Total Question!
 

Quick Question:

All chapters that are over total are not allowed to participate in recruitment, correct? Our campus has a few chapters that are significantly over total and some that are just meeting it. Is it possible for chapters who are at total (but smaller than the biggest chapters) to participate in recruitment activities?

Are you talking about Formal Recruitment or COB? In Formal Recruitment every chapter is able to recruit. In COB, only those chapters below total are allowed to participate.

Edit: I should add that I'm sure there is an exception or two to my generalized statement, but overall, that's how it works.

Total does not impact quota for formal recruitment so all groups can participate. On campuses that do not use the standard quota/total system and use a house limit (Ohio State and Indiana) come to mind, it may make a difference in quota for an individual group.

There are also cases where the collegiate panhellenic votes to allow chapters to recruit to average chapter size, even if they are already over total.

What exactly do you mean by "recruitment activities"? At Bama there are Panhellenic sponsored/approved spring recruitment activities for graduating HS seniors/next fall's PNMs. Every chapter may participate in these because technically it is for next year's formal recruitment. These are not COR events.

All NPC chapters may participate in formal recruitment and extend a number of bids equal to quota (or even quota additions) even if they're over total going into FR.

Any NPC chapter that is under total after FR may do COB recruitment and recruit up to total.

Any NPC chapter that did not get a number of PNMs equal to quota during FR, may do COB recruitment and recruit up to quota, even if doing so would put them over total.

Example: Let's say chapter total is 100, formal recruitment is in the fall, and quota for this year is 30.

Chapter A has 110 members before FR begins. They may participate in FR. Say they extend 30 bids during FR, and all are accepted. Chapter A has met quota and total, and they may not recruit again until next year's FR.

Chapter B also has 110 members before FR begins. They may participate in FR. Say they only match 25 women, and all 25 bids are accepted. They may do COB and extend 5 more bids to meet quota of 30.

Chapter C has 85 members before FR begins. They participate in FR and extend 30 bids, all of which are accepted. Now they have 115 members. Since they met quota and are now over total, they may not recruit again until next year's FR.

Chapter D also has 85 members before FR begins. They participate in FR and extend 10 bids, all of which are accepted. Now they have 95 members. They are still under total and didn't meet quota. Five more bids accepted would put them at total, but they are entitled to extend up to 20 more bids to meet quota - even though this would put them over total.

Chapter E has 50 members before FR begins. They participate in FR and extend 30 bids, all of which are accepted. Now they have 80 members. They have met quota but not total, so they may participate in COB and extend up to 20 more bids to meet total of 100.

Chapter F also has 50 members before FR begins. They participate in FR and extend 10 bids, all of which are accepted. Now they have 60 members. They have met neither quota nor total, so they may participate in COB and extend up to 40 more bids to meet total of 100.

Clear as mud? :)