Alabama Recruitment

[VandalSquirrel]

Originally Posted by AnchorAlumna

Also
--Home Address
--Parents' names
---Their colleges and Greek groups, and what they do for a living (nosy? Yes...but I want to know the sorority bill will be paid)
--ACT/SAT scores

I am building an Excel spreadsheet for Alabama's recruitments (darn those UA people for not posting it that way to begin with!!) that you can sort for sorority, hometown, state, etc. If anybody wants a copy, DM me your e-mail address and I'll e-mail you a copy. It may be tomorrow before I'm finished.

I'm not a fan of the occupation of the parents as they may not be paying. Grandparents may be paying, a woman may (gasp) have a job and saved up for it, maybe she has a scholarship to help cover her housing portion, that is just antiquated to me and does not help our reputation of looking elitist and snobby. Also their college, not that important; their Greek affiliations, sure. More first generation college students are signing up for rush and the information may not exist.

[HeavenslilAngel]

I paid for my dues myself. My parents weren't supportive of my decision to join a sorority but I wanted to do it and so my paychecks paid for it. My parents paid everything else so they really couldn't say anything about my sorority involvement. I love learning about big SEC recruitment. I went to a small state school in Louisiana where recs were rare for the most part and I went through COB not formal rush.

[brownie2]

My daughter is a Phi Mu & just called today. Nick Saban's daughter Kristen pledged Phi Mu!

[BadCat25]

On the question of recs. The result is to exclude PNMs who are first in family college students, particularly if they are from a blue-collar background and live in the wrong part of town, whether that is the intention or not. My SEC school has 17 sororities and if you don’t have a rec it is an automatic first round cut. If you are a legacy it is fairly easy to get a rec for every chapter. Everybody writes one for everybody else. If you are first in family it can be a big problem. My HS best friend had to scramble to get recs even though she had top HS grades, sports, activities and ACTs. Some alums, particularly in the top tier chapters, told her they wouldn’t write her one because they didn’t know her personally and rebuffed her when she said would send them a resume and meet with them. Some asked intrusive questions about her family background and the job her father had only to make excuses why they wouldn’t write her one. She eventually did get one for every chapter but only after considerable effort on her part.

[jamalter]

My daughter just pledged at Alabama. First generation pledge, in fact we knew nothing about the whole process. She started getting recs late, but had no problem with that at all. It's amazing how I knew someone who knew someone who was happy to write a rec for someone they had never met. LOL - what's the point - seriously? Because my daughter went in with no expectations, (and also recs from only about 6 houses), she actually had a very easy time of the process (compared to some who I hear are ready to leave the school because they didn't get the sorority of their choice - get real!!!!). She is very happy where she ended up, and I'm pleased for her, but this process was intense!!!!!!

[UGAalum94]

Originally Posted by tainey

I think there's a tendency for other regions to regard southern recruitment as particularly bizarre, and I'm not sure that we don't foster that some ourselves, but it's hard to see how it could be the campus's fault that a young woman choose a campus and the corresponding Greek system but then didn't realize what she was getting into.

grammar check at UGA? Just kidding truly![/QUOTE]

Would you have preferred some dashes around "and I'm not sure we don't foster that ourselves"?

I fixed the choose for chose issue.

Hey, it was late at night for me.

[Nhfulmer]

Originally Posted by FSUZeta

nhfulmer,but did you take her aside at a rush party, interview her and then write a rec. for her?

No, I simply made sure that I talked with her for a period of time. I certainly couldn't vouch for her morals, family background, etc. I could only judge her on the few minutes that we talked. Actually this was the norm at two schools that I advised but was also a long time ago. I wasn't saying that the two situations were the same - just that I did sign recs for girls I didn't know. Now I clear the girls I don't know to the Advisory Board and they have to decide.

[Nhfulmer]

Originally Posted by violetpretty

Are you insinuating that the chapters are scrambling to secure recs or that these out of state PNMs were actually prepared and secured recs for themselves? I am assuming the latter for the most part.

I'm saying that the out-of-state PNMs must have been prepared - I know the ones I worked with from Charlotte were - as well as girls going to Clemson, Duke, Chapel Hill, NC State and South Carolina. Alumnae Panhellenic held a tea for girls & mothers and each girl brought enough pictures & resumes to distribute to the alumnae who were there. We also had an opportunity to interact with them and to form an initial opinion. We plan to do this again next year on a larger scale.

[Nhfulmer]

Originally Posted by Loyally Kappa

Well, I don't think I'm divulging any secrets by saying the the student government at MOST of the SEC schools are referrred to as "The Machine."

The county where my girls grew up in Alabama had an equally effective Panhellenic alum group that continues to operate as a machine. I never got involved in that, but I paid my alum dues to my local KKG group, attended a few teas ... took my two little darlings to some of them to be introduced, etc., etc., etc.

In other words, I spent 20+ years laying the groundwork for them to rush at whatever school they chose to attend.

What the county Panhellenic where I lived did was to invite all senior girls to a sorority recruitment meeting in late April. And I mean, ALL senior girls. The meeting was posted at the local high school. We had "the box" ... literally a file box where the local girls were instructed to drop off however many copies of their resume, transcripts, and photo as there were sororities at the school they they planned to attend. The different alum groups would visit "the box" by late June and pick up a vitae for each girl in the county. They would then have their summer luncheons and decide on which girls each would recommend. Of course, that got personal, but overall the process was very organized. No girl was left out unless she or her mama had her head stuck in the sand.

