Just Started new sorority!!
 

Hi everyone :)

I'm new here (just joined today). I've started a new sorority at my college campus because the one that exists ... isn't very nice. I'm in Peterborough Ontario, Canada. Anyway, to make things short I've got a name, colours, a coat of arms, and a constitution. What I'm worried about is the rituals. Because I have nothing to follow by I'm TOTALLY lost?!! I don't know what rituals should be done (I know an initiation ceremony should take place) but how does it work? Is it really 'ritualistic' or just like a meeting. What other rituals do I need to come with?? I'm totally lost on this one :( Any hints. tips tricks, websites books etc would be GREATLY appreciated! :)

Regards,
Samantha

Good luck getting any responses here.

With the exception of Delta Upsilon, Ritual is considered private and not disclosed to non-members.

Ritual is something you come up with on your own, not based off anyone else's.

Goats wearing bras or it didn't happen.

you'd be surprised how many rituals are more identical than you think.

Things to be ritualized: entering/opening a meeting, seating arrangement/items at the meeting, installing officers, the way you give bids, the start of pledging, presentation of big sisters, initiation.

That's messed up. http://www.greekchat.com/gcforums/sh...ad.php?t=93174

There are some other exceptions. Alpha Kappa Lambda also has an open ritual. And many orgs have some open rituals -- that is, while initiation and chapter meeting rituals or the like are secret, other rituals such as pledging or memorial services may not be.

Silmanarmo, you can find Delta Upsilon's ritual book on the web here. You might also find the essay "Secret Thoughts of a Ritual" helpful.

Also, some years ago someone did a master's thesis comparing fraternity rituals and the components that are common to them. There used to be info about that on the web -- if I can find any of that, I'll pass it along.

And, yeah, especially since you've told us where you are, the "not very nice" comment is, well, not very nice.

ETA: The dissertation (not thesis) I was talking about was written by Bobby McGinn in 1979. When I tracked that down and googled it, low and behold one of the first hits on Google was this GC thread, where it, Mari Ann Callais' dissertation, and a great Lambda Chi resource on ritual were discussed. (The link to Callais' dissertation in the first post is not longer good, but the dissertation can now be found here.)

To get into their sorority, you had to let them give you a 'shocker'!! They only do to girls from a certain part of town :( Makes me insulted to think that it's girls like that that give sorority's bad names:(

DELETED BC I CHECKED URBANDICTIONARY lol

I didn't read the whole thread you posted, but do you care to elaborate?

Bad mouthing another organization, regardless of truth or rumor, is not a good way to promote your sorority.

Instead of paying attention to the bad things they do, focus more on building a positive image on your campus.

Thank you sooo much!!! The "Secret Thoughts of a ritual" REALLY helped! :D

I was looking for a sorority to join in the new town I would be studying at. The only sorority available was "Kappa Kappa Shocka" .... the "initiation" was to receive a 'shocker' from one of the current member. There was absolutely no way I was going to do that. So I started a new sorority. Apparently KKS hasn't took in any new member since their 2nd round of pledges.

Please don't get insulted :( I'm not trying to bad mouth anyone ... And it was the recruiting sorority sister who said I had to do it to get in-> not a rumor :(

You're not insulting me.

But go ahead and keep on airing others' dirty laundry and see where that takes you.

You know, the internet isn't as anonymous as you think.

Just sayin'.

This website might also be useful.

http://www.sigepsouth.com/modconcepts.htm

OTW -> Seriously, I wasn't trying to "air other's dirty laundry" I made a small statement in my first post "... not very nice" and another poster asked me to elaborate.

I never said the internet was anonymous... anyone could pop open another window and get your IP address if they really wanted to! lol :p


I just know that I would never stand for something like that in a sorority. It's just my opinion, if you don't agree then that's fine ... but the very last thing I'd want is you to dislike me or my sorority over a thread post ... a little juvenile I think lol :p

:p Definatly helps!! Thanks so much!!

And if she asked you to jump off the cliff...you would?

Or people on your campus might remember this thread discussion when it comes time to rush. Being that there's only one other sorority on campus, I doubt it'd be hard to figure out who you are.


I think anything related to the shocker is disgusting. Still, it's in poor taste to post the organization's laundry. Just because it came from the horse's mouth doesn't necessarily mean it's true. You're not a member so you don't know it's fact...she could have just been shitting with you.

AAAaaarrrgggggggg OTW .... I really don't want to argue, or be on bad terms with anyone. Please, tell me what I should have said instead of what I did said.

Calm down. Just stop talking about the other sorority and worry about yours.

..... :( k

Did you read the link preciousjeni posted? It should help you.

