MaggieXi's Retro Elon Recruitment Story

MaggieXi · #1 06-02-2007, 01:10 PM

So I call and tell my boyfriend Jon, who goes to another school in Indiana without greek life that I am going to go through sorority recruitment. He tells me that he really doesn't want me to and doesn't think that I would be happy in a sorority because I am not a sorority girl. So I tell him that just 'cuz I am going to go through recruitment, it doesn't mean I will end up being in a sorority. That its just a way to meet more people on my campus.

Sarah, Courtney's roomate, has already droppedout of recruitment because her boyfriend told her not to do it. He goes to a community college in Virginia. I can't believe she listened to him! Courtney yelled at her for it and told her that she wouldn't have any friends next year because everyone would be in a sorority and they would be too busy to hang out with her. Sarah got really upset and now they aren't speaking to each other. I tried to talk to Sarah about signing back up, because her Rho Chi said if she changed her mind she had until Monday. Sarah said she didn't know and she was really confused and ended up going home for the weekend.

On Saturday night, Karen -- a girl on my hall that I am sort of friends with invited a bunch of us to go to her (biological) sister's apartment. Her sister Katrina is a Om. So a bunch of went to her place in Oak Hill. Courtney said I wasn't dressed right even though I thought I looked cute. I was wearing my green j-crew v-neck sweater and jeans with my simple clogs. Courtney wore black pants and a button down -- I thought she was way too dressed up. Traci, in her usual fashion, wore too much make-up.

Anyway, we get to Katrina's and a bunch of Oms were there. We ended up going out to dinner and I sat with Traci and two Oms. I don't really remember their names. They kind of just kept talking to themselves. The one girl asked me a couple of questions like where I was from and if I was involved in anything on campus. I told her that I had tried out for 2 plays and was considering getting involved in that and that I had joined habitat. She and the other girl just kind of looked at each other. They asked Traci the same questions and Traci started acting weird and really kissing the girls butts. I don't know if the Oms knew she wasn't being herself, but they seemed to enjoy Traci's "act".

Later Traci told me that that was how recruitment was going to be and I was going to have to learn how to "fake it to make it" if I wanted to be in a sorority.

Yea, I'm not so sure about this now....

MaggieXi · #2 06-02-2007, 01:32 PM

Just to let you know how recruitment was set up at Elon then. It has changed considerably by the time I had graduated and probably since then as well!

Recruitment began on the First Monday of Second Semester, after classes (around 5ish) which for us was in February since Elon is on a 4-1-4 semester system. Classes officially started on the Wednesday before recruitment began.

First Round
Monday - 3 parties
Tuesday - 3 parties

Wends. off

Second Round
Thursday - 4 parties

Pref
Friday - 2 parties

Saturday
Bid Day @ noon

PinkRose1098 · #3 06-02-2007, 02:46 PM

It's so much fun reading this! I almost want to pull out my journal from when I went through rush - I was in the last group of girls to do this at Auburn.

FSUZeta · #4 06-02-2007, 05:57 PM

please do pinkrose. we love retro rush threads!!

maggie, was there no silence rules in effect at elon? it sounds like this "hanging out" at your dormmate's sisters apartment was designed specifically to check out the pnms. and it is definately a no-no on most campuses.

ps: you outfit sounded cute to me!!

violetpretty · #5 06-02-2007, 06:11 PM

I find it odd that the first round was 3 and 3. Seeing 6 in one day is nothing

SoCalGirl · #6 06-02-2007, 06:44 PM

I never understood the 4-1-4 system. Can you briefly explain that? Thanks!

MaggieXi · #7 06-02-2007, 07:21 PM

Basically the 4-1-4 as I understand it is that first and second semester are 4 months. January -- the "1" month at Elon was called Winter Term and you would take a concentrated class, study abroad or do an internship for 3 weeks or so. Every Winter Term that I had was a blast! I took some really interesting classes and did volunteer work my senior year.

As for the silence thing, back then (and I KNOW its changed since then) you could "hang out" with sorority women up until the Monday morning that recruitment began. It was a very gray area at the time! Once Sigma Kappa colonized the following year, the whole process changed. By the time my senior year came around we had a new Greek Advisor and she was very very good and changed our whole recruitment!

BTW, because someone asked me, the sororites on Elon's campus at this time were:

Alpha Omicron Pi
Alpha Sigma Alpha
Alpha Xi Delta
Phi Mu
Sigma Sigma Sigma
Zeta Tau Alpha

susan314 · #8 06-04-2007, 12:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MaggieXi

Later Traci told me that that was how recruitment was going to be and I was going to have to learn how to "fake it to make it" if I wanted to be in a sorority.

