[ASTalumna06]

Suggestions:

1.) When doing service events, try to do them on campus, and invite others to participate. Some students may not consider joining Greek Life, but they'd like some experience with volunteer work or the like. Don't even advertise it as a fraternity event. Just ask people to help you out. Or bring awareness to a good cause. Collect donations for a disaster relief fund. Have a campus clean-up day. Celebrate National Hazing Prevention Week (Sept 22-26, '08). Hand out information about the upcoming presidential election. Do anything that will allow people on campus to see that you're involved in a positive way. (And get another organization to help you out if you need more people - and try to recruit them too!)

2.) I also went to a smaller school (a few thousand more people than your school), but still small. Your school actually has more GLOs than mine. So that says something. People must be interested in Greek life. My chapter was also down to less than 5 members about 5 or 6 years ago, and it sucks. But you can build it back up. Just meet as many people as possible! If people are your friends first, they'll have a chance of being your brothers next. Don't sell people on the idea of the fraternity. Sell them on the idea of being your friend.

3.) Use your chapter size to your advantage. Don't think only in terms of "What can we offer to students?" but, "What can the students offer to us?" You're small. You need people. Hard-working, motivated people. Advertise that way. Talk about what you're looking for, and then what you think other men on campus can do to help. Sometimes, when people know they can be a large part of what helps an organization to grow and run effectively, they will be that much more likely to take an interest.

4.) Will your school fund an event for you? On my campus, one of the fraternities had a bowling night at a local bowling alley. But instead of directing it only toward men as a recruitment event, they opened it up to all students, and they received enough funding for all of the brothers, and to have an additional 30 people join them. They had a sign-up sheet in the student union, and the first 30 people to sign up got to bowl for free.

5.) Talk to the sororities! There is obviously an interest in Greek life from the women on campus. Keep an open line of communication with them. Do service projects with them. Ask them out to dinners and events. Because there's a good chance that collectively, these women know A LOT of men. And see if you can make a formal presentation to them at their business meetings. Talk to them about what you do, what you can offer, and the type of men you're looking for (and bring them a small gift, like their sorority flower for each one of them). Then ask them to write down on a piece of paper names of as many intelligent, hard-working men that they know. This will give you names of people you can contact. And there's a good chance that girl will tell her guy friend that she gave you his name. This way he won't be so surprised when you get in touch with him.

Be creative and open-minded and you'll go far.