Pledging period issue

[UNLDelt]

Ok,
I know that there have been some general threads on this but here's a question I want to throw out there and get some feedback on:

Our International Fraternity recently changed its constitution and bylaws at the last Karnea (our term for our general convention every 2 years) to limit the pledging period of all chapters to 8 weeks.

The reasoning behind this was to increase the initiation rate of men that pledge Delt (I guess the rate of our International Fraternity was lower than our competitors, we have a rate of 75% I believe) and to narrow the scope of the program as to tighten the reign on any hazing potential (I guess someone felt that the longer the pledge period the more likely it was that negative activities would spring up) But hazing is not even an issue at my chapter. We have a fantastic pledge program and strongly oppose any negative activities. Our belief is that you can't build up good members by breaking them down first. It's just a non-issue for us. Anyway, both reasons are good in their intentions; however, my chapter and my concern was that initiating after 8 wks was too soon, that a young man may not be ready to assume the responsibilities of membership. Basically this is great for smaller chapters who are working to increase their over all membership very quickly. Or for immplimenting more strict guidance for chapters who need to remove some bad traditions that are associated with hazing. But it may hinder larger chapters with successful and established pledge programs, such as mine, in a few different areas. The vote was close as I recall but the change was approved by a simple majority of chapters and the 8wk program regulation was enforced and implemented at all Delt chapters for the 1st time this semester. Here is where we are running into some problems with the change:

1-Academics-Our school runs on 2 full semesters (about 14 wks each)...not quarters. We are not able to determine a candidates academic standing (GPA) any earlier than after the end of the semester. Initiating after 8 wks completely null and voids any academic requirement for initiation. Even the best high school students may struggle in college and in my opinion 8wks is not enough time to determine someone's academic standing or needs. Even with a grade report from professors there is still plenty of time (post initiation) for them to "mess up" and bomb out the semester. Even with the great academic programming my chapter has there are some young men who will struggle and need time to find methods that work for them. Initiation should be a reward for those who have demonstrated their ability to be good members, and an additional motivator (besides their own personal success) for them to work with the academic/pledge programming and develop good academic habits and skills.
Initiating them before determining their scholastic performance may result in a signficant drop in the chapter's GPA. So we may have a great initiation rate but we will initiate men who will then reflect poorly on our academic standards. They will immediately have to go on probation and it just doesn't make sense. Most fraternity members will likely agree that it's easier to develop and work programming with pledges who are working towards initiation then members who have initiated. Quality over quantity is what I say. Plus, a dropping GPA will in turn hurt recruitment efforts which will lower pledging rates, which will lower total membership rates, but hey initiate 1 out of 1 pledges in a house of 3 actives and you get a 100% rate! (gimmie a break).

2-Involvement/Leadership-How can someone be a leader or hold a position if they do not quite understand how the process or the system works. It takes time and observation to really get a grasp of all the elements it takes to run a successful chapter. 8wks is not enough for some men to see how things operate and gain an appreciation and understanding. The amount of history and organization that goes into running a large fraternity and a large chapter cannot be covered and understood in one meeting. It takes a hands on approach that comes from participating in pledge and active activities that span the course of a semester.

My chapter tried to work with this program by saying that at 7 wks a grade report will be issued and reviewed by the Pledge Education committee and the Academic Committee. Those pledges whom have demonstrated superior scholastics by having a certified estimate of a 3.0 GPA from a grade report from each professor at that time and have thus far been exemplary in the general pledge program and understanding of the fraternity operations by the Pledge Education Committee and general chapter opinion (i.e. hasn't been brought up for depledging) are rewarded by being initiated at 8 wks. Kind of an ‘honor initation’. They then go into a Neophyte education program where their academics will continue to be monitored by the academic committee although they are not required to attend study hours any more. They also will work with the executive and administrative committees to continue to learn about chapter operations on the active side of things (how chapter works etc.), work with the Ritual committee to understand that aspect of our fraternity that is new to them, and also continue to participate in activities with their pledge class to keep cohesiveness and unity among them even though they are now active brothers and some of their class is not quite there yet. It's like an arm of membership education that bridges pledgship and active membership for those who have already demonstrated what is needed to be a good member.

I have also noticed an amazing thing in that the men who did initate early have taken on a leadeship role among their pledge class brothers who did not meet the requirements at that time. They are really helping the guys who didn’t qualify with the areas they need to improve in so that they can soon call them Delt brothers as well. They are armed with a better understanding of the Fraternty that comes from what they learned at their initation to help the others see why what they are working on is important. It’s actually a really positive thing that some of them arrived earlier than the other b/c they have come back and are trying to push the rest of their class towards success.

Those who need to continue to work on their academics and/or need to continue to progress a little further in other areas of membership education (i.e. maybe they have violated a significant rule or bylaw like drinking in the shelter or have poor performance on tests about our principles, values, creed, or history) will continue their pledgeship through to the end of the semester where they will then again be eligible to initiate based on their academics (they must have an actual recorded 2.5 semester GPA or higher that time) . There is not a 3rd chance.

Well, this all matters because recently our traveling consultant has reported that this is not an acceptable way to run the program and we need to either initiate ALL of the men @ 8wks or depledge those who are not ready by then so that the "rate" is 100% (100% of those that are left).
This past week (the 8th week) 9 men out of 24 were eligible for this "honor initiation", many others were close but the committees felt that these 9 men were completely ready and the others just needed more time to work on grades (many were just shy of the 3.0 but have plenty of time left in the semester to work on it, and now the chapter can easily recognize who needs more academic assistance) and a few made a poor choice the weekend before the committee meetings to break a bylaw and drink in the house, thus demonstrating that they need time to develop more respect and understanding of the standards of conduct, their role in our activities both as a group and as individuals and how they effect the fraternity. We do not just want to give up on these men and just depledge them, they just need a little more time and attention so they can grow to be ready and I also believe the chapter needs more time to hone its skills in an 8 wk pledge program, keep in mind this is the 1st time we have attempted to do this in 8 wks.
Plus, to loose the other 15 men who are great and have good potential but just need a little more time to develop it would hurt a large chapter such as mine who needs 81 individuals just to put our house at live-in capacity. Average initiated pledge classes in out house are around 25 (mine was 34!). Taking a class of 9 just so we can have "100%" will kill us. Taking all 24, or even just a few less if some prove in the end that Delt is not the place for them, but taking the time to make sure those who will wear the Delt badge are good members and are properly prepared to be good Delts is worth the extra few weeks to us.
To me, those who go through initiation should have proven that they will be good members by taking a semester to learn how to and demonstrate it. We shouldn't be just initiating men for statistics and then thinking of quality as an afterthought...

Delta Tau Delta International Fraternity may have a slightly lower initiation rate than our competitors, but if that is a reflection of the fact that the standards to become a Delt are higher than other Fraternities, and it takes a little something extra to make it, then I say it’s a statistic that we can be proud of.

What do you think?