Question re NPHC debutantes

[crescent&pearls]

Last night my local cable aired a debutante ball hosted by a NPHC sorority. I've never seen something like this aired before, but I got sucked in to watching to see if knew any of the girls (I didn't but I did recognize a few of the parents) There must have been about 50 girls! They ranged in age from 16-19. They were so cute, and so nervous. Unfortunately I missed the beginning so this was probably explained but I'm just curious now...does participating in a cotillion like this obligate the girls to pursue membership in that particular organization? Are they selected to participate because they are legacies or are they sponsored to be debs by friends, teachers etc.?

The other thing that stood out was when each girl was first introduced she was described as "Miss First Name Last Name" and after she did the big curtsy the announcer re-introduced each girl as "Misses First Name Last Name." Was I hearing that right? At first I thought, well some of the girls could possibly be married but then I thought probably not. Can anyone shed some light on all this, I'm totally intrigued.

In any case, great PR for the org, their crest and badge was front and center through the whole thing!