Less popular sororities - Page 7

SWTXBelle · #1 02-27-2008, 11:04 PM

Based on my experience in turning around a struggling chapter - you need alumnae who are committed, actives who are willing to roll up their sleeves and get to work, and nothing beats a consultant from HQ who can come in and inspire the girls.
Conversely, alumnae can demoralize a chapter. After my mother and I had worked with this chapter for years, local alumnae decided they wanted in. My mother (I had dropped out when my first child was born) was asked to step down, and the local alumna became the advisor. She quit IN THE MIDDLE OF FORMAL RUSH. Just left the girls high and dry. Yes, it is a lot of work, and yes, it is frustrating, but there is NO EXCUSE for doing that to a chapter. Yes, the chapter ended up folding - and I am somewhat bitter, because it was unnecessary.
If you are going to volunteer to help a chapter, you need to be totally committed to doing the hard work. Those girls deserve your best efforts.

WarEagle07 · #2 02-28-2008, 12:20 AM

I missed something good here! i just read through this thread in it's entirety and it took my breath away! I just need to interject ( a little late) that EW knows enough about Beyonce to know that she can be found on MTV. Sorry to digress after you have done such a great job getting this back on track but I just had to say it.

PeppyGPhiB · #3 02-28-2008, 02:26 AM

I think it's important for chapters to have good relationships with not just the fraternities but also the sororities. It's harder for people to talk crap about you when they like you. So, mix with as many fraternities as possible, and maybe even have "girls night" mixers with other sororities - no boys allowed.

FSUZeta · #4 02-28-2008, 10:04 AM

the collegiate members need to be willing to try something new and they need to be willing to listen to their advisors.

Just interested · #5 02-28-2008, 06:49 PM

I love, love stories like Honeychile's and UGAalum94. It gives hope to all who really seek the answers. If I'm correct UGA is no easy campus to make such a change and yes you have to be positive and ready to make a move when any opportunity presents itself.

ztamsu07 · #6 02-29-2008, 01:26 AM

I have a little issue.. I am part of a wonderful, diverse group of women on my campus. Unfortunately, we are not as strong as we should be. We are trying to gain more members through informal now, and increase numbers during formal this coming up fall, and we're trying to raise our gpa. I'm a freshman, and I believe our pledge class is the one to help with this the most now and in the future. I've been reading this thread to try to get ideas on what I can do to help better the chapter, and this is what I've decided:

We DO have a strong alumni base, that helps us SO much, so that isn't something we need to improve on.

We are continually recruiting women through informal, I actually just got to tell a girl today that she got a bid, so we're great in that field.

I must admit, I do feel that we have some girls could possibly not exactly help the chapter, but we're not going to just kick them out. They are my sisters and I do love them, it's just that I feel like everyone should come to our events, and respect the sorority as a whole, and I'm not sure everyone does.

We are also VERY involved on campus this year, mainly my pledge class, and I'm trying to get everyone to go to more events as a whole with our letters on for PR exposure, and we've been doing okay so far.

The thing is, we're getting a new sorority on campus this time next year, and I want to know everything I can do to get my chapter to be the strongest we possibly can by that time.

Any and all suggestions would be FANTASTIC. Thanks to all.

AOII Angel · #7 02-29-2008, 07:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ztamsu07

I have a little issue.. I am part of a wonderful, diverse group of women on my campus. Unfortunately, we are not as strong as we should be. We have the lowest number of girls on campus and the lowest gpa. I'm a freshman, and I believe our pledge class is the one to turn it around.

I have bolded one of your biggest problems! Get your GPA up! If you're more visible on campus, but no one is focusing on scholarship, you'll still not be very desirable to many women. Remember, you're in college, first and foremost, to get an education.

gee_ess · #8 02-29-2008, 09:14 AM

ZTAMSU-

You are to be commended for your committment to your group! Stepping up and taking a leading role is a positive move.

One thing that stands out to me (other than the low gpa) are your comments regarding nonattendance, ARRESTS(!), etc. Get with the alumnae and your standards officer - this is a problem. These girls are creating a negative image and need to be disciplined and counseled regarding their obligations to zta. Scandal and apathy are hard to overcome without help.

Keep up the good work!

33girl · #9 02-29-2008, 11:20 AM

ztamsu07 -

I am wagering your chapter has been told to get your numbers up at any cost.

If this directive came from on "high" (i.e. regional or national officers) offer concrete examples of why certain women (i.e. arrested girl) should not be given bids and that the "bid anything with a pulse" strategy is working against you.

Quality and quantity aren't exclusive, true, but if you keep bidding women who aren't up to standard the "quantity" you attain will be short-lived indeed.

xowest · #10 02-29-2008, 01:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 33girl

ztamsu07 -

Quality and quantity aren't exclusive, true, but if you keep bidding women who aren't up to standard the "quantity" you attain will be short-lived indeed.

I so agree with the above statement.

