Frills Bid Day
 

Hi All,

I was wondering today what all of your Bid Days were like? How much would your chapter spend on an activity or your new member Bid Day gifts?

My chapter would go to Disneyland or a home football game (if it worked out), or bowling, etc, which can get really pricey. And we'd usually get the new members between $30-50 worth of stuff.

How all-out would your chapters go?

All i can say is how jelous i am!!!

I didn't get to go that year, I had work instead :/

Well we give the girls a rose from pref night, an alpha gam book bag, and a bid day shirt.

One year we had our bid activity at a park, then we went to the zoo one year, and last year we had a bbq at a sisters house.

Yea for no frills recruitment! :rolleyes: I hate it!

I see the point, but I still hate it!

At last years bid day, we gave the new members a bid day shirt, a cool Theta bag with the university and chapter name on it filled of a bunch of candy, Theta Stuff, and bid day theme items.
We then week downtown to eat lunch on the landing of a restaurant on the river, and then saw "Breakfast at Tiffany's" at the historic Florida Theater.

I went through COB, but I still think we received around the same things as formal recruitment bid days.

I received a Bid Day shirt, my Pi Phi letter bag, a cup, ink pen, sticky notes, car decal, and some flowers. Not to mention a ton of candy and baked goods! After, we all went to Steak n Shake to just get to know each other since our pledge class was so small.

I didn't know that some schools regulated bid day. At our school what the chapters do with their new members is none of our business nor concern as long as they aren't violating anything like hazing. Recruitment is over. Most of them just serve food, but if they wanted to rent a castle and have a carnival with live alligators in the moat or something like that we don't dictate spending, etc. b/c that's chapter business.

Bid Day is officially part of recruitment, according to NPC. No boys or alcohol allowed. I don't believe the OP was talking about schools regulating spending, though...I think she was just wondering what chapters traditionally do for bid day and how ellaborate they make their gifts.

When I was a collegiate in the L.A. area, we went to dinner (my bid day was at Ed Debevik's, which is sadly no longer in L.A.), broom ball, roller skating, or s'mores on the beach. We usually gave new members little totes with car decals, a cup, keychain, photo frame, bid day tshirt, and of course a pink carnation!

Back in the day we would have a brunch at the chapter house (as bids were usually passed out around 11am/Noon). New Members were given an AXiD t-shirt and sweatshirt, and some of AXiD gear (cup, decal, stickers, etc), plus maybe a teddy bear and some candy or something.

The afternoon was spent helping New Members move in (to the chapter house, as on our campus all chapters are housed), then there was usually a BBQ at a park or beach for dinner.

Also, our Bid Day decoration budget was restricted by our Panhellenic, as it's thought to be still part of Recruitment, but that was not the case for the activities we did away from the chapter house.

Our Bid Day was actually Bid Night - starting around 7pm (I think?). Since this was before many of the current rules, most sororities on campus had basically the same schedule:

-Pick up bids.
-Go to Suite or House (screaming, singing & squealing here!).
-Once everyone was accounted for, we'd go into the stairwell (nine sororities were in the same dorm), and both stomp & count the number of pledges we took. That sorority, would in turn, do the same to the 8th floor, etc.
-Pledging Ceremony. We were given both the pledge pin AND ribbons in our colors.
-Phi Delta Theta would send their pledges with carnations tied in our colors, and have "Kiss and Carnations". A welcoming poem was read, then the pledges would take turns kissing and giving each pledge a carnation.
-Pictures, pictures, and more pictures!
-Then, all of the sisters & new pledges would go to a hall for an All Greek Mixer. This was both wonderful and horrific. It was good to see who went where, but there were also tears from sisters who had rush crushes go to another sorority.
-Not part of Bid Night, but the next day, every new pledge wore their ribbons & pledge pins. Actually, we had to wear the ribbons for a week, and the pledge pins for our entire pledge period, not just when wearing Pin Attire.

