[honeychile]

I would imagine that, prior to the printed rec sheet, Mrs. Smith would call XYZ chapter of her sorority, and tell them that Pammy & Patsy PNM would be coming to school that year, and would the chapter please give them extra consideration. I've also heard of alumnae in the past (like 1940's-50's) show up at a chapter with cakes or other gifts with the PNM's name on them. Since that was happening, I can see that getting a rec in the mail is a thousand times better than hundreds of phone calls. Even though schools such as Pitt didn't get as many as other schools, we did get about 20-25 a year, and local ADPi moms would bring their daughters to visit the Suite about a year prior to their freshman year.

The "dropping a good word" isn't going to stop, IMHO, so I see the rec sheet as the better option.