HARD.

Advisors have to make tough decisions sometimes. They definately shouldn't be following the exec board without knowing better. If this is going to be the person to settle disputes internally and get involved with the panhellenic aspect of rush (the rush meetings at my school all involved the VPMembership (rush chair) and her advisor) she needs to know what's going on.

No one's saying that AIs never make good advisors... BUT your odds are better going with another option.

Please re-read what I said. A woman who was just initiated as an AI is a member of a sorority but she does not know enough about sororities to make a good advisor. A woman who was initiated 15 years ago may be out of the loop, but she knows how sororities work. These girls aren't looking for a friend, they're looking for an advisor to help them out. A mother or a friend might have trouble seeing things objectively, whereas a stranger who doesn't have ties to the sorority does not. I don't understand why people are getting so worked up about this, if you owned an advertising company, you wouldn't hire a college grad who majored in bio and has zero advertising experience to be the CEO.

The basics of sales is that you have a product to sell to someone. That product can be overpriced shoes or a sorority. Either way, you are trying to convince someone else that they cannot live without this sorority/these shoes/etc. That's sales. Recruitment = sales.

Despite being in a sorority in college, the only thing it gave me was a desire to find a sisterhood that I could belong to (my collegiate experience was NOT the most rewarding!). I really would not consider the rush process at SNC anything close to what goes on at a Big Ten school (which is nothing like what happens at SEC schools). I had to learn ALL kinds of new things regarding policies and procedures when I became an adviser because there was NOTHING similar - oh, I knew the extension process because I was through that but otherwise there really wasn't anything similar!

To refresh the memories of those involved in this tangent, the original post by AlphaFrog states:
Nothing was specified about brand new AI who never were involved in Greek Life (or any college organization) would make a good recruitment adviser. Even to say that AIs do not make good advisers for a struggling chapter is just plain stupid (whether they were involved in collegiate Greek Life, another college organization, or not!).

AIs really shouldn't be a target here. The true issue is lack of experience, plain and simple, and I think we can all agree that long term and short term members can both fall into that category.

I have been a sorority member, both local and international, for more than 12 years, and I have risen up through the ranks of my sorority's leadership--and I would never dream in a million years to be qualified to advise a big school (SEC or otherwise) on recruitment in terms of procedures and rules. Recruitment at larger school requires almost a specialization in the subject.

While I do agree with Beryana that recruitment skills are basically the same no matter the school, there is a difference between the procedures from school to school. I believe those can be learned, but I do not believe that Susie Alum from small town school could just walk in without training and truly be an effective recruitment advisor.

My sorority isn't a product, it's a sisterhood.

Myself and my chapter sisters looked for women who would benefit from having that sisterhood and who in turn would bring something to the rest of the members. That was our main motivation in rush, not "selling."

But hey, different strokes for different folks.

Great, it is a Sisterhood!

But get over Yourself, It is a Product that You and Your Sisters try to sell. It is a business of selling People, Sister Hood, and being a group of women who have the same Ideals and thoughts.

Get more involved in Your National Organization and find How Much It cost to run Your GLO!

Still Love Your Soro!:D

I know it costs money to run a GLO. However, if we look at it as a disposable product instead of a lifetime sisterhood, I can't imagine there will be many people who want to "buy" it. It defeats the purpose. I don't think if you had "purchased" your LXA membership that you would still be active at your age.

As one of my sisters so eloquently said once, those letters on your shirt are not an advertisement. It's something deeper than that.

Do you SERIOUSLY think this has digressed into a discussion about buying friends?! No one ever mentioned the economics of belonging to a fraternity or sorority. What Tom and I have touched on is plain and simple marketing and sales. You are trying to 'sell' new members the benefits of membership in your particular chapter (over all others) and one of the marketing tools is the opportunity of a lifetime of sisterhood. You also realize that it takes longer time to build that deeper feeling than just three times visiting a chapter during recruitment - and even four years of college. HOWEVER, you have people join your organization before that process can even begin - that takes sales and marketing!

Thank You very much for explaining the reality of GLOs.

Yes, We do try to sell ourselves to PNM as there has to be a decision between to factions, We and they.

If We do not sell and market ourselves to PNM then We do not get any and guess what happens, We dissapear and others stay.:(

I love "the buying friends" that is like raking fingure nails on a chalk board to me.

If that is the case, I am glad I have bought all of My Brothers for 41 years and meeting Brothers from all over the USA and Canada!:)

I agree and I wanted to comment on what popped into my mind. It seems that for Panhellenic sororities, the bridge is COB/COR where people do have time to experience the sisterhood without experiencing the bulk of the marketing.

But, there's still marketing. For any TNX recruitment activities, we have to consider whom we're marketing to (multicultural sororities are not for everyone) and in that marketing, we have to stress that we are a sisterhood and a business. If we didn't explain the business side, it would be difficult to express why membership requires dues.

If, in our marketing, we can get across the sisterhood and business aspects of the organization, we're less likely to pick up letter-wearers.

AHHH the letter wearers, that is exactly what we just went through, and now we are lo.oking at some pretty hard times. That is why we are asking for a woman who has "been there, done that" As a 2nd chapter of a somewhat growing sorority we need someone to help us. Or to help us see if what we are doing is getting us anywhere or do we need to completly change directions. We have an Alumnea advisor and it is really hard to go from an active sister to advising and having the major blows that we have had on this past year. We are tired of weak links and drama, we need somone that can see the situation step up and step in to help us. We are working hard but we are spinning our wheels and we want to stop that.

Letter wearers are advertising for Your GLO are they not?

I do not mean just T-or Sweat Shirts.

What about Polo/Golf type shirts with letters on the breast area? Look nice and have a little class.

Why advertise Old Navy, The GAP, Budwieser or Nike instead of your GLO!

As for an Advisor, you never need a Sister/Brother who just graduated from your chapter as they are to close and will act like an Active.

Colleges actually encourage Instructors to be envolved with outside activities and this is a great source. They can also be a great go between the GLO and School. If they are so inclined and become an advisor, they can also be Initiated in the GLO.

Our Present Advisor is a Professor at the College and not only is He now a Member, His son is now his Brother:D

He is an intragal part of the Chapter and the College so it is good both ways!

Tom-
What is being referred to with the "letter wearers" are the sisters (or brothers) who are members basically in name only. They don't hold offices and are really not active in the least except for probably just the social functions. The same can hold true for faculty advisors. You have MANY that are just in name only - and don't even come to the social functions much less any meetings!

I did not say ANYTHING about buying friends, please reread the post.

Rush is a mutual selection process, not buying and selling. I can't recall the last time I thought about how I would benefit L'oreal or what I could give to them if I bought one of their lipsticks, or if the lipstick would still be there for me 10 years later. And I'm sure L'oreal wouldn't give a rat's rump if their lipstick did anything for me, or if I threw it in the trash the minute I walked out of the store, as long as I bought it.

And I wouldn't want to "sell" anything to a rushee who wouldn't fit in with my sorority, which I haven't seen you touch on at all. That would make both sides very unhappy. Again, I don't think L'oreal would care about that.

And you are completely missing the point about marketing. Every group markets to a target audience - which each individual group determines their individual target audience (and you can't tell me that each sorority does not have their own way of determining a level of 'acceptabilit' prior to recruitment!). How that marketing is accomplished is up to the individual group and their unique target audience.

You're also misunderstanding the idea of selling that I am referring to - and YES, you are trying to sell something to prospective members (and no, you can't compare prospective members to a cosmetic company!).

These are BASIC marketing principles!