Lower Quotas This Year

[KSUViolet06]

Quota here @ Kent is projected to be lower than previous years. Quota is usually between 20-25, but it may dip down into the teens this year I've heard. I hope the projections end up being false.

[Drolefille]

Originally posted by Tom Earp
Would smaller quotas allow more GLO expansion?

With that said, this may be the wheel still turning and now because of many things like higher schools cost that it is detering some from paying out the extra money?

The problem is, the extra cost is a lot more worth it than they think at the moment!

Don't know if you're replying to me specifically or not, but:

The smaller quotas would be a result of expansion on our campus. If we're going to have quotas around 50, which means an end total of 250, another chapter coming to campus means quotas of 42ish. Which is what it was like a few years ago. Greek life is not huge at SLU in general, and particularly not for girls. So the fact that numbers are going up is a very positive sign, and means that we can expand the system here.

[carnation]

I think that a lot of it in the big Southern schools is due to the new release figures. There are a lot of women who, upon being released by over half the chapters after first parties, drop out of rush immediately. There's only so much an ego can take...

[TxGirl]

Carnation -

While this may be true I would think you would have to also agree that it is also more humane (if that's the correct word) than dumping them just before pref. Neither is a wonderful option, more the lesser of two evils theory.

It's a "stigma" now, to not have a full or almost full invite list after the first round. Once that's no longer the norm I think we will find that fewer women drop out because they have fewer invites.

Of course that also begs for the standard GC party line about keeping an open mind and really looking at each chapter individually.

[exlurker]

K, L, M and N may be the interesting ones. They have to make moderate- level cuts. Are they still extending party invitations to PNMs who -- to be realistic and blunt -- are almost certainly NOT going to pref them -- the PNMs who are going to go A, B, or C? And by loading up their invitation lists with these no-real-chance-in-hell PNMs, are they then forced under the release requirements to cut perfectly desirable women?
___________________________

Yes, they are and I have seen this happen so much in the last 3-4 years.



Would more of the perfectly fine, but not super-spectacular, PNMs be inclined to stick with recruitment if they were getting invitations from six or seven chapters, even if A, B, and C cut them

I think so but again, we're seeing almost everybody going for the superstars. And it doesn't help when the sororities toss it off with, 'Oh well, there are kinks in the new system, we'll get it right some day." Hundreds of women have left recruitment just this year, no doubt--women who would've been fabulous members and will now hate Greeks--because the medium AND big sororities have dumped them by Day 2 because most of the sororities were aiming for the "best". We talk about PNMs not being realistic but neither are some sororities.

Just being honest.


.

[dukedg]

exlurker -- I was thinking along the same lines as you.

Obviously I didn't rush under this new system, but if I didn't get invited back to a full or almost full party list the second day of recruitment I'd be very turned off from the whole process. If I dropped out then wouldn't go back to any chapters and thus not get the chance to find a chapter that was right for me. It's much harder to tell people to keep an open mind when they are released from many places so early!

I'm sure there is a stigma right now that might die down over time regarding how many invites people normally get, but there will be some girls who do have a full list on the second day. And if I've already been released by what I thought were my favorite groups on the first day, why would I go back to any the second?

Argh. Not sure I'm making sense.

[Sistermadly]

It's looking like quota will be the same as last year at UBC (Vancouver, Canada), but this actually isn't good news as we had fewer PNMs coming through than last year. Since we lost a chapter last year, if we were on target with registrations, our quota should have been nearly 20.

[IvySpice]

It's a "stigma" now, to not have a full or almost full invite list after the first round. Once that's no longer the norm I think we will find that fewer women drop out because they have fewer invites.

I wonder if part of the problem is campuses referring to rounds of rush as "ten party day" and "six party day." That's inevitably going to create the expectation that six parties is the goal, no matter what the Pi Chis say about the release figures system.

[Kasis-anon]

If this new system is going to work and not end up alienating more women that it ultimately places, NPC needs to provide campuses with a way of describing FR that manages the expectations of PNMs. If somehow PNMs are educated that day 1 is a "showcase" and that their choices are mostly likely going to be narrowed immediately afterwards it might help some of the shock and hurt (well, at least the shock). And I wholeheartedly agree, any descriptions like "10 party day" would have to go right away.

[33girl]

(My apologies in advance if this sounds condescending.)

I think that more and more, young people believe either you need to be the best at everything you do or you shouldn't even bother with it.

I mean, look at the traveling little league teams and things like that. It's like you can't play a sport anymore just for fun. You have to be hardcore in it or you're not wanted around. The same with band...I mean, my neighbor's kids do band and that's ALL they do.

That probably trickles down (up?) to things like sorority rush. Girls who have been super overachievers in HS figure if they can't be in the "top" sorority, there's no sense in being in one at all. And lots of times, their parents agree and promote this mindset, which I think is a terrible lesson to teach. You want the best for your child, but you have to tell them that sometimes yes, this is the best you're going to get.

I know a lot of this is because there are so many more people in this generation than say 10 or 20 years ago, therefore more competition, but where does it end? We can't have a whole society full of chiefs and no Indians.

[sugar and spice]

Originally posted by 33girl
(My apologies in advance if this sounds condescending.)

I think that more and more, young people believe either you need to be the best at everything you do or you shouldn't even bother with it.

I mean, look at the traveling little league teams and things like that. It's like you can't play a sport anymore just for fun. You have to be hardcore in it or you're not wanted around. The same with band...I mean, my neighbor's kids do band and that's ALL they do.

