sororities in high school?!?!?!

[thetakates]

I have posted something on this topic before....I think.

But my grandmother was in a high school sorority or "social club" It was called the Sub-Dub club or something like that, but it had a pin and an initiation and stuff like that to it. The pin had greek letters on it (well the name has greek letters, I just cant remember what they are!). They wore a uniform and it was kind of a high school girl scouts that threw parties and stuff like that (of course no alcohol!) Also they had formals and stuff. But it was selective you had to be invited into it and I am not sure how that worked, but I know her sister was never allowed in. But I always thought it sounded interesting.

[PiPhiERDoc]

Originally posted by crystalline


I know I'm going to get made fun of here...

When I was a kid, I used to read the Sweet Valley High series. In it, one of the twins is in a high school sorority. When I actually reached high school and learned that we didn't have sororities, I was pretty disappointed. I think in those books they only had one at the school, and they were huge on blackballing, and terrible bitches.

LOL -- Oh my gosh, I read those too!!!
I think the sorority letters were Alpha Phi, and I remember something about Jessica Wakefield having a "Phi Bear" -- is there some connection to the author and Alpha Phi?
And yes, the members in the book were terrible -- I would have been ticked off it they had used our letters...

[tcsparky]

Originally posted by ADPiViolets
So were these sororities just made up? Was there an office of alumns that sorta observed everything?
Do they actually go through a recruitment period, and hold initiations?
Were these sororities in any way tied to college sororities (like, the same name, or did they just make up names)
And what happened when they graduated and went to college? Could they join another sorority?

Sorry for the 20 questions. I'm just really curious.

DBS was founded at Columbia Institute, Columbia, Tennessee, on October 1, 1903. In its history DBS has had 54 chapters, mainly in TN, AR, MS, LA, TX. They have a week of recruitment, where they "kidnap" the PNM (with their mothers' cooperation and permission), and spend a week inviting the mothers and the PNM's to activities. Then a Bid Day where invitations are extended to the ones they want to have aas members. Basically, no one is kidnapped who they don't already know they want to bid, but it gives the PNMs a chance to get to know them and see if it is something they want to do.
DBS has a Ritual, Initiation, secret meaning for letters, stuff only members are allowed to know, basically set up just like college orgs, only the girls are high school, and the moms have a much more active role in everything. They also have two formals a year.
DBS is not tied to any college sorority, and you can join any GLO you like at college.

[aopirose]

Sela is a "Dusty" from Meridian HS, Meridian, MS. (MHS has about 4 sororities but they are not listed on the school website.) She was promoting her new book on a local radio show and several Dusty alumnae called. One alumna told of how the year that Sela's class went through her legacy daughter didn't get a bid - too many legacies and not enough spaces. Therefore, the mom and some of her Dusty friends helped to form "Mes Amie". Another caller said that the Dusties have reunions almost every year.

There aren’t many high school sororities on the web but here are two national high school fraternities –

Phi Kappa Fraternity (Founded February 3, 1900 – 9 active chapters of 50 chartered) - www.geocities.com/phikappaec/

Sigma Alpha Rho Fraternity International (Jewish interest Founded 1917 - 22 Chapters and a colony) – http://sarfraternity.org/home.htm
Tau Epsilon Chi Sorority is SAR’s sister group.

Originally posted by CarolinaCutie
Wasn't Sela Ward in a high school sorority? I seem to remember some story about how she was bullied/harrassed/etc from a sorority but it wasn't Chi Omega.

[Lisa Fishman]

Our high school soroities were not recogized by the school. Meetings and activities were on the students' time after school only. We had Anchor Club and Key Club as well.

[bruinaphi]

Originally posted by PiPhiERDoc


LOL -- Oh my gosh, I read those too!!!
I think the sorority letters were Alpha Phi, and I remember something about Jessica Wakefield having a "Phi Bear" -- is there some connection to the author and Alpha Phi?
And yes, the members in the book were terrible -- I would have been ticked off it they had used our letters...

The sorority in the Sweet Valley High series was Pi Beta Alpha. I don't really remember whether or not she had a "Phi Bear" but I am not aware of any connection b/w Alpha Phi and Francine Pascal.

Laura

[crystalline]

Originally posted by lauradav


The sorority in the Sweet Valley High series was Pi Beta Alpha. I don't really remember whether or not she had a "Phi Bear" but I am not aware of any connection b/w Alpha Phi and Francine Pascal.

