33girl made a good point about different years. For example, my son's graduating class had so many boys because we are a sports nutty area and parents held them back. Add the late babies and parents who held them back for maturity reasons.
This was a banner year for our area in terms of joining fraternities.
Quota for a sorority IS important, but being a few off here and there doesn't
seem to be all that big a deal. Yet, if someone misses, it makes the headlines in the gossip circle along with barbs, jabs and unwarranted commentary.
I guess everything is relative to the campus standard, but in cases where the system is strong, I think quota is rather high. BUT, so are the operating expenses. A lot has been lost for the sake/need of numbers. There really are chapters that are quite happy being slightly smaller, but in the long run, it can present a problem. As James mentioned, it can come from a PR angle. Then, throw in PNMs who
wonder why THAT chapter is so small.
It can have a snowball effect. (There was quite a heated argument on this issue about a year ago.) I still believe that quality and sisterhood should be the number one priority. However, "Many hands make light work" and finances will always be an issue.
We are kind of brainwashed into believing "Bigger is better". So, let's just SUPER-SIZE that!
Does EVERYTHING have to boil down to money???
