Image Problems.

SydneyK · #1 09-09-2007, 02:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SigmaTri2008

Hypothetically speaking..

Say there was a chapter of a sorority who had 2 women who's image standards were extremely low. So low, that they are having a negative impact. These two women should never have been voted into the sorority, but they were anyway due to drama.

Are you sure the negative impact is because of the image problem, and not because of the perception that the women were extended bids only because of drama?

Do the women you're referring to (hypothetically) know that their sisters think "they should never have been voted into the sorority"? If so, I'd suspect the negativity might be stemming from that instead of their "low image standards" (whatever that means).

At least, I know if my sisters said, "We should never have voted in Sydney; damn drama, anyway!" I'd probably have had a pretty negative impact on my sorority.

adpiucf · #2 09-09-2007, 02:29 PM

I think you should approach with an all-chapter workshop or series of workshops that discuss self-respect, serving as a PR ambassador for the chapter, nutrition and fitness, and celebrating diversity. After these workshops, adopt these ideas into your chapter bylaws so they can be enforced.

I PM'd you with some ideas.

texas*princess · #3 09-09-2007, 02:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by adpiucf

I think you should approach with an all-chapter workshop or series of workshops that discuss self-respect, serving as a PR ambassador for the chapter, nutrition and fitness, and celebrating diversity. After these workshops, adopt these ideas into your chapter bylaws so they can be enforced.

I PM'd you with some ideas.

That's actually a really good idea

adpiucf · #4 09-09-2007, 05:30 PM

Thanks, T*P! I really think that you can't impose a specific standard that the entire membership has not been educated about. Otherwise, there is just no way for the members to police their own conduct. But if you've been given fair warning about something specific, you can reasonably expect there will be consequences if you fail to uphold those standards.

I think the problem is that a lot of policies can be very vague. The alcohol policy is clear, but the responsibility to behave in a manner befitting the chapter can be a bit fuzzy... and where do you draw the line?

So for these hypothetical members who are not "representing the sorority's image" well... in what ways have the chapter been educated on what image means? The tricky thing about chapter image is that it is a topic that needs to be addressed with tact and sensitivity. And once a policy has been adopted, members need to be educated about it every year and know it exists.

And I'm not talking about a policy req'ing everyone to wear J. Crew and get haircuts at the Aveda Salon; rather-- a policy that req's making sure that your appearance and conduct are tidy and respectful of yourself and others... and some reasonable specifics like no ripped denim with letter apparel/no tube tops at chapter meeting, etc.

You can't arbitrarily single out a group of members and enforce a standard on them that the entire chapter is not explicitly expected to follow-- you could call honestly call that singling out "hazing" if you wanted to look at the purest definition of the word...

kathykd2005 · #5 09-09-2007, 02:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SydneyK

Are you sure the negative impact is because of the image problem, and not because of the perception that the women were extended bids only because of drama?

Do the women you're referring to (hypothetically) know that their sisters think "they should never have been voted into the sorority"? If so, I'd suspect the negativity might be stemming from that instead of their "low image standards" (whatever that means).

At least, I know if my sisters said, "We should never have voted in Sydney; damn drama, anyway!" I'd probably have had a pretty negative impact on my sorority.

Yep, I probably would have, too. Unfortunately, I've known of cases where this happened. Those individuals either ended up leaving their GLO, or causing problems within the house so much that they were asked to leave. No one should ever KNOW about "drama" regarding whether or not they should have gotten into the house. That is part of MS, and should stay there.