That probably trickles down (up?) to things like sorority rush. Girls who have been super overachievers in HS figure if they can't be in the "top" sorority, there's no sense in being in one at all. And lots of times, their parents agree and promote this mindset, which I think is a terrible lesson to teach. You want the best for your child, but you have to tell them that sometimes yes, this is the best you're going to get.

I know a lot of this is because there are so many more people in this generation than say 10 or 20 years ago, therefore more competition, but where does it end? We can't have a whole society full of chiefs and no Indians.

I agree completely.

I think it's far, far more stressful to be a kid now than it was even 10 or 20 years ago.

I've spent a lot of time looking through old Wisconsin yearbooks, and I'm constantly surprised at the number of sororities that stuck around for years, even decades, even though they were less than 1/2 the size of the largest sororities. That would never happen today -- partly because HQs wouldn't allow it, but also because I don't think there would be enough girls interested in smaller groups to keep that many of them afloat.

[Tom Earp]

Originally posted by Drolefille
Don't know if you're replying to me specifically or not, but:

The smaller quotas would be a result of expansion on our campus. If we're going to have quotas around 50, which means an end total of 250, another chapter coming to campus means quotas of 42ish. Which is what it was like a few years ago. Greek life is not huge at SLU in general, and particularly not for girls. So the fact that numbers are going up is a very positive sign, and means that we can expand the system here.

No it wasnt! Just a General Question. I still am of the beleif that if there is a limited # of NPCs on campus and the PNMs arent comforatable with them, then they will not join.

But of course depending on the Size of the Greek Organizations and #s in the Chapters it does get over whelming to many of the Possible Newbies.


33girl, nope it isnt, but when things or oppotunities are limited then for me then there is a problem just at My Alma Mater with just 3.

I have never been a Proponent for super duper Large Houses.

So who in the Hell knows their fellow Members?

[TxGirl]

Originally posted by Kasis-anon
If this new system is going to work and not end up alienating more women that it ultimately places, NPC needs to provide campuses with a way of describing FR that manages the expectations of PNMs. If somehow PNMs are educated that day 1 is a "showcase" and that their choices are mostly likely going to be narrowed immediately afterwards it might help some of the shock and hurt (well, at least the shock). And I wholeheartedly agree, any descriptions like "10 party day" would have to go right away.

I think that this would be helpful as well. I think they should come up with a uniforrm name for each round. Right now there are Open House/Welcome Night or Day/IceWaterTeas etc all to descripe the same round. Now while I will say I think that at least Open House implies that it is a "showcase" type of thing, I can see how having all of these names could be confusing.

Of course if the PNM's would really read the recruitment info that the CPH sends out it would be helpful as well. Most of those say that the first round you get to visit all the chapters to see what greek life is like. Which is also why this round the chapters are asked to promote greek life as much or more than their chapters.

exlurker - I think that you are correct about the both the PNM and the chapter's being realistic in their selections.

This begs for two questions. How do you tell an 18 year old PNM (and this coming from a 19-21 yr old Rho Gam) that she's a great girl but just not quite good enough to get into XYZ, ABD or MNF. But if she would be realistic she could get a bid from the other 6 groups. And on the flip how do you tell an average chapter or a chapter that is struggling that they need to lower their standards (and I don't want to hear and quality vs quantity from anyone on this) and be realistic that they aren't going to get the really "good" girls.

Since the new RFM came out (and the explinations behind it) I have wondered how we can educate the women it effects - the PNM's. So my questions aren't meant to be snippy. I have tried to think of good (and tactful) answers for them but haven't come up with anything I thing would suffice.

[33girl]

Originally posted by TxGirl
And on the flip how do you tell an average chapter or a chapter that is struggling that they need to lower their standards (and I don't want to hear and quality vs quantity from anyone on this) and be realistic that they aren't going to get the really "good" girls.

I don't think struggling chapters are quite that stupid. I'm sure they look at some girls and say "OMG she's SO going to go [insert top sorority here]." I mean, yeah, sometimes you do just know. You're pleasantly surprised if she comes back to your party but even if you didn't say it out loud, you know she just isn't in your league. If chapters are blowing off girls because Miss Fresh Asparagus or whatever is rushing and they put all their attention on her, that's something the rush chair or advisor needs to tell them not to do.

And there are other times I've seen when a top groups were fighting over a woman and the not-top wanted nothing to do with her - either because a) she was rude to them or b) the top group only wants her for her looks or other similar reasons.

I think this must be a southern thing. I mean, I can't remember any girls that every single sorority was just like "We have to have her" except for maybe the feature twirler.

As far as how to educate the rushees - maybe just basic figures. Something like 50% of girls were dropped by half the chapters after the first night, but of those girls who stayed with it 95% got a bid and 90% of those girls are still active in their sorority. OK I just pulled that out of nowhere, but something along those lines. You always feel better knowing It's Not Just You.

[WVU alpha phi]

Quota was down at West Virginia this year as well. My pledge class two years ago had 31 girls in it, and that's what it's been for awhile now. This year only 300 girls signed up for rush, and quota was lowered to 23 among 8 NPC sororities. Nobody really knows what happened or why girls weren't signing up, especially since we started something new this year called Meet the Greeks, which was just an event outside our student plaza where all the sororities and fraternities set up booths, 75% of every chapter had to attend, and the PNMs could come check it out. That had a pretty decent turnout, so I'm not sure what happened to our numbers this year.