[hoosier]

Small chapters get small victories, occasionally, but many find small chapters develop more cliques and spats. If you only have 30 people, it may be the greatest thing in the world, but usually there just isn't enough money to have a major social, to have an impressive homecoming display, or to keep up a decent house.

A 30-person GLO has only seven or eight people in each class (sr., jr., etc.), and probably only three or four seniors who are still around. This may offer more leadership opportunities for younger members, or it may produce a lot of immature leadership and failure. If there's only five or six juniors, probably two or three of them don't speak to the others. In a large chapter with 25 or 30 in each class, if two or three don't speak to two or three others, there are still 20 or 25 who speak and interact socially.

A 30-person chapter can't have a social with a 60- or 80 or 100 person GLO, and when GLOs pick co-sponsors/co-hosts for campus events and competitions they'll pick a large group which has more people, resources, and money.

Since the large groups will control the GLO governing bodies, they'll make the rules - which they will often say are designed to help the smaller chapters - which only help large groups. For example, if they say a PNM must visit every chapter before committing (so the small chapters "will see all the PNMs"), the small chapters always lose, when the PNMs see the nicer houses, the bigger trophies, and the larger numbers in other GLOs.

The story of a small quality chapter - and I'd define that as one in the lower third size-wise - is a myth. They seldom exist.

If you had a great life in a small chapter, congratulatons.

If you had been in a 100-person chapter, you would also have had a great life - and instead of 25 friends, you might have had 50 or 75.