Bids distribution

[UGAalum94]

Originally Posted by ΑΓΔSquirrelGirl

They just join the group instead of sitting on the steps. They don't have envelopes to open, obviously, since they already know where they're going.

Maybe it would be misspent energy, but it would still seem like it be nice to fake the envelope part even it there's no suspense on their part. I say this only so that they get as close to the same experience and enthusiasm as the other girls matched in bid matching.

I think snap bid girls may feel a little second class already, so it might be worth it to be able to let them have their moment.

The way your campus does bid day sounds pretty fun generally though!

[fantASTic]

Originally Posted by ΑΓΔSquirrelGirl

They just join the group instead of sitting on the steps. They don't have envelopes to open, obviously, since they already know where they're going.

Yeah...you'd think that a girl who was already upset about her bid [since she obviously didn't pick that sorority] would maybe have more of an open mind if she was treated just as lovingly as the rest. I think she'd be less likely to drop, too; I'm not sure I'd want to accept a snap bid if I knew that everyone would know I was dropped from everyone else.

[33girl]

IMO, anything where the rushees open their bids in public (public being more than 2-3 sisters or Rho Chis) is barbaric. Besides the girls who don't get their first choice - what about the girls who DO, who are standing next to their best friend who didn't? You have to bottle up your emotions so your friend isn't even more devastated. Or if you see that a girl you can't stand is going to be in your pledge class and you just want a private moment to say "oh, CRAP."

No, it's not fun to open your dorm door and see XYZ standing there when you thought you were getting ABC, but at least you aren't in front of the entire sorority population and if you want to decline gracefully or cry you can...plus when we did this, the women picking you up were usually girls you'd bonded with in rush and that you could be honest with.

[UGAalum94]

Originally Posted by 33girl

IMO, anything where the rushees open their bids in public (public being more than 2-3 sisters or Rho Chis) is barbaric. Besides the girls who don't get their first choice - what about the girls who DO, who are standing next to their best friend who didn't? You have to bottle up your emotions so your friend isn't even more devastated. Or if you see that a girl you can't stand is going to be in your pledge class and you just want a private moment to say "oh, CRAP."

No, it's not fun to open your dorm door and see XYZ standing there when you thought you were getting ABC, but at least you aren't in front of the entire sorority population and if you want to decline gracefully or cry you can...plus when we did this, the women picking you up were usually girls you'd bonded with in rush and that you could be honest with.

I can kind of see what you are saying, but they did list all the groups on the bid card. So, to me, it seems like they ought to be pretty excited about what they got.

As long as the girls who didn't match know in advance, I think public events may lead to a more panhellenic enthusiasm about joining in general.

[33girl]

Originally Posted by UGAalum94

I can kind of see what you are saying, but they did list all the groups on the bid card. So, to me, it seems like they ought to be pretty excited about what they got.

That's easy to say when you got your first choice, or when you've had years to look back on it and are happy things turned out the way they did.

But when you are at a school where freshmen rushees are heavily favored and upperclassmen don't have a very good chance at bids, and your choice is kind of you pledge a sorority you're not crazy about or don't pledge one at all - it's a little hard to get jazzed, especially when there's a bunch of people around you. I mean, some girls are in the happy situation of having 2-3 groups they love on their pref cards, but some definitely are not.

[UGAalum94]

But I think they're better off trying to get jazzed. I think the enthusiasm in the moment can reassure them that it's going to be a great experience even if it is imperfect at the start.

I think the likelihood of a girl talking herself out of a bid she probably would have enjoyed is greater if she's left on her own to idealize how awesome it would be to be somewhere else rather than starting to celebrate almost immediately.

But I don't really know.

[RaggedyAnn]

I have to say that I loved the way we did ours. Women got the call early if there was no match. If there was a match, we went to the office of Greek Life during a specific time frame and we opened our bids in private-meaning in the office with the director. If we accepted we signed. Later that day there was a huge bids day where all of us met with our chapters at the student union and took pictures. It was in the same room that the first event took place in which really gave a sense of closure to the whole week.) It was a huge deal. We were presented with flowers and made to feel really special. All of Panhellenic did it together and it was great because you got to see all of the friends you met during rush. Greek Life also hired a professional photographer the put "GLO" Bid Day "Year" on a huge group photo that each new member got to keep. It is still one of my favorite memories.

[33girl]

Originally Posted by UGAalum94

I think the likelihood of a girl talking herself out of a bid she probably would have enjoyed is greater if she's left on her own to idealize how awesome it would be to be somewhere else rather than starting to celebrate almost immediately.

I see your point. Don't misunderstand - I think that the rho chis or the Greek life director should encourage the girls to go to bid day no matter what, because, well, they're bound to that sorority for a year anyway, so they might as well. But I also think that you need to mourn that "lost opportunity" a little to move forward and you can't really do that when 500 women are in your face from the moment you open your envelope. It's different for everyone, I guess. I just think doing everything in public is hard, for the rushees AND for the sororities. I can't imagine what it's like to see girl after girl crying because she got a bid to your sorority.

I think you can easily convey the Panhellenic feeling and unity by doing something like RaggedyAnn described.

[KSUViolet06]

Originally Posted by ΑΓΔSquirrelGirl

They just join the group instead of sitting on the steps. They don't have envelopes to open, obviously, since they already know where they're going.

Wow. Where I go to school, all snap bidding occurs aound the same time as bid matching. So the Rho Chi's still have tiem to get in touch with them and offer them the bid. If they accept, they still get to come to the student center, get a bid card, and participate in Bid Day festivities like every other girl.