Ugh. I definitely don't like that attitude! A PNM needs to be herself during recruitment - "faking" anything is only going to hurt you in the long run. Sure, it might get you into the house you think you want, but then are you going to feel like you have to keep putting on your act for the rest of your college career?

Be yourself. Sure, be the best version of yourself - the self you present for job interviews, meeting new boyfriend's parents, etc. But don't outright pretend to be something that you're not!!!!

MaggieXi · #9 06-04-2007, 09:02 AM

I was so nervous all morning to get my invites back! All the girls in my classes kept talking about recruitment and the different sororities, it totally put me on edge and gave me butterflies. The morning seemed to take FOREVER. Finally, I went to meet with Heather to get my invites and I was so nervous I had butterflies in my stomach!!!

So Heather comes and gets each one of us girls from our group one by one. It was so nerve racking! Some of the girls in my group were really happy when they came out of the meeting and some were really really upset! Finally, it was my turn. Heather brought me into this little room and handed me my invites. I had recieved 5 of the six: Shanti, Down Dog, Half Moon, Lotus and Warrior. I was so excited and I really didn't care that Om hadn't invited me back! So I had to pick 4 to go back to and I chose my top four from my list the night before: Shanti, Down Dog, Half Moon and Lotus!

Later when I got back to the suite Courtney was bugging everyone to see who they were invited to. I told her who I was going back to and she just smirked and was like "Oh, so your not going to Om???". I just told her that I wasn't but I really liked all the houses I was going back to. Courtney is really starting to get on my last nerve. I don't know why she is being sooo catty and petty about this!

Traci had been invited back to all six of the houses and decided to drop Shanti and Warrior. But she was really excited for all of her invites. One of the girls on my floor already has dropped out of recruitment, she was only invited back to Warrior and she is devestated. However, she has a really bad reputation of being kinda slutty and I know she hooked up with a Down Dog's boyfriend and there was a lot of drama about that!

As for boyfriends, Jon called me tonight and really pissed me off. He was trying to talk me out of rushing again saying that I wouldn't have time for him anymore if I was in a sorority. Also, he said he really wanted to come visit me for Valentine's day -- which was Saturday and Bid Day! I asked him if we could do it the following weekend and he got really mad at me and was like "see this sorority shit is already in our way!". I just don't understand why he can't get that this is something I want to try. I don't bitch about his activities while he is at school. I talked to my mom about it and she said that Jon is just upset and that I shouldn't let his negativity get in my head because if joining a sorority is what I want then he shouldn't get mad at me for it. She also reminded me to have a good time with it, enjoy meeting the different girls and be myself. I love my mom!!!!

blackngoldengrl · #10 06-04-2007, 09:49 AM

Seriously, who plans bid day for Valentine's day? That's just asking for disgruntled significant others. I know it's not a major holiday, but come on! My boyfriend would probably have been annoyed too, and he was in a fraternity!

Glad to see you got invited back to the houses you liked!

MaggieXi · #11 06-04-2007, 09:55 AM

I don't think it was planned for V-day, it just happened on to fall on that day. The following year, Elon would go through a dramatic change in all the office of greek life for the better!

susan314 · #12 06-04-2007, 10:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blackngoldengrl

Seriously, who plans bid day for Valentine's day? That's just asking for disgruntled significant others. I know it's not a major holiday, but come on! My boyfriend would probably have been annoyed too, and he was in a fraternity!

That's funny - most of my guy friends dislike Valentine's Day and would have welcomed a good excuse not to have to plan anything for it. lol (My husband is somewhere in the middle - we exchange cards, but that's about it. Neither of us cares too much about it.)

But...imagine some of the girls who do really make a big deal about Valentine's Day - some people get pretty depressed if they don't have a significant other around that time...imagine if a girl was already feeling glum about V-Day and got disastrous news on Bid Day. Would probably break the poor thing's heart.

MaggieXi · #13 06-04-2007, 12:03 PM

I vaguley recall the whole v-day on bid day being a hassle for some girls, but my feeling was that I thought the Jon was trying to come more as a control thing rather than to spend it with me. Needless to say, Jon and I broke up about two weeks into my new member period. He got to be really mean and snippy towards me after I joined AZD! Like if I didn't answer the phone when he called right then and there or respond to one of his emails that day he freaked out on me. Now looking back on it, the guy had a TON of control issues!

I will now fast forward to Thursday's parties....

