Rebelious pledges

[pikeks109]

Ok from what I've collected most of you agree to give them the boot. I agree entirely and I want to thank all of you for the excellent advise you have given me. All of the brothers has been strict and firm with them however they have all been hesistant of throwing them out. Most of us has agreed to initiate them after the summer.

[dzrose93]

Originally posted by KnowledgeEternal:
If they don't care about coming to the meetings and respecting their brothers don't you think they would turn on your fratr once you kick them out? What if they are the type to try and put out secrets once they don't get their way? Just something to think about.

Letting them in because they might publish secrets if you throw them out is like giving in to blackmail!!! No GLO should feel pressured into initiating ANYONE. It is an honor and a privilege to be an initiated member of an organization --- any organization, Greek or otherwise. It's not a God-given right - and membership should certainly not be handed out just because of "what if" questions.

What secrets would these kids know anyway? If you get rid of them before initiation, they don't have a whole lot of knowledge anyway (especially if they are as slack about learning their pledge manuals as they are about attending functions) What they know as pledges would scarcely cover a page and certainly wouldn't make for very interesting reading.

**once again, dzrose93 is stepping off of the proverbial soapbox**

[SH80]

Our chapter has a worse problem. We have rebellious officers! Yea, a typical fraternity has a pres, vp, secretary, treasurer, social chair, historian, etc. They sometimes step outside their boundaries. We have a great mix of weak follower types and strong leader types. Someone can make a decision, another person overthroughs it, and then the rest of the chapter follows. For example, a vice president makes a decision, then the treasurer alters that decision, who has absoulutely no other authority than being a treasurer. I have been the activities officer since last December and I have not planned one activity by myself, without having someone else interfering. Maybe I should keep my plans to myself!

[Tom Earp]

While we ahve not had that problem, we have the problem of some new officers who think they have the power and lord it over all others. Granted, they are young we who put them in can also take them out!

It is best to get the problem taken care of as soon as jpossible or you may no longer be a viable organization!

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Tom Earp LX Z#1
Pittsburg State U. (Kansas)

[Tom Earp]

While we ahve not had that problem, we have the problem of some new officers who think they have the power and lord it over all others. Granted, they are young we who put them in can also take them out!

It is best to get the problem taken care of as soon as jpossible or you may no longer be a viable organization!

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Tom Earp LX Z#1
Pittsburg State U. (Kansas)

[parrotthead]

I have to agree with the idea of holding them over the summer. Here we have 2 pledge classes a year and the second one ends up going over the summer. They are not pledges during this time, its not technically a part of the pledge period, its like a break. But I think the biggest thing in this is its a time where they can think about what they are doing. This is both a good thing and a bad thing, you might lose some people but at least in the end you know that they are dedicated and the kind of people you might want in your org. Sorry if anyone already said this about the summer thing, thats just my two cents, talk to yall later.

[Bro2B]

Hey. From a pledge's point of view (I'm still pledging my fraternity) I think you should blackball one or more of them. You don't want apathetic pledges to become brothers who will be poison in chapter (if they even bother to show up to chapter meetings).

We have the ability to pledgeball one of our pledge bros if they don't pull their weight (i.e. miss a meeting or two for b.s. reasons, not showing up for fundraisers or community service events, not following all the rules, not coming out enough, failing pledge exams, losing pledge manual, not getting to know us, or not showing respect for the brothers).

A pledgeball isn't likely to happen, at least in my opinion, when they're all a bunch of slackers. Now I'm not a brother, but I know that the most super pledge doesn't make a great brother, but usually a crappy pledge makes a crappy brother. Cut bait and hope for a good fall rush (usually fall rush is better than spring anyway).

It's hard for me to believe though that an entire pledge class is a bunch of slackers. To me it seems like they don't respect the brothers when they fail pledge exams and don't do anything. How is that going to reflect on the chapter and general fraternity if and when they get initiated?

Ultimately I guess they don't realize the honor they've been given and lack the respect for the organization. Getting initiated is NOT inevitable, it is NOT a right, but an honor and a privilege. Help them understand that by making examples out of them, if they are that bad I'm sure it won't be too hard getting enough support to blackball more than one pledge.

