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Originally Posted by ComradesTrue
Wow! I continue to be impressed by the numbers at Tarleton. Will you remind us if AOII was a stacked colonization? Sounds like a couple more years and maybe the campus is ready for another new chapter!
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I know. It is crazy. They had almost 450 register for recruitment and by the time the first night came along, I think just shy of 400 actually started the process. To answer your question, it was not a stacked colonization. They are trying to be cautious about too much expansion. Although the school welcomed it's largest Freshman class in history this year, they want to do it right and make sure everyone is strong. That's b/c they have had some struggles in the past. AGD & DZ were the first Greek organizations in 1985 & they were very close & competitive with each other. ASA colonized in 1988, and did not last 5 years for a variety of reasons (this was before Panhellenic had a hand in presentations & such). PM came on campus around 1993 and struggled for a very long time before it got its foothold (not b/c PM was bad - just because PNMs were very set in their ways...attitudes toward new organizations have gotten much more panhellenic & it has come a very long way) - PM is very strong now. When DPhiE colonized 3 or 4 years ago, they were the only group to present besides ASA (they were the only 2 groups to submit packets). Then when AOII was chosen to colonize, they presented with AST (I think only AOII, AST & ASA submitted packets).
Who knows if they will have an opportunity to expand again for several years? But that's probably a good thing. They need to make sure everyone is stable, and that enrollment continues to increase. It would be nice if another NPC w/more name recognition in Texas would show interest next time...especially some w/a presence in the A&M system (Tarleton is an A&M school for those who don't know), but since it's not a flagship, there seems to be some residual hesitation about coming there - I think ASA's experience still worries groups, even though it was 25+ years ago. Also, Tarleton is not well known outside of Texas, but it has an amazing nursing school and draws some very talented students away from larger schools who prefer the smaller school environment - not to mention Tarleton is cheap by comparison to Tech, A&M & UT. Sorry - you didn't ask for that much info...I just started typing & it all spilled out.