I'm teaching at Ole Miss now, but I think they are similarly organized as to rush.

sounds like a good plan to me!

[Nhfulmer]

Originally Posted by VandalSquirrel

This isn't just about 'Bama, but if at my school (middle of nowhere, full of farmers and first generation students) we can manage to get recs on women, then it shouldn't be hard in a more populated area with a funcitoning Alumnae Panhellenic. There is a good reason that at larger schools where rush is competitive there is a cut off date to sign up. One is so grades and eligibility can be checked by Panhellenic, the other is that there is a final list give to each chapter to handle as they see fit. Even though I am currently living in the town where I attended school, I have written recs for women from my home area as well as from other areas my family lives in.

The women I have been contacted about are not legacies, are not from this state, and may be first generation college students, but I not only help my sisters, but my Panhellenic sisters by writing recs on these women and passing on their information to alumnae I know in the other eight NPC groups on my campus. I feel it is my job not only as an alumnae, but as a woman, to give every qualified woman an equal chance at rush, even if she doesn't attend my school. I have driven hours or met with women while on vacation to write a solid and informative rec because I truly believe one shouldn't be limited by her connections or not being as savvy as another. Recruitment is every woman's job, collegian or alumnae and some of my favorite sisters (my own and in other sororities) are women who knew nothing about the process and I took the time to help. I think that to acquire quality members we need to do what we can to reach the women who aren't in the know, and with all of the technology available to us in 2009 it is possible.

I absolutely could not agree with your philosophy more! I'm thrilled for all the girls I wrote recs for - whether they pledged my sorority or not. The point is that they experience Greek life - not only during college but for years to come!!

[GPhiBLtColonel]

Originally Posted by BadCat25

On the question of recs. The result is to exclude PNMs who are first in family college students, particularly if they are from a blue-collar background and live in the wrong part of town, whether that is the intention or not. My SEC school has 17 sororities and if you don’t have a rec it is an automatic first round cut. If you are a legacy it is fairly easy to get a rec for every chapter. Everybody writes one for everybody else. If you are first in family it can be a big problem. My HS best friend had to scramble to get recs even though she had top HS grades, sports, activities and ACTs. Some alums, particularly in the top tier chapters, told her they wouldn’t write her one because they didn’t know her personally and rebuffed her when she said would send them a resume and meet with them. Some asked intrusive questions about her family background and the job her father had only to make excuses why they wouldn’t write her one. She eventually did get one for every chapter but only after considerable effort on her part.

Not sure where you live but it's not that way with our alum panhel. Heck we have even been known to help get recs for non-local girls who find our website and mail us all their "stuff" per our requirements and if we get it by our deadline, we handle their rec requests just like everyone else who is local, and these recs are even written by alums from "top-tier chapters" (all of us, that is!)

[Titchou]

Whenever someone asks me for a rec, I always ask if they need ones for other groups on campus. I round them up if I can. We're all in this together and I always want the young woman to have every opportunity to be Greek.

[Nhfulmer]

Originally Posted by Titchou

Whenever someone asks me for a rec, I always ask if they need ones for other groups on campus. I round them up if I can. We're all in this together and I always want the young woman to have every opportunity to be Greek.

Amen to that!

[FSUZeta]

Originally Posted by Titchou

Whenever someone asks me for a rec, I always ask if they need ones for other groups on campus. I round them up if I can. We're all in this together and I always want the young woman to have every opportunity to be Greek.

me too. i am fortunate to have friends and relatives in a variety of sororities and we all pitch in to help out girls we know, so that they have a rec. for every chapter on their campus.

nhfulmer, i was figuring that you would say your interview with the pnm was a while ago-i think that as well intentioned as the interview was, it would be a possible recruitment violation by todays recruitment rules.

as i looked thru the bama bid list, i noticed that several charlotte girls had joined nu chapter. were any of these your rec.girls?

[Nhfulmer]

Originally Posted by FSUZeta

me too. i am fortunate to have friends and relatives in a variety of sororities and we all pitch in to help out girls we know, so that they have a rec. for every chapter on their campus.

nhfulmer, i was figuring that you would say your interview with the pnm was a while ago-i think that as well intentioned as the interview was, it would be a possible recruitment violation by todays recruitment rules.

as i looked thru the bama bid list, i noticed that several charlotte girls had joined nu chapter. were any of these your rec.girls?

It wasn't actually an "interview" but alumnae helping with the parties could meet the rushees also - this was at High Point College (now University) and at UNC-Charlotte. I would use that opportunity to make sure I met all of the girls and then sign recs for them (God knows we couldn't get them any other way!). UNCC still receives very few voluntary recs and actually don't have the rush list until rush begins.

One of the girls pledging Nu chapter was mine and I think all of the ones I helped to obtain recs landed somewhere - I haven't had time to run through the entire list. My next door neighbor pledged Kappa which I expected because she had been staying with a KKG sister while visiting campus. She is a ChiO legacy but I know her mom wanted her to make her own decision. She was really a prize catch! I'm just so proud of all of them and I know I'll be hearing from some of them when they catch their breath.