Note that I don't mention t-shirts! Some sororities did give them out on Bid Day, but many didn't until Christmas exchange, which was only 2-3 weeks later. It had nothing to do with wearing letters, or the words, but it had everything to do with NOT wearing a t-shirt for the first few weeks as a Greek. You were to be "well dressed" at all times during those first weeks.

[QUOTE=honeychile;1668168]-Then, all of the sisters & new pledges would go to a hall for an All Greek Mixer. This was both wonderful and horrific. It was good to see who went where, but there were also tears from sisters who had rush crushes go to another sorority.
QUOTE]

That DOES sound both awesome and awful, not to mention it would save a ton of money for the chapters and regulate issues like alcohol more strictly.

Were all women required to go to the event, or were PNMs who were really upset allowed to stay behind with a few actives at the chapter house?

ASAIK, there weren't any horribly disappointed PNMs. I'm sure there were a few, but the whole concept was Greek Unity, so everyone bucked up and at least acted happy. I think there were many more disappointed sisters than PNMs. I do remember one sorority only taking one PNM, though, and the whole chapter elected to stay in their suite and celebrate on their own. I can't say that I blame them - it's bad enough to have all the other sororities to know that you tanked rush, but to have all the fraternities know that quickly? I'd avoid that embarrassment, too!

Ouch. I don't blame them, either.

For my bid day, we got picked up in a limo at our dorms then were driven to the house. We had hour'derves and had our pledge pinning ceremony. Then we were free to do whatever we wanted. A lot of us went and got ice cream with the older sisters then went back to the house to watch a movie and sleep over.

We got a carnation, bid day shirt, a tote bag, a little pad of paper and pen, and some candy.

I bet it made you feel amazing as a new member to be picked up in a limo! All the chapters at my school do bid day at their house but it would be so cool to go to Disneyland or any of the other places mentioned. My bid day we just had pizza. I'm doing recruitment now so we're def getting it catered.

"Back in the Day"--(Late 80s, Early 90s) Bid Night was all the things that are not really kosher anymore.

1. Actives picked up pledges at their dorms. Can you imagine all the girls who found out that they didn't get into a house having to endure the chanting and screaming in the hallways of their dorms? This ended my Junior or Senior year at which time pledges were picked up by a University bus.

2. While the pledges were out celebrating, a team of sisters went back to their dorm and decorated their doors.

3. The evening started at the chapter house with pizza and soda and ice-breaker events. I remember standing on my chair and telling everyone something "interesting" about myself. Examples of these "interesting" things were: "My favorite ice cream is 'rocky road'" or "I can touch my tongue to my nose"--stuff like that. I remember we were all so excited that the energy in the room was out of control!

4. We were given the cutest sweatshirts with ZETA spelled out and a bunny perched on the letters. I wish I still had that sweatshirt. Tons of pictures!!!

5. After the sorority social, we were taken to a fraternity party--which was overwhelming (at least for me).

We did all these things in the early to mid 2000s at my school... What's supposed to be "frills" about #3?

They still do this at my old school...or I know that one sorority did it to a girl on my hall freshman year. It was actually pretty cool though.

This was pretty much our bid days too, except you could hear the rustling of your door being decorated before they knocked. I don't know what happened if the girl ever declined the bid - I guess just took down the decorations & went home.

My chapter had a party to which you could invite whoever instead of a mixer - that way if you had a boyfriend in another fraternity or who was an independent you could share that special night with him - or any of your other friends. The one time we had a mixer I didn't really like it at all.

Our Panhel finished making the "you didn't get a bid" calls by 3 PM and pledge pickup didn't start till 6 PM. That way if you didn't get a bid and it was too traumatic for you to watch you had some time to get out of Dodge. I still think this is better than the schools who make the girls open their bids in front of ALL the rushees, sororities & Rho Chis...that's absolutely barbaric IMO.

THANK YOU! I completely agree and it's taking forever to get some of the people on our College Panhel to come around. In my day we opened in rooms with our Rho Chi groups, but somehow it got switched to opening in a large field on campus with all the PNMs, sorority members, RC's, and parents/friends/boyfriends watching. It is, indeed, barbaric.

