[MysticCat]

Originally posted by shinerbock
On a related note, regarding the negative connotations of the term "pledge"... For the most part, anybody who would be put off by the term pledge, for whatever reason, is not one I care about being in my fraternity.

I always suspected that the move away from the word pledge had more to do with PR with the general public rather than with prospective members specifically.

Originally posted by Optimist Prime
also, you PLEDGE your self, loyalty, and honor to your fraternity. Hence the name PLEDGE for one who has made such a PLEDGE and then enter the PLEDGE program and engage in the verb "TO PLEDGE"

Which is why I am glad we still use pledge as a verb, even if we don't use it as a noun anymore -- you become a probationary member by pledging yourself to the Fraternity in the pledging ceremony.

Originally posted by macallan25
I don't like the term "new member" because well.......you aren't a member yet.

I agree. I think that this feeling is part of what is behind the proposal for our National Assembly this summer to replace the term "probationary member" (which at least makes clear that it's probationary and can be revoked) with "candidate."

But from past discussions here, it seems to me that this is a fundamental difference between the approaches of non-NPHC fraternities, NIC or other, and sororities, NPC or other. It seems to me that most fraternities draw a clear line between pledges/associate or probationary members/candidates or whatever and members/brothers, with the chapter retaining the right both to "de-pledge" someone and to have a final vote prior to initiation, and with restrictions such as (perhaps) a prohibition on wearing letters prior to initiation. (Some groups seem more strict about the latter than others.)

It seems that sororities, on the hand, seem use "new member" or some variant on it and, as sdsuchelle said, afford the new member almost all of the privileges of initiated membership.

Mars and Venus, I guess.