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

:) Ya there's a lot of great information. I haven't made it through all of the posts yet lol

Very Helpful
 

The ritual links were very helpful for me as I am planning an initiation for one very special woman. Thank you for posting.

To the OP, good luck to you in your journey with your organization. DO keep us updated.

-WannaB3:o

My question is location?

I would guess that many fraternities and sororities have their rituals in the house or something like that, but for organizations that do not have houses, how do you decide where to have initiation ritual. As a new organization, you want it to be memorable, but also simple enough for others after us to carry on.

as always thank you GC! interesting thread.

WannaB3:o

For location there are a couple of things you can do. For ease I know alot of orgs find something on campus to use. For something big though, maybe a local church or something.

[quote=Silmanarmo;1659140]I was looking for a sorority to join in the new town I would be studying at. ....quote]


I checked urbandictionary and no longer need further elaboration.:eek:



Some advice:

1. you shouldn't believe everything you hear.
2. Never ever put down another organization or spread rumors.

Thanks for your reply. I was initially thinking of having it on the top of one of our campus parking garages at night because I thought it would be nice to have initiation at a location where you can view the entire campus and surrounding community because that is who we say we serve.

Never considered a church, but that is a good idea too.

Thanks!
WannaB3:o

Obviously I don't know anything about how you guys treat ritual. But having it completly out in the open like that is imo a BAD idea.

I can understand your concern, as it was mine too when I thought of the idea. I was thinking, though, that if it is kinda later at night, at the very top floor of one of the parking garages that people hardly use, no one who really noticed/see/hear us. But still could be a bad idea. I know.

I will research this church idea. Thanks again!

We haven't decided on a good place yet :( I guess we could use our school student center. It's inside AND there is lots of seating.

Do you need lots of seating? How many chapter members and initiates do you have?

Alright GC, now I'm starting to think you guys are just looking to pick on this poor grammatically challenged girl now...not so much in her defense.. but is it really your business (or really important to know) how many members or initiates she has or why she cares to have lots of seating?

I was the one who brought up the location thing, so make fun of my parking garage idea before you jump on her about ample seating.

I think we should all "say something nice or not say anything at all" at least on the boards. If you wanna talk some smack either do it tactfully or in a PM. All of us are representing our respectful organizations when we post here and just as Silmanarmo's actions reflect on her org, so does people's replies to her reflect on their orgs. I'm just saying, based on some of the replies to her, I would not want to be associated with many of you either, not just Silmanarmo.

WannaB3

Awww. The newb thinks we should all play nice.

Let's all thank her for her concern.

YAYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!

Our first pledge will be two parts. A private one and a public one. Because our first group of sisters is so small (7 founding + 4 pledges) we decided to do it this way. The public ceremony will allow our friends and family to come. We won't be HUGE but we thought that this way it would give us a more "ceremony" feeling.

OTW, it's not about playing nice, it's called having RESPECT and not getting off by belittling others, which many of you seem to enjoy. If you don't have something productive to add, I don't see the point in trying to bring someone down in such a negative, demeaning, unthoughtful, and unprofessional way. You can roll your eyes, or whatever, I really don't care. You all don't phase me. But I watch you (you = people on GC) attack and tear people down like lions for absolutely no reason other than to get your laughs at someone else's cost when all they did was ask advice from you, the allegedly, so called, "experienced" ones.

I never said your comments to her weren't valid, because I feel many of them are valid, but they can be presented in a much better way. You need to think about the way you are representing yourself and your organization before you can tell someone how to represent their's.

WannaB3

P.S. just because I am new at posting doesn't mean I have been in the shadows for a while. YAYYYYYYYYYYYYY for me!

Ummmm, who was making fun of her remark about seating? Assume much?

Silmanarmo has asked lots of questions here about starting a sorority in general and about ritual in particular. I'm one of the people who has tried to provide some answers to those questions about ritual. She has noted that she found materials available online from Delta Upsilon -- well known for being one of the few GLOs with completely open, rather than secret, ritual -- which she found useful.

Since the rituals for most GLOs are closed, ample seating is usually not an issue, especially for smaller chapters. Sooooo, I was curious why ample seating would play into their consideration. Not making fun, not belittling, just curious. Perhaps the phrasing of my question grew out of the presumption that rituals will be closed, since that is the more common practice; perhaps I could have been direct and said "will your rituals be open?

But I actually thought it might be a little more respectful not to be so direct. I think you have to be reading way too much into it to find making fun of or belittling anyone.

Interesting. I know of at least one or two other GLOs (other than Delta Upsilon) where the pledge ceremony is open.

Thanks.

Please refer to SoCalGirl's signature when you can, thx.