Agree. I prefered the way my campus did it - PNMs show up to a room on campus between, say, 3pm and 4pm, their recruitment counselor gives them their bid, then they can open it whereever and whenever they want. Some girls tore into them immediately right there, but other girls would go off to somewhere private like the bathroom to open theirs. The worst reactions I saw happened one year when I was a rho chi and we let the chapters design their own bid cards, so all the PNMs knew right away when they got their envelope which sorority it was for. Some of the girls were visibly upset when I handed some of them their envelopes, which just sucked.

At my school the girls get letter via Campus Mail saying whether or not they've been matched to a sorority, but it doesn't tell them which one. You only go to two prefs, so it's really not THAT big a mystery. Anyway, you don't find out till the next weekend when the girls decorate your door and come pick you up. Lots of anticipation!

At my school all the girls get their bids in the colliseum (sp?) and then run to the sorority houses. Once they get there they are greeted by their new sisters--who are holding balloons and signs for them! The new members are then taken to the bid day location- either somewhere downtown, a member's home, a nice restaurant, etc. The girls are treated to a nice dinner and given a nice tote bag filled with sorority goodies. Later we decorate their doors and leave them goodies to suprise them!

One week! Ugh, the suspense would kill me either as a PNM or an Active.

What if you decorate their door and all and invite them to pledge and they decide they don't want to accept your bid? Does that happen?

My school calls everyone who doesn't get a bid so they don't show up to bid day. Then everyone who did get a bid meets up in the student union. They reveal each rho chi's chapter and then hand out bid cards. Everyone opens them at the same time and there's a lot of shrieking.

Then everyone goes outside where a few representatives pick them up and get them on the bus to their house. The whole chapter is outside to greet them. Then someone specifically will pick you up (your "Bid Day Budy"--not someone I'd met during rush). You get a bid day t-shirt. Last year, actives wore hot pink and new Alphas wore teal versions of the same shirt. Alphas also got a canvas bag with letters, a decal for their car, a water bottle and some other goodies.

Then we put on music and had a dance party. And then there was dinner. We have this breaded chicken breast stuffed with feta cheese and peppers. It's always a hit, and our cook actually calls it "Bid Day Chicken."

The next day we have a cookout and the older girls take the new girls out to the frats.

I imagine this is a relatively inexpensive bid day.

Nothing. I said that our bid night night had all the things you aren't supposed to do anymore. I didn't mean to imply that everything we did on bid night fit this category. I listed all the things I could remember us doing in order.

They just take the stuff down. There's also the case of the PNM who accepts the bid (sort of) but is crying or whatever about her placement when you arrive at her dorm room. I actually find that to be somewhat effective to have people pick up crying/disappointed PNMs (there is only an hour or two lag time between bid distribution & sororities arriving in the dorm at W&L). The Rho Chis/Panhel would usually clue us in to who might be wavering/crying, and we'd assign people those individuals really liked to pick them up and try to get them to come to Bid Day and check it out.

I actually find this more effective than having crying girls actually arrive at Bid Day (which I've seen happen too). In that case it can be a real downer, especially since if you're a lower-tier group, one or two crying PNMs can seriously bum out the rest of your pledge class who might be a teenie bit disappointed too (although not to the point of questioning accepting their bid/crying, etc.).

I actually haven't heard of anyone declining a bid at the door. It's kinda complicated because since they have a week's notice of being "matched" to a sorority (even though they may not know which one), it's usually settled beforehand.

It kind of happened to us last year. At my school they have a bid matching meeting with Greek life Advisor and each sorority's membership officer, Then about an hour later they hand out bids one by one, then they hold the girls for callout. Our membership person with the help of alums right the names on decorations of the girls who received bids from us. We were waiting for the list of girls who accepted our bids so we could decided who would hang out with them that day. Once we got the list we sent four of our girls out to go put up the decorations we made for the girls while the rest of us went to callout. Well during callout we were surprised to find out we got the wrong list. There were a few girls who didn't accept our bids so we had to call the girls who were putting up decorations and tell them to hurry and take down some of them.