Fledgling Sorority Seeks Advice
 

Hey, all!

I know you're probably sick of these "how do you start a local sorority" threads...but I specifically joined this site to seek advice on it... so I would appreciate any help you are willing to give.

My (potential) sorority has already been approved and recognized as an interest group by the school and we just went before the Panhellenic Council to present who we are and why we want to become a sorority. We'll find out soon whether or not we are approved for associate membership for a year by Panhell...after that we will become an official, recognized sorority pending Panhell's approval a second time.

We already have our motto, colors, philanthropy, letters, mascot (though it is currently being reevaluated), our advisor...the basics.

Basically I am a hardcore Capricorn so I'd really love to start planning early so we aren't pushed for time and thus can do the best job that we can...I am here to ask for help/advice on the following:

1. How to formulate a pledging process once we are approved.

2. How to create rituals when starting from scratch.

and 3. ...as lame as it sounds...I would love help with coming up with a cheer/song or two. Or at least guidance to how one goes about adding rhythms etc to poetry and making it sound like a cheer and not...chanting Dickinson or something haha.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and I hope to hear from some of you! :)

PS: This is a semi but not really related question...but I am torn between wanting to be pledge educator should we get approved and wanting to be a big and have a little. I'm currently a junior so I would have to choose between the two. Advice? Which do you find is more rewarding to experiencing the Greek life experience?

If you are just starting, you might not have bigs and littles for a while yet. Or actual pledges.

You went to Panhellenic for associate status before you were an actual group? Do you have any other members? If they don't give you assosciate status, your just going to stop? Why would they let an idea join CPC? I'm confused by your timeline.

Wouldn't a good place to start be with a Constitution and Bylaws?

Looks like you've got the cart and the horse separated here.

PS pretty clever name...Jekell and Hyde, eh? Sounds more like a Gemini choice than a Capricorn.

There seem to be dozens of threads on this topic here if you use the search function. I guess I am not seeing how your situation is unique or otherwise compelling.

1. You will have a limited amount of time for pledgeship, usually between 4 and 16 weeks. There might also be a limit on how many hours you can spend per week and per day on pledgeship activities. During pledgeship, you need to teach your new members your traditions, history, establish family lines, acquaint them with current and other new members, and teach them about your constitution and official processes such as filing paperwork, etc. Make sure that you get all of these done within your allotted time. Making a calendar is a huge help!

2. Don't worry about it to much! As a young sorority, your traditions and rituals will evolve. Your first few pledge classes will have a huge role in shaping the sorority. My sorority is 26 years old and has a lot of tradition, but things still change, sometimes out of necessity and sometimes because people simply don't like "the old way." Otherwise, your created rituals should stem from your values, symbols, etc. Some of your later traditions will likely evolve from inside jokes.

3. It's not hard. Pick a familiar tune (like Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, the Oscar Meyer song, etc.) and insert letters, colors, etc. If you're looking for something more appropriate for a formal event like initiation, try looking at hymnals for good tunes.

As a young local sorority, you will probably be small. If this is the case, you might end up having to take a little while still being a pledge captain. This has happened more than once in my sorority, despite our constitution saying otherwise. If I had to choose, I would go for a little. It's almost like having a kid. While the pledge captain makes sure that everything goes smoothly and that the pledges learn what they need to, I get to spoil my little and be her main support. We have a close connection that spans our entire college careers and beyond.

It's great that you have your motto and colors and all, but you need a constitution STAT. If you don't have one already, get to it!

if you google sample sorority constitution you should be able to find one. i used the online copy of zeta theta pi's constitution to draft ours and for the most part it worked well. you could also ask other organizations (not even necessarily glos) to look at their constitution for ideas. your student union should have a handbook for creating clubs and societys that offers constitution help too.