Hi

[ucfcutie]

I am new to the board and just rushed at UCF and wanted to say hi!
I wish I knew about this board during rush, I would have loved to share my rush story with everyone. It was a great time and I am very happy with my sorority. I can't wait to get to know everyone.

[Buttonz]

Welcome to GC! Can I ask where you found your new home?

[ucfcutie]

Chi Omega!
Sorry. I had a blonde moment, I meant to write it in my initial post!

[polarpi]

Congratulations on becoming a new member of Chi Omega, ucfcutie! We're so glad to have you here on the GC boards!

[beachgal118]

Welcome! I don't post all that often, but GC is a really helpful site. I also just rushed and pledged and am loving it! BTW, where in Florida is UCF?

[oceanphi01]

UCF is in Orlando....it's a huge campus with an amazing Greek Row!!!!

[ucfcutie]

That's right. UCF is in Orlando. I love it so much. I got accepted to UF and UCF but there was just something about UCF!
UCF has an AMAZING greek row. I can't wait for XO to get a house. It was hard going through rush, bc my 3 favorites were Chi O, KD, and ZTA. KD and ZTA has houses. (very great chapters too) Every day, I fell more in love with all 3 of them. I really enjoyed video day at KD and XO. I preffed KD and Chi O and was completely torn between the two. I just kept re-running the whole week through my head and decided that Chi O would be my first choice. There was just somthing about the energy and sisterhood I felt during the Chi O parties. That's my rush week in a nutshell!

[KDbutterfly]

That's an awesome story! Welcome to GC and congrats on Chi Omega! Is Chi O planning on getting a house sometime this year, or are they not sure when yet?

[sherbertlemons]

Hi UCFcutie! I'm a Kappa at UCF. Good to see another UCFer here.

KDButterfly, basically no one has any idea when they can get a house on our campus. About half the groups are unhoused. (4 out of six Panhellenic groups, including my chapter, are currently unhoused.) There is no property availible in the existing Greek Park, and UCF has been unable to proceed with the plans for Greek Park 2 due to litigation with the Sierra Club over gopher turtles. The earliest figure I've heard has been that UCF's hoping to have the turtle issued settled by December. Of course, keep in mind that Greek Park 2 was supposed to be opened by the time I was a sophomore. I'm now a junior.

[bethany1982]

Welcome! Thanks for the short version of your rush experience.

[smiley21]

oh my word, UCF has a GORGEOUS campus! i am so jealous of all its students

[mmcat]

congrats...congrats...i hope it is just wonderful.

[ZTAngel]

Damn turtle rumor.....

I'm going to quote a post that adpiucf wrote a month ago about the UCF Greek Park 2 situation:


For YEARS, it was rumored that an endangered species of turtle had made its home across the street from ATO, Sig Ep and Sigma Chi-- the very land where the Office Of Greek Affairs had proposed Greek Park expansion.

THERE ARE NO TURTLES!!!!

As ZTAngel said, UCF faces a very unique challenge-- it is growing at an astonishing rate. We nicknamed UCF "Under Construction Forever" due to rising popularity, prestige and student population at the university. UCF is a commuter school no more. I was very proud to attend UCF during the time when buildings, housing, parking garages and even our student union grew up around me, practically overnight. Student housing is in such demand, in fact, that the university purchased two off-campus apartment complexes (with multiple phases and buildings!) just to keep up. I think constructing new sorority and fraternity houses would help ease the student housing shortage, but it still needs to be determined "where" Greek Park 2 will be. Currently, off campus, in an area affectionately referred to as "the ghetto," are several fraternity houses. The guys lease a building of apartments and members reside there, and have their parties, etc., from these "Quad" apartments. IE: Lambda Chi, DTD, Pi Kapp, etc. Having a house in the ghetto is better than none at all, to be sure, but it is still much more of a status symbol to have on-campus housing. The sororities without houses on campus do not have houses here, but often, off-campus apartment complexes will set up a deal to have an entire bldg of a sorority there. Not all of the members live there (UCF sororities average just under 200 members and have enormous new member classes!), but it's a fun set-up nontheless, and b/c the chapters with houses on campus can't house everyone, even those sororoties will set up an apartment block at nearby apartment complexes.

Those creative Greeks!

So, to summarize, no TURTLES, no Greek Park 2, at least not for a while.

I think the reason why the Sierra Club has gotten so involved is because the planned area for Greek Park 2 is on some wetlands. My opinion: Florida is one big swamp so why are we trying to save this one?

[XOAlumXO]

ZTAngel- Girl, I am with you on that one.

Welcome, UCFCUTIE!

[OtterXO]

Congrats and welcome to Chi Omega!!!!