Getting off the soapbox, that's just my $.02 from a pledge's perspective. I know I wouldn't want dead weight as pledge brothers.

[N2]

Bro2B,

I LOVE YOUR ATTITUDE !!!!!!!!!!!!! Too bad your not one of our pledges! On another note, I think I like the pledge ball idea. Can you post more on how it works and how it has in the past, if you know.

[Bro2B]

N2 - sorry it's been so long getting back to you about how the pledgeball works. It's been a busy summer for me.

The way it works here is that we, the pledges have a good idea who is doing what and who isn't. The good thing about a pledgeball is it holds us accountable to each other, in addition to the brothers.

So if we see a fellow pledge brother slacking, we can bring him up for pledgeball just by mentioning it to each other. It's informal at first like "What do you think about pledgeballing John? He hasn't done anything and he's making us look bad as a pledge class."

Usually the pledge class president mentions it to the pledge educator before the next pledge meeting-i.e. we're thinking about bringing John up for pledgeball.

The pledge educator brings it up in chapter-the pledges are thinking about balling John. Of course I don't know what goes on after that. Brothers might argue for him, or not. Either way, the pledge educator tells the pledge class president to go ahead, or not to.

If it's a go, at the very next pledge meeting, the pledge class president calls for a vote from his fellow pledge brothers on whether to pledgeball John. Ideally, John should be present.

If anyone wants to argue for John, they can. Usually though no one will, everyone pretty much has a good idea of why they'd pledgeball John. After John states his case, or doesn't, the pledge class prez calls for a vote.

It's not a secret vote. You make a round of everyone going around, saying why they are voting for or against pledgeballing John. John doesn't have a vote. Makes sense, right?

You can make your own rules here. Where I'm at, a pledgeball has to be unanimous. Every pledge present at the pledge meeting has to vote to pledgeball John for it to count. You might say 90% of the pledges present have to vote againt him for it to count. The only problem is it's a vote of who is present-so if for some reason John's best friend he's pledging with has to miss the meeting for whatever reason, he might get pledgeballed because his friend wasn't there to defend him and break the unanimous vote against John. At the chapter I am pledging at, I've heard about a guy quite a few pledge classes back who was basically a b.s. pledgeball. It was the first meeting of the fall (it was a spring pledge class like mine) and because school hadn't started yet, everyone wasn't back in town but half of the pledge class. The half that was there was the half that wanted to pledgeball this guy, and they did. A lot of the brothers are still bitter over it.

Anyway, there you have it. The good thing about a pledgeball not going through is hopefully it has a "scared straight" effect on John and he gets his act together and starts contributing as a member of the pledge class and doing the same work the rest of the class is doing.

And of course if John is pledgeballed, the pledge educator asks him to leave the meeting. The pledge educator lets the brothers know about the pledgeball. After that, usually the President or Vice President of the chapter goes to John's dorm room, apartment, wherever and takes John's pin and pledge manual and tells him he is no longer affiliated with the fraternity.

That's it.

[TKEmz894]

Even if you end up with only 2 left, you always have to weed out the guys you dont think will be worthy brothers, cause 2 that do things correctly are better than 30 that dont..........Am I wrong?

[PsiU1833]

If they dont know the history and traditions of the house, dont respect the actives and ignore their responsiblities to the house, then how can u intrust the future of the house to them? You cant. You have to show them they r just pledges, and they have to respect you no matter how old you are. In the spring we had 3 guys 21 or over go through and they still respected the freshman actives. If they dont shape up , unless u needed the guys, i would of not made them actives.

[Tom Earp]

If all else fails, hang the bad ones and keep the good ones! Or, if all fails shoot one bad one and the rest will get up to snuff!
Capt. Bly on the HMS Pinafore!!
Yes it is a real problem, but if they are not going to be good going in, what will they be laike later!?
We are haveing that problem now! No matter what the Alums do to help, there seems to bee a problem!
I consider a Brother one who works for the betterment of his Fraternity! If not, please do us a fovor, go on down the road before you infect the rest and the chapter dies!

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Tom Earp LX Z#1
Pittsburg State U. (Kansas)