NPC Quota, Release Figures and Quota Additions (Updated 8/7/2007)

[gphiangel624]

Originally Posted by 33girl

Can't they choose to not invite people back, even if they do end up with a smaller group? I thought the release figure methods were to keep the bigger chapters from going overboard, not to force any chapter to invite women they don't want.

This was just one of the drawbacks we saw last year. From what I recall, chapters who were "instructed" to release few PNMs ended up cutting a little anyway, to the dismay of our NPC Area Advisor. I completely agree that even if a chapter is not a strong recruiting chapter (large or small) they should be able to cut as they please because they do have standards and all. I think the chapters with this dilemma ended up cutting for grades (regardless of what the release figures demanded).

[UGAalum94]

I think the sooner that you cut girls that you would not or could not offer bids to, especially for something objective like grades, the better. It doesn't seem to me that you'd want to give them false hope if you knew earlier on there was no way to have them as new members.

I wouldn't expect anyone to have too many of these girls, but large or small, all chapters will probably have a few.

Can you give us a sense of what the release figure range is?

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally Posted by Alphagamuga

I think the sooner that you cut girls that you would not or could not offer bids to, especially for something objective like grades, the better. It doesn't seem to me that you'd want to give them false hope if you knew earlier on there was no way to have them as new members.

I wouldn't expect anyone to have too many of these girls, but large or small, all chapters will probably have a few.

Can you give us a sense of what the release figure range is?

Not true. If you expect that few women will accept invitations, you invite them all. You do not want the girls who you DO want showing up and seeing that your party only has 20 PNM's when every other chapter's party has 30.

[33girl]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Not true. If you expect that few women will accept invitations, you invite them all. You do not want the girls who you DO want showing up and seeing that your party only has 20 PNM's when every other chapter's party has 30.

Yes, but if one of the girls came to a previous party and was all "I'm going ABC and the only damn reason I'm here is because they told me I had to come" you want to release her butt as soon as humanly possible. People with bad attitudes aren't something you want around as they can "infect" the other rushees with and then you're doubly SOL.

As far as the grades question, you literally may not be allowed by your national bylaws to ask them back.

[AlphaFrog]

Originally Posted by 33girl

Yes, but if one of the girls came to a previous party and was all "I'm going ABC and the only damn reason I'm here is because they told me I had to come" you want to release her butt as soon as humanly possible. People with bad attitudes aren't something you want around as they can "infect" the other rushees with and then you're doubly SOL.

Also, you may want to leave the freakshows (you know, the ones that came in hungover and puked in the foyer, jumped up on the table and did a striptease, etc.) off your invite list, even if you need bodies. PNMs are going to see that girl back and think "Gee, if this sorority invited HER back, I sure don't want to be a part of it...".

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally Posted by AlphaFrog

Also, you may want to leave the freakshows (you know, the ones that came in hungover and puked in the foyer, jumped up on the table and did a striptease, etc.) off your invite list, even if you need bodies. PNMs are going to see that girl back and think "Gee, if this sorority invited HER back, I sure don't want to be a part of it...".

I certainly agree with this. I am just saying that when a chapter has the option of inviting back girls they can't take due to grades, or having empty parties, you shouldn't assume that they are always going to err on the side of sparing the PNM's feelings.

I think I am very cynical about the process, because I notice I am playing devil's advocate an awful lot.

[tcsparky]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Not true. If you expect that few women will accept invitations, you invite them all. You do not want the girls who you DO want showing up and seeing that your party only has 20 PNM's when every other chapter's party has 30.

Hmmmmm...couldn't one way around this be to have fewer parties for that sorority? Example, if there are 7 time slots for parties on that night, and in order to have fuller parties a group needed to have 6, wouldn't that be an option? Or, if there were an extra slot built in for each sorority to have a break anyway, who would know for sure if a group got an extra break time? Then, the parties would be fuller, even though the sorority is cutting harder.

