After Several Years: What Do You Think of the New Release Figures?

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by Just interested

All I know is I applaud Chi O for sticking to their guns and waiting until after the semester and grades are made to initiate. I feel it makes membership much more special and moms I've talked to like it as well. I don't know about retention and all that but I think the way it is now girls feel they are just joining a club and not a life long affiliation. Change is good but at what cost, numbers or lifelong members. Just random thoughts

Are their any studies or numbers that support this? How does an extra month of waiting for initiation improve the odds that a girl will take the lifelong membership seriously? Have you seen more people intiated then have to be dropped for grades? There is a relatively small difference in time of the new member period in both situations...I fail to see how it can make that big of a difference. I don't think AOII has seen a change in grades over the years, which is the only thing that I can see would actually be different between the two options.

[SWTXBelle]

I too wondered how waiting a few extra weeks = taking membership more seriously. We had to wait until the next semester to initiate - and still had those who did not take their membership seriously. Not making grades hasn't been a big issue in the chapters with which I was involved. If anything, I can think of a case where the fact that a member was already initiated but on scholastic probation made her study that much harder to get her grades up and remain on campus and an unfettered active. It all depends on the individual.

I am sure each NPC group has carefully considered the pros and cons of a shortened pledge period and continues to monitor its success. I personally think the most important determining factor is the new member education program itself, whether it is 6 weeks or 6 months. Also, don't discount the examples set by actives and alumnae. New members are more likely to believe in lifetime membership if that's what they see around them.

[gee_ess]

Originally Posted by SWTXBelle

I personally think the most important determining factor is the new member education program itself, whether it is 6 weeks or 6 months. Also, don't discount the examples set by actives and alumnae. New members are more likely to believe in lifetime membership if that's what they see around them.

This is my position. The shortened new member period seems here to stay, but from what I have seen, a new and improved program that takes into consideration this shorter period has not surfaced within my GLO. Add to that, much larger pledge classes and activity restrictions (read: no testing of pledge material, for example) and it makes for woefully disinfranchised new members.

[ree-Xi]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Just interested
All I know is I applaud Chi O for sticking to their guns and waiting until after the semester and grades are made to initiate. I feel it makes membership much more special and moms I've talked to like it as well. I don't know about retention and all that but I think the way it is now girls feel they are just joining a club and not a life long affiliation. Change is good but at what cost, numbers or lifelong members. Just random thoughts

Originally Posted by AOII Angel

Are their any studies or numbers that support this? How does an extra month of waiting for initiation improve the odds that a girl will take the lifelong membership seriously? Have you seen more people intiated then have to be dropped for grades? There is a relatively small difference in time of the new member period in both situations...I fail to see how it can make that big of a difference. I don't think AOII has seen a change in grades over the years, which is the only thing that I can see would actually be different between the two options.

My thoughts: I read this more as suggesting that the mystery of "will I or won't I be initiated" gives NM more incentive to keep going, consistently improving, because only by achieveing something (here, it's grades, but if you look at old school pledge programs, where everything was covered in mystery) would you get to initiation.

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by ree-Xi

Quote:
Originally Posted by Just interested
All I know is I applaud Chi O for sticking to their guns and waiting until after the semester and grades are made to initiate. I feel it makes membership much more special and moms I've talked to like it as well. I don't know about retention and all that but I think the way it is now girls feel they are just joining a club and not a life long affiliation. Change is good but at what cost, numbers or lifelong members. Just random thoughts



I read this more as suggesting that the mystery of "will I or won't I be initiated" gives NM more incentive to keep going, consistently improving, because only by achieveing something (here, it's grades, but if you look at old school pledge programs, where everything was covered in mystery) would you get to initiation.

So the extra month of wondering really makes them more eager to be a true lifelong member? I don't buy it! Also, if you think about it, many of our organizations immediately initiated new members in the early days. Our first "pledge" was initiated almost immediately. This long pledging period evolved over time and was not an original ideal of at least the AOII founders. If it was good enough for them, it's good enough for me!