Again I had a late class so I had to rush home and get changed. Today I wore a black skirt and a red ribbed turtle neck with black tights and shoes. Sarah did my hair and make up again. Apparently Courtney asked her to help her and Sarah refused. The two of them should have never been put as roomates!

Traci and I's schedule both had Half-Moon first for skit round tonight so we walked over there and checked in with the Rho Chi. As soon as the Rho Chi looked at us she asked us where our name tags were. I could not believe that both of us forgot our name tags!!!! So we both ran back to the room, in the rain and ran back to Moseley and got there just in time for the doors to open up at Half-Moon!

The girls at Half Moon had created this bridge thing with their arms over our heads and were singing the theme from the Muppets which I thought was really cute. Then we were taken by the girl at the end of the line. A new girl named Heather too took me around and we met up with Jen again who handed me a sprite in an old fashioned soda bottle. I opened it and it exploded all over me and Jen. Heather started apologizing profusely and Jen and I just laughed. They gave me some paper towels to clean up and Heather kept taking me around to meet different sisters. Then the sorority had us sit down in chairs and the sisters did this skit for us on the stage where they did this whole Wizard of Oz, Dorothy in Recruitment Land skit. It was alright. I couldn't hear a lot of it though. Then the president gave us a talk about our financial responsibilities to the sorority if we were to join. It's not as expensive as a lot of girls have made it out to be and seems pretty flexible with payment plans and stuff. All and all I had a really good time at Half Moon -- even though I walked in all wet and walked out with sprite on me! Traci and I met up in the hall at the end of the party. She absolutely loves Half Moon! I still really like Half Moon and could see myself there.

Next I was a one of the lucky ones who got to stay inside Moseley to go see Lotus next. While we were lining up, I ran into Colleen and Torey who were both at my party too! We walked into Lotus and the sisters were dressed in black completely except for their "I Love Lotus" buttons (I think it's an Elon thing, but we all had I love buttons and wore them a lot!) and the room was all dark except for black light and they had created this stage area. The music in the background was this eerie pinkfloyd music that fit the mood. So we all sit down and they do this Lous Through Time musical montage. It was awesome!!! These girls were so talented to pull this whole thing off. The costumes and music were perfect! After the skit was over, the treasurer handed out sheets of paper with the finanial info on it and outlined the financial stuff. For a treasurer, she seemed really laid back! I was then picked up by Hope who I had met during the first round and she introduced me to more people. I noticed a lot of the girls in this sorority are from the north and don't seem like the typical sorority girl. I definetly liked this group a lot by the end of the party and could see myself here as well.

Next I went trekked all the way down to the greek courts in the rain to go see Shanti. By this point it was pouring out!!! So we all lined up outside Shanti and waited in line while we got soaked! Finally Shanti let us in. They were all dressed in their letters and khaki pants and were doing cheers like the day before. They had us all sit down and their skit was the Music Awards. I wasn't that impressed compared to Lotus' skit, but it was still pretty good. Then their president went over their financial stuff. By far, this is one of the most expensive groups so far. Then April came and got me and intoduced me to sooo many people my head was swiming. She kept telling me how happy she was to see me there and stuff like that and other sisters would be like "april has said so much great stuff about you." Which of course made me feel pretty good. By the end of this party, I was happy to be there and could possibly see myself in this group too.

My last visit was to Down Dog . It had stopped raining a little bit and we didn't have to stand outside very long. They let us and in and were all cheering and singing and all the sisters were wearing black pants and letters. They had us sit on the floor, which again was wet from everyone's shoes and they did a Greece skit. It was adorable! Then a girl that I had apparently met during first round came up to take me around. I of course introduced myself and she was like "We met last party" and looked kinda peeved that I didn't remember her. I felt pretty embarassed about that. She then took me around to a few people and they served shirley temple drinks to kinda fit with the whole Greece theme. I didn't feel as comfortable at Down Dog as I had the party before because I just felt like every girl was asking the same questions over and over again. I still really liked everyone I met though and could possibly see myself as a Down Dog.

I met up with Heather my Rho Chi at the end of the parties and she said our invites would be ready for pref at 2 so to meet her there again to get them. Also she said to start thinking about who we really like because we can only go back to 2 pref parties. By the time I got back to my room I had no idea who liked the most and who I liked the least. Plus all the stereo types that Courtney and Traci had been saying started to crawl into my head. I really didn't know where I would fit in!

AnatraAmore · #14 06-04-2007, 02:09 PM

Wow! I think it's awesome that you like all four of the groups you saw! Did you think that you would be happy to be invited to any two of the four or did you have some slight favorites?