At my campus, there are (or were during my years in school) three tiers of sororities- elite, middle and struggling. At the time I pledged, my sorority was solidly in the middle tier. By the time I graduated, we were probably in the top tier. (I recognize people will have different opinions about which sororities are in which tiers, and that some people, including myself, hate to even recognize that there are tiers, but, at my campus, the truth is that there were tiers).

Anyway, we improved our lot by focusing on quality over quantity, even if that meant we might not make quota, which was probably easier for us to do than a truly struggling sorority since we didn’t have a numbers problem. The first year we took this approach, we were one PNM short of reaching quota, but we were absolutely thrilled with our entire new member class. The strength of this class made subsequent recruitment efforts much better, and, within two years, we had a very high quality of members and were one of only two chapters that could not participate in COB due to having reached total.

A few problem members can bring down the recruitment efforts of an otherwise strong group, while having a group of solid, quality members is self-perpetuating. I think PNMs want to be with the quality group, even if it is not as large as a group that has a mix of some quality members and some problem members.

fantASTic · #11 02-29-2008, 09:11 AM

Besides which, a new sorority coming on campus can actually HELP you. I know it sounds weird, but it's happened. So don't take it as a death sentence - take it as a way for you to look better than whoever's colonizing, and therefore get stronger girls.

ztamsu07 · #12 02-29-2008, 01:17 PM

Thanks for all of your help everyone! I understand the nonattendence and apathy towards the sorority is a problem and could hurt us, and the thing is, the girls we've gotten from informal are mostly FANTASTIC!! My pledge class from formal is an excellent group as well, but we're actually the ones with the couple girls that are not exactly what would be ideal, and I wish I could change that. They're great girls, I just think they don't exactly have their heads on correctly.. at least not for college I guess.

About the GPA thing... I KNOW that's a huge problem! But honestly, there's nothing more I can think of we can do to help them, except maybe take their tests and study for them! Which, uh, yeah right.. I have a 3.6, so you can understand that being in a chapter that has a lower gpa would bother me because I'm doing my best. We do "grade checking" (there's a real name, I can't think of it) and based on our GPA, we have to do in-house study hours - up to 5 a week! - and we can get on probation as well. We really are doing a lot to try to get it up, and I really don't know what else to do.. suggestions?? You've all been really helpful..

summer_gphib · #13 02-29-2008, 01:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ztamsu07

Thanks for all of your help everyone! I understand the girls that are not "up to par" are a serious problem and could hurt us, and the thing is, the girls we've gotten from informal are (mostly, with the exception of one, maybe two) FANTASTIC!! My pledge class from formal is an excellent group as well, but we're actually the ones with the "problem girls." We have a couple girls that just do "undesirable" things, and I feel actually a little sad to have to associate with them. They're great girls, I just think they don't exactly have their heads on correctly.. at least not for college I guess.

About the GPA thing... I KNOW that's a huge problem! But honestly, there's nothing more I can think of we can do to help them, except maybe take their tests and study for them! Which, uh, yeah right.. I have a 3.6, and as a chapter we are on academic probation! So you can understand that it infuriates me because I'm doing my best. We do "grade checking" (there's a real name, I can't think of it) and based on our GPA, we have to do in-house study hours - up to 5 a week! - and we can get on probation as well. We really are doing a lot to try to get it up, and I really don't know what else to do.. suggestions?? You've all been really helpful.. I love this site..

You could up the study hours and have strict monitoring. When I was a collegiate we had up to 10 study hours per week, and social probation if your GPA was under a certain amount (I believe 2.5). I know I had a gpa of 3.25 and still had 2 mandatory study hours.

Good luck to your chapter.

skylark · #14 02-29-2008, 07:46 PM

^^ co-sign, but how would such a warning take form? A sticky? Because from the way most first posts read, I don't think most are reading those before posting (despite the good intentions of the sticky posters).

I usually just try to be one of the first posters (before the post is quoted) and tell the OP to edit. I'm not sure there is a better way. Maybe if there was a concerted effort by more active posters to limit their quoting potentially damaging posts for a period of time to give the OP a chance to wise up?

UGAalum94 · #15 02-29-2008, 07:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skylark

^^ co-sign, but how would such a warning take form? A sticky? Because from the way most first posts read, I don't think most are reading those before posting (despite the good intentions of the sticky posters).

I usually just try to be one of the first posters (before the post is quoted) and tell the OP to edit. I'm not sure there is a better way. Maybe if there was a concerted effort by more active posters to limit their quoting potentially damaging posts for a period of time to give the OP a chance to wise up?

I think you just take it post by post and try PMs too.

I think it would reflect good manners in cases in which a person posts something innocently but later realizes it might have been a honest mistake and edits, for the people who quoted it to edit their posts as well.

Obviously, in troll type situations, I don't think you should: the comments should be preserved for other readers. But in cases like this, if the OP edits because she's said too much, we ought to be kind.