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Originally Posted by baci
we must do a better job of teaching young members the concepts and importance of lifetime membership. This is key! If young members graduate and step into alumnae groups - maybe AI would not be in the picture as it is with some orgs.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 33girl
I think rather than increasing AI programs, the sororities (all 26 of them) need to look at why alumnae involvement among the women they've already initiated and who have had great experiences is so minimal.
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I think my organization is making some inroads here. As president of the alumnae chapter in my area, I have been blown away at the involvement of our youngest alumnae. The percentage of alumnae in our area who are less than 5 years out of school is astronomically high as compared to the rest of the chapter. In addition, they show up to all the events, volunteer on committees and as they move to town have been great about finding *us* (instead of vice versa) and joining. It has truly been seemless- "I just graduated from Big State U and moved to town. How can I get involved in the chapter?" Very refreshing.
I work very hard to recognize their involvement for this exact reason, and hope that some of the older members can see their enthusiasm and loyality.
I am embarrassed to admit that I am not sure what specifics my organization has done to increase the awareness of lifetime membership while members are still in college, but I do know that this has been part of their strategic plan for the past few years. For those orgs who have not yet developed specific programs for such I offer that these programs can and do work.
The benefits are twofold- members involved for a lifetime, and as was mentioned earlier it can decrease the need for AI.