[33girl]

Originally Posted by tcsparky

Hmmmmm...couldn't one way around this be to have fewer parties for that sorority? Example, if there are 7 time slots for parties on that night, and in order to have fuller parties a group needed to have 6, wouldn't that be an option? Or, if there were an extra slot built in for each sorority to have a break anyway, who would know for sure if a group got an extra break time? Then, the parties would be fuller, even though the sorority is cutting harder.

The problem with that would be coordinating the scheduling w/ the rushees' other parties. I'm sure it could be done with a smaller rush, but at places where 2000 girls are going through it would be a nightmare.

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally Posted by 33girl

The problem with that would be coordinating the scheduling w/ the rushees' other parties. I'm sure it could be done with a smaller rush, but at places where 2000 girls are going through it would be a nightmare.

Hmmm...are any of the software vendors paying attention? This could be done pretty easily programmatically.

Assuming the computer does the scheduling, I think this would be a great idea.

[lyrelyre]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Hmmm...are any of the software vendors paying attention? This could be done pretty easily programmatically.

Assuming the computer does the scheduling, I think this would be a great idea.

At the campus where I advise having fewer parties is an option. You just have to let Panhellenic know by the time they schedule the parties. As far as I know the computer does the schedule.

[UGAalum94]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Not true. If you expect that few women will accept invitations, you invite them all. You do not want the girls who you DO want showing up and seeing that your party only has 20 PNM's when every other chapter's party has 30.

I can see your point from a rush PR view, but I was really thinking in terms of what was good for PNMs. It seems to me like it's better to let them know where they stand with your group sooner rather than later so that they can be realistic about where they might join.

The flexible number of parties sounds like a good idea.

Doesn't the small party thing work itself out though because the groups with low returns are smaller in number themselves? Is it better to have a small number of guests but at least one rusher per guest or is it better to have crowded parties and maybe have to double rush?

[FSUZeta]

releasing a certain amount of girls could work in a chapters favor, making them appear more desirable to the girls who were invited back to that chapters next round.

[KSUViolet06]

I hear ALOT of people saying this at other schools and on this board, it's a myth:

The new release figures method does NOT "GUARANTEE" that every chapter makes quota.

Yes it allows for smaller group to invite back more women. However, you can invite back back all the women you want,but that does not mean they have to accept. You still need need to do your part as a chapter to make girls interested in taking a closer look at your chapter.

They do help alot, but the new release figures method doesn't just magically give every chapter quota.

[GeorgiaGirl]

I like the new release figures system as it is used at UGA. It has worked on our campus. No, not every house is making quota, but many more are than have in the past. I honestly think that with a few more years of using this system that all of our houses will be consistantly making quota.

The main reason that I like this system has nothing to do with quota, party size, or release figures. I know that this system helped us to place many girls. Before, houses could continue to invite PNMs to parties so that they would have high return rates, or for whatever reason, and then release them before prefs. Girls would be devistated that they were released from their favorite houses and withdraw from recruitment. If larger houses have to cut up to 70% of PNMs after round 1, it gives the PNMs a realistic view of recruitment. It is easier to convince them to give houses that weren't their number one a second chance after round one than after they have just been dropped from their favorite house right before prefs. I hope that makes sense...

[Drolefille]

Originally Posted by gphiangel624

This was just one of the drawbacks we saw last year. From what I recall, chapters who were "instructed" to release few PNMs ended up cutting a little anyway, to the dismay of our NPC Area Advisor. I completely agree that even if a chapter is not a strong recruiting chapter (large or small) they should be able to cut as they please because they do have standards and all. I think the chapters with this dilemma ended up cutting for grades (regardless of what the release figures demanded).

I think I've said it before, but there does come a point when you look at the recommendations (which may say to cut no one) and choose to cut anyway, not just for grades. If you don't want a girl on your bid list, leaving her on your bidlist just because someone else said percentages work is not a good idea.

Choosing to COB to quota over being less selective can often be a better choice, I think. One of the ways chapters can fail is being very un-selective, and taking girls who end up being uncommitted. And when the uncommitted ones withdraw from the chapter, you feel even more pressure to take quota and the cycle continues until you close.

/I do think that that the new figures are a good thing, but they are recommendations, not requirements