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No one will argue that the original and true purpose of a Rec is for a GLO alumna who knows the PNM to personally recommend her and provide personal information showing how she would be as asset to the chapter/org. The thing is at Bama and other similarly competitive campuses having Recs has evolved into a part of the competitive Recruitment process. In other parts of the country Recs are a rarity, but here they are a necessity. Why? Because so many other PNMs have one (or more) so if a PNM wants to be on the same starting level she needs one too.
Regardless of what anyone says, the responsibility of finding a Rec falls on the PNM because of the huge numbers in recruitment. There is no way a chapter can find one for everyone nor would they even want to try. As I said in an earlier post there may be the occasional "rush crush" where one or more members chase one down, but as a whole the chapter doesn't simply because there are so many other fabulous PNMs who already have a Rec to choose from.
Not all Recs are created equal. Chapters often receive "Info Only" Recs which come from alumnae who have never met the PNM or barely know her. These may come from GLO Alumnae Associations, NPC Alumnae Associations, or simply an individual alumna that the PNM has gotten contact info from someone/somewhere. Having read numerous threads on the subject of Recs here, I have learned that most GLO's Rec forms ask how well the writer knows the PNM or if the writer doesn't know her how the information was obtained. An Info Only Rec may or may not carry as much weight as one written by an alumna who has known the PNM for years. That is part of membership selection policies and is confidential. Regardless, it still counts as having a Rec.
I can say with confidence that each chapter reads every Rec, regardless of who wrote it and the relationship to a PNM, in order to get as much information as possible on her. Some PNMs who don't have a Rec will send chapters a transcript and resume just so they have her info. That is read as well.
FYI most GLO's have a policy of courtesy inviting anyone with a Rec to the first invitational round. At Bama chapters often have more PNMs with Recs than they are allowed to invite back to 2nd round, especially now with RFM. Last spring Greek Affairs contacted all our I/Natls making them aware that courtesy invite policies may not be able to be enforced due to this. Needless to say this shocks and angers a great many alumnae who know their GLO's courtesy invite policy. The reaction is almost as bad as those who still think legacies cannot be dropped or that we'll call them about it.
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