telling your chapter that you're transferring...
 

i'm 95% sure that i'm going to be transferring next year--as in come fall of 09, i'll be at a different school. i go to a very pricey private school that my family simply cannot afford, so i'm transferring to a school i can get in-state tuition at. i'll *hopefully* stay affiliated with my sorority. i just don't know how or when to tell my chapter that i'm transferring. do i stand up at a chapter meeting a make an announcement toward the end of the school year or do i tell a few people and let it trickle down to everyone?

Before you do that go to the schools financial aid department and see if they can be of help. These very pricy private schools always advertise that cost is never a factor in going there. See if they will honor that.

Yes, definitely make sure that you have no other possibilities. You'd hate to leave school only to find out that you could have stayed.

And if you're only 95% sure that you're going to transfer right now, I wouldn't announce anything to the entire chapter just yet.

If you do have to transfer, I would probably talk to the President and/or any advisors about your situation. From there, do what makes you feel comfortable. If I was in such a position, I would probably talk to the sisters I felt closest with, and then tell everyone at the end of a meeting (after it's been adjourned). And I would probably say something shortly after I found out I was leaving.

But again, it's essentially up to you as to how you want to deal with it.

You would not stand up at chapter. You would go to you e-board member in charge of membership and let them know. They will then file paperwork with your HQ. You may want to wait to tell them until later in the spring.

Speaking as someone who went to one of the most pricey of the very pricey private schools, that's a load of crap. Never did my school, or I doubt very many schools other than the Ivies that now cover tuition, try to snow people when it came to cost. Yes, many private schools have nice endowments and give great financial aid, but the ones I'm familiar with also take the financial investment by students and their parents very seriously. I know of only a handful of very unique universities that can pay every student's way, and the only ones I've heard state that cost won't be a factor in attending are Harvard and one of the other Ivies. Money is ALWAYS a factor, it's just not an overriding factor for some.

I second this. Many schools claim they have the money for every student but it's not always the case. Especially in this economic time. When the economy first took a downturn, many schools were affected. The only schools people thought had untouchable endowments were Harvard and Yale.

They were wrong. Because they lost 22% and 13% of their endowments respectively. Princeton cut their budget. NYU lost $24 million in the Madoff scandal. Financial Aid is going to be tough for the next year or two at least.

That being said, you don't have to make a chapter announcement. just talk to membership.

You don't NEED to do anything except make sure your chapter leaders do what they need to do to make sure you stay a member in good standing. You may want to let everyone know at a meeting that you are transferring. I don't think that there is any true etiquette to this situation, just do what you feel like doing. If telling your closest friends and big, then letting them notify everyone else is how you feel most comfortable doing things, that's fine. If you want to let all of your sisters know, tell them at meeting.

I would advise that you make sure that your new school has a chapter of your organization at that school. Changing the school shouldn't mean that you are changing your organization. Aren't you within your organization for life?

KSUViolet06, o.k., what's up with the questions today? As far as staying in my lane, I don't do lanes, lines, or others designations for me. I happen to be my own person. And yes, I do understand having to change schools, duh! However, from what she was saying she wanted to know how to tell her chapter. Fine, cool, whatever. The point I was making was that she was in her sorority for life and it shouldn't matter where she went to school, if she was in it for life, then her affiliation with the organization doesn't change, it's only the chapter that does. DUH! Now, go on back to your lane and get outta mine!
Or was this your way of telling me to get to the back of the bus?

ok, yeah, that wasn't the point you were making, but whatevs.

"Staying in your lane" means that when it comes to certain issues, you leave the discussion to the respective members (i.e. NPC issues to NPC members, NPHC issues to NPHC members).

And Epchick, I reiterate my point. I don't do lanes! I simply responded to a general question as to helping the young lady in question.
And you are wrong, I was making that point. The point being, if the young lady is in her organization, then changing schools shouldn't matter, she'd still be a part of the organization! She'd only be changing chapters. I asked the end question of being in her organization for life because if she changed schools, then it's only a simple thing of telling the Grand Chapter where she was in order to change her chapters for roll. Jeez, you'd think I was asking if she was purple or something or if she liked eating peanut butter and pita bread.
It was a general question and a general answer response. Good God!

If you "don't do lanes" then good luck with being on GC.

No one is arguing about the OP's status in her organization. And what you just said works for your org but not hers.

Its a general question but the answer is specific to the protocols of the type of org (which I assume is NPC, I didn't check). Had it been an NPHC or Nalfo member, or a guy, the responses wouldve been different.

You'll learn young one.