[ΑΓΔSquirrelGirl]

Originally Posted by KSUViolet06

Wow. Where I go to school, all snap bidding occurs aound the same time as bid matching. So the Rho Chi's still have tiem to get in touch with them and offer them the bid. If they accept, they still get to come to the student center, get a bid card, and participate in Bid Day festivities like every other girl.

That's exactly what we do...except that they don't run. Here's the thing...there is no one on those steps that is going to know one of their pledge sisters is a snap bid. They won't be looking for her. I had two in my pledge class and didn't know it until the end of my sophomore year. They were just already there by the time we ran. We never noticed. It would be nice for everyone to get a trophy, but the thing about Recruitment is that it's not always fair. They know they got dropped from recruitment and were on the snap bid lists. Most of the time they're so happy someone picked them up anyway it's fine. That's what both of my pledge sisters told me about their experience.

I guess I don't really see the horror in the way we do it. It's fun. And yes, sometimes girls are devastated by their choices. I don't always understand this, because it does seem that if they couldn't possibly handle being in XYZ they wouldn't list them. But when it happens, they don't have to run. They just hang back. The greek advisor will go swoop down, move them to the side, and talk to them to explain that they are bound to that sorority for a year anyway and try to convince them to join the group. If they still refuse they simply slip away and no one will notice. We're all preoccupied.

Lots of girls who got their second choices have said that they might have felt their faces fall for two seconds when they saw the card, but they ran anyway...and after spending ten minutes in that atmosphere and seeing how badly all of the actives wanted them to be there, they felt about a million times better than they would have if they'd just walked away from it all.

The only way we ever know who is devastated is if they tell us later...or if anyone happened to capture it on film.

[UGAalum94]

I don't think there's any horror in the way you all do it, and it's not exactly a travesty that the snap bids don't get to run. It would just be cool if they could. It sounds like fun the way you all do it.

[ΑΓΔSquirrelGirl]

Originally Posted by UGAalum94

I don't think there's any horror in the way you all do it, and it's not exactly a travesty that the snap bids don't get to run. It would just be cool if they could. It sounds like fun the way you all do it.

I loathe mushy things, but it's one of the most fun things we do with the sorority every year. And I loved mine.

[twinkle555]

Since recruitment week is going to be a bit different this year (it occurs after the first week of school this year instead of the week before school) Im not sure how Bid day (well..it will be Bid night this year) will go.

But this is how it went down...
The Pi Chi's meet with their groups and give them all little gifts..for about 30 min lol. Then when every single girl in every single Pi Chi group is present the Pi Chis will call girls out one by one about 20 feet from the group to give them their envelope. Once the girl opens it in front of her Pi Chis she runs back to the group and annoucnces what house she got. Screaming and hugging usually follows each girl.

After every girl has their bid, then the Pan exec board annouces that all the
"XYZ's" go to the center of the quad..then their Pi Chis run them to their house. They repeat this for each sorority. Then we all go inside the houses, eat, talk etc. for about 45 min., then we return to the quad for Pi Chi reveal...then they all run home. Its the best day EVER.

[sigmaceli]

We don't have houses, so our tradition developed because of it.

On pref night, you are told that if you receive a bid the next morning, you are to bring a big zip-up jacket. We have all women who received a bid come to our student center (GC) at 11:00 am the next morning. Women who were not offered a bid were called earlier that morning. Each Rho Gamma group meets up and they go upstairs according to the time that their entire group is present (which makes for some hilarious moments - I was 2 minutes late because of parking and two of my Rho Gamma group members had already tracked down my number from a TKE friend of mine and called me to find out where I was!). They open their bid cards with Campus Life staff and their Rho Gammas and accept or decline. If they decline or are visibly upset, the Rho Gamma and/or Campus Life staff will console and/or counsel the girl.

If they accept, they sign their paperwork and go downstairs to another room to pick up their bid day shirt and change into it. Then, they pick up their big zip up jacket and make sure all of their shirt is covered. Once everyone who has received a bid changes and has their jacket on, they recite the Panhellenic Creed. While they are reciting, the Rho Gammas and Pi Chis change into their chapter jerseys and grab their RG/PX zip-up jackets and meet up the women again, so everyone goes crazy trying to guess what chapters they belong to.

THEN, each group is led down to the ballrooms downstairs. We go downstairs through the back entrance and wait. The chapters have already picked sections of the ballrooms and decorated them with bid day bags, huge wooden letters, etc. So, each group goes onstage, the women count to 3, unzip their jacket and jump offstage to their new chapter!

After the new members have finished, the Rho Gammas and Pi Chis reveal their affiliation and jump off the stage to rejoin their chapter and join in separate bid day festivities.

It's SO much fun, and as a former Pi Chi, it feels amazing to jump off stage and re-join your sisters after a long summer of recruitment madness! Lots of cheering and jumping and hugging ensues.

[ThetaForLife]

Pref is on Sunday and we were told to go to the University Center between 5:30 and 7 on Monday with a zip-up jacket to pick up our bids. We met with our Rho Sigmas privately, opened our envelopes and if someone was unhappy then the Rho Sig would console her. If we accepted, we signed the paperwork and got a T-shirt. We were told to change into the shirt and put the sweatshirt on and to meet back in groups at 7:30. At 7:45 we walked over to the CFA Lawn and each group of PNM's got on the stage and unzipped their sweatshirts and ran to their new sisters who were cheering and screaming on the lawn. Then the Rho Sigs who were also wearing zip-ups did the same thing and ran back to their sisters. Finally Panhel Exec reveals. Then we took pictures with the professional photographer and then went back to our house.