From colony to getting chartered - what happens if a sorority won't get chartered?

[33girl]

Originally Posted by wavycutchip

I don't have more than 1 experience to base this on, but the chapter I advise did initiate their 1st new members about 3 months before they received their charter. This was a special situation, because the campus was trying to charter 3 sorority chapters at the same time with all 3 getting their charters at the same time - and 2 were not willing to follow through with their colony charters at the original installation date.

I am sure there are lots of reasons for this, but in this particular case the alumnae advisory board asked for this to happen because the Leadership Consultants were out of town (the colonizing LC left in Nov., and 4 other LCs came for 3-6 day visits during the Spring Semester, and the colonizing LC came 2 more times) and the colony was acting like a chapter (had its officers, etc), but did not have access to all the tools (not only ritual, but membership, member ed, etc) and were constantly having to ask the local alumnae to log onto the national website for them to get additional information and access to do their job. Initiation was the only way for the women to have that access. During this time (colony with initiated members), the colony acted like a chapter - recruiting new members, running a new member program, holding philanthropy events, running chapter meetings, etc.

Again, I know the above situation was special; but I can understand that if the colony has been on campus for awhile as the OP said, I can see where the national organization would not be able to have an LC still in residence due to other needs of the organization.

But in this situation, was the colony on target with membership goals, recruitment, campus involvement etc? If so, this just sounds more like a techinicality than anything - and there were obviously many local alumnae involved. The OP's situation sounds like the national dropped off some letters, initiated people and left - leaving zero support.

Originally Posted by Low C Sharp

AEPhi has had a colony at the University of Washington-Seattle for almost two years, and has various class initiation pictures on its web site. I don't know if that's the OP's chapter, but it's an example of a colony remaining a colony, with initiated members, for quite a while.

Boys are different than girls. Not to mention AEPhi is geared toward a particular population.

Originally Posted by Shellfish

To go off topic a bit, a strange situation I know of occurred when a chapter repeatedly was found to have hazed. Their national didn't close them but just made the chapter a colony. I don't understand how a regular chapter could be pulled back to colony status.

Originally Posted by MysticCat

^^^ And don't some groups have a reorganization status for chapters? Is it possible that for them, reorganization status is essentially like colony status?

Originally Posted by Shellfish

This national did expel some members but not all of them. I always thought that the colony thing was done to make it look like some disciplinary action was being taken. Some years earlier, they also did a sort of reorganization in which they put all current members on alum status and immediately absorbed a local, so it was like they were never off campus at all and didn't lose any of the privileges of Panhel membership.

Yes. This is so you don't lose your spot. Those colony members were kind of like seat fillers at the Oscars.

Originally Posted by AOII Angel

Yes, your chapter is closing.

She doesn't have a chapter. She is in a colony. Big difference. And it doesn't sound like the previous alumnae are utilizing all those wonderful bonds they have from being initiated sisters. They're certainly not helping the colony out.