I call BS on being in the shadows for a while because if that were really true, then you'd know better. And newsflash -- there's a website out there that might be better suited for you:

http://www.relaxyourassranch.com/How...und%20Bale.jpg

http://www.gumption.com/blog/wp-cont..._cover_art.jpg

thanks for that and here is one for you...and everyone I think. Just replace, "blogs" with "threads people start on GC" , and you will get the idea. http://www.mmiblog.com/monday_mornin...ng_maturi.html

Tuesday, June 28, 2005

Blogging Maturity 101

http://www.mmiblog.com/monday_mornin...es/manners.jpg Tally Wilgis had a great post last week about blogging and some great rules for keeping blogs positive. As many of you know, we've had our own 'growing pains' here at the [virtual greek hang out] from time to time... people biting each other's heads off, throwing punches, etc. :) But it's really because we're a diverse group that comes from a lot of different backgrounds. And, it seems, we're all passionate about what we believe. Tally's thoughts were so good, I'm going to post it, along with our rules on a new reference page here at the blog. Thanks, Tally!
Tally writes:

Because blogging is relatively new for most people I'd like to think that many of the people who are involved with blogging are adolescents in their use of this new medium. As with young people there is an uncertainty among those who are learning the blogging world. For many of these otherwise fine individuals the urge to make an ignorant remark is simply too strong. The perceived glory is far too great and the self-centeredness takes hold under the guise of "to god (g) be the glory!" With some angry "Christian" bloggers, God simply becomes a means to an end. The end being the feeling of "winning" a blogging boxing match.

So, for all my friends who are learning how to blog (and comment on blogs):

1. Each blog you visit is the internet "home" of someone.
You wouldn't dare walk into a home and run your mouth at the host. It's inappropriate to do on blogs as well. It's just ugly and you end up looking stupid. Don't do it. It's immature.

2. Any attack on a blog is a public attack.
It's one thing to debate a friend in college where it's you two in a room or sitting out on the grass with no one else around. Imagine if you took some of those debates and broadcasted them to every dorm room on campus. Yeah. Be aware of what you say. You can look stupid, no matter how 'valid' your point may be.

3. It takes time to type so people will judge you a little tougher.
When everyone knows you took time to type your thought it gets a little more scrutiny than if you just said something in a conversation. It's one thing (still dumb) to blurt out something ignorant in a conversation b/c you don't have the facts or you come off as rude but to type it solidifies any thought of you being immature or ignorant. Read what you type. You have time to think it through!

4. A sign of maturity is the ability to delay gratification.
One thing that separates a mature person from the immature is the ability to hold back from immediate gratification. This is true for the blog world. We all have opinions.

If you have a brain you have a thought, but not every thought has to be brought forward and presented in the dialogue. I try to operate on terms of 'value added'. When I'm considering posting I ask "Is what I'm about to say going to add value to the conversation?" My "opinion" sometimes means NOTHING to the core of the author's post. Therefore I keep my golden brain to myself no matter how great I think I may be at the time.

5. Look up the term Ad Hominem.
I'll do the work for you: [link]

The jest of an Ad hominem is that it's an attack on the person rather than the argument. I see this so much in the blog world it makes me sick.
Goes a little like this--

Author: "So and so is doing something amazing for God."
Immature Blogger: "So and so is a blank and blank. Why doesn't so and so just become more humble, LIKE ME!"

Don't attack the person. If you disagree and you must get your thought on record, do it in a civil way. Don't go after people. If you must, talk about the idea presented.

6. You can be both true and Wrong at the same time!
For many immature bloggers they don't understand that perception is reality. Although the context of what they are saying is true, how they are spraying is wrong. For effective communication both parts must be able to be received.. the saying AND the spraying.

Those who don't want to work to make their communication better received by their audience have lowered themselves to bully status. "I'll say what I want and you WILL listen or else". The 'or else' in blog world is usually "Or else I'll keep posting!"

So there you have it... some thoughts to consider. If you don't like them it's okay to disagree. Just disagree in the right manner and we can all play in the sandbox together.

Thanks, Tally... I couldn't have said it better! I hope you all agree!
Todd
Add Your Comments and Ideas now...

WannaB3:o

Yes I do assume some. Grandma always said when you assume, U make an ASS out of ME! Bravo!

I do realize there are others who have been assisting her, such as yourself, and I apologize for my swift confrontation directed at you. I am sure it was misguided anger. I still feel the same about what I said, though.

Best to ALL of GC,
WannaB3:o

Grandma didn't say it, Felix Unger on the Odd Couple did.

And the correct quote is "When you assume, you make an ASS out of U and ME."

I will not put up with people who steal from classic sitcoms and aren't smart enough to know it.