In the alum world, it has been my experience that we are not always tuned in to the dates of recruitment, changes in recruitment formats, etc. Think about the elderly church lady who gladly writes recs. I am betting she is not up on recent protocol at the universities where she might send a rec.
Basically, alums are ready, willing, and able to write a rec when asked. This is something most are thrilled to do - recommend their own group. But, what the chapter does with those recs can vary from campus to campus and is very individualized (beyond the need to have them before offering a bid)
Trying to tell alums how and when to write a rec - beyond "do you or don't you recommend this girl?" is too much and provides too many variables. If you tell alums - we really don't need your rec unless you know the rushee personally, there will be all sorts of women trying to figure out if their rec is authentic or not, plus there will be some chapters who actually do need those info-only recs. I see lots of room for confusion and miscues. "Susie Q could have had a rec but the friend of her father's secretary was afraid they didn't want it since she didn't really know Susie Q very well."
Excess recs are not a problem in a chapter. They know how to sort through them and glean what they need or don't need. They also know how to interpret them based on what their recs require or don't require on the form. I totally understand the desire to improve the system, but from the alum end, is not the way to approach it. Again, too many variables.
Just my 2 cents.
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