Laura

*has sudden urge to look for Sweet Valley books*

[UofIL AXO]

Really interesting! I don't think my high school was mature enough to handle a sorority, it would have been disastrous!

[Tom Earp]

In My Old High, we had 1 Fraternity Sigma Tau, and 3 Soroitys!

God, I wish I had my old Pin!!!!!

Would go great with my APO,BX local, , and LXA Badge that will be given to My LXA Chapter!

Never forget your roots as is your history!

[Cluey]

We had high school sororities when I was in high school. There were actually two greek letter sororities and Anchors, which was run like a sorority at my high school.

Yes, there was mini-rush. During Club Day you found out what activities each group would be participating in for the next couple of weeks and, if you were interested, you could show up. They voted on new members and, if you made it through that, you could join. Yes, there were people (actually quite a few) that got turned away, some for potentially stupid reasons.

They had colors, jerseys, secret meanings, ritual, etc. You name it, they had all of it except badges.

Oh, by the way, there was only one fraternity. All they ever really did was throw parties that would get broken up by the cops.

[violets]

Fraternities and Sororities are not allowed in New York State High Schools, however, when I went to High School we had two of each that were "underground." They hazed unmercifully. The girls were humiliated daily and the boys ended up in the hospital quite a few times because of being paddled and then left out in the cold with no clothes and no way to contact any one to get home.
Each of the groups had been long standing organizations in my high school (60 years old or so when I was in HS) so my town was full of alums of these 4 groups. Therefore everyone, even the adminisration, turned a "blind eye" during the obvious annual hazing of new members.
The hazing was absurd and ridiculously cruel and in the end the groups themselves did absolutely nothing during the rest of the year except have a "hell night" which was their ritual initiation, and then throw one party during the year

Every single fall new kids would join...I simply don't understand it. Imagine being a 15 year old girl and being told that you have to carry around a box of tampons with you everywhere, in full sight, that you cannot wear make up, that you have to wear the same sweat suit every single day, that you cannot wash your hair more than once a week, that you need to do your future sisters' homework. Imagine being asked to sexually proposition senior boys, or being told to run behind the soccer team chanting about your sexual availability. Imagine being called a "dog" in public by your future "sisters"...yes, they were even called "dogs," not pledges.
Ugh, some of my girl friends went through it and it was totally crazy. However, when their senior year rolled around they felt it was their right to haze a new group of girls, that that was the only thing that made what they went through worth it, and so the cycle continued.
Many women from my high school were very reluctant to join sororities during college because of either going through, or simply witnessing what our high school sororities were like.
I myself spent hours attempting to explain to quite a few of my high school girlfriends why my sorority experience was inherently different than what we had been exposed to. Many were pretty sure that I had lost my mind when I decided to join ADPi, and I understood where they were coming from. Luckily, my long and passionate talks defending and promoting sororities convinced two of my close friends to Go Greek and they both became Alpha Gamma Deltas...and they were both very happy AGDs!
okay that's my story,
Greek Love and Peace,
violets

[ADPiViolets]

Thank you for clearing up those questions for me, tcsparky.

And Violets, those stories you shared of the hazing that goes on in those organizations is so incredibly sad! I can't believe that the school administration would just ignore it all. That is horrible.
It makes me appreciate ADPi, and all other non-hazing greek organizations even more.

[sailorpiphi]

Hi everyone-
thanks for responding to this. It was just something i was curious about.

[AngelPhiSig]

We had a mini band sorority called Psi Sigma Mu, it was fun... Im a founder, and I also founded it within my friends in Clarion


ALSO, if a woman is 18, she can join a Nu Phi Mu chapter of Beta Sigma Phi.... I was 18 in HS, I wish I would have know about Beta then!!!

[Lynzi]

When I was a kid, I used to read the Sweet Valley High series. In it, one of the twins is in a high school sorority. When I actually reached high school and learned that we didn't have sororities, I was pretty disappointed. I think in those books they only had one at the school, and they were huge on blackballing, and terrible bitches.

I remeber that...I think it was in the Junior High books, though. They always had to wear one article of purple clothing and their mascot was the unicorn (a little bit Delta Phi Epsilon, I woder if there is a connection there?).....Elizabeth was in it, too, but she never went to the meetings or anything. There was one story where they blackballed a girl because she was too fat for them, and Elizabeth fought it. The only two SVJH books I remember mention it quite bit. I can't believe I remember any of this.....