Recruitment in the new Millennium - Retro Rush

[WonderWomanAK]

This recruitment story is set in Fall 1999 & Spring 2000 at a small school with about 7,000 students and seven sororities. My husband is very into comics and super heroes, and he has me liking them more and more – so the chapters on campus are: Aquaman, Blue Beetle, Martian Manhunter, Batman, Flash, Superman & Green Lantern. (There was an eighth chapter there just a few years before me and I’m giving a special shout out to them – I am calling them Hawkgirl, which I will also reveal later!)

So, I did say this story begins in Fall of 1999, but I am going to do a quick rewind. I am not the first college bound person in my family; however, it did skip my parents. My grandfather & uncle were in fraternities (grandpa: Chi Phi, uncle: DTD) at the same school. I had ALWAYS wanted to go to that school, and had sweatshirts and other items with that school name all over! I remember being little and finding a patch for something related to my grandpa’s fraternity and asking if I could put it on my Brownie sash. Oh innocence! (He did tell me no, and that it was only for members of the “club,” of course, this began my interest in these “clubs!”

In 1998, my interest in Greek life was stirred even more – I was a senior in high school and my junior year dance team captain came back to visit. She was excited to show us everything from her sorority that she was just initiated into – Martian Manhunter. She had a tote bag with MM letters and was talking about a symbol (local or national symbol? I am not telling yet!) they had – she had a stuffed one with her that was super cute! She also talked about a certain clothing item that was very popular at the school and what they looked like for her chapter. I was sucked in to MM! It sounded perfect for me!

Shortly after this, my grandfather died. This is when I found more about my grandpa’s fraternity, and that my uncle was in one as well. His obituary said he was a Chi Phi. I thought about that commitment, to be as old as my grandpa (78) and still list something you did in college? This had to be special. I looked up more on his school and what was there in terms of sororities. I found Delta Delta Delta (Ha! Is DDD one of the above? Is it MM? I am not telling!) Yes, my senior year. Most people know where they’re going; I had not taken the SAT yet. I was a driven, hard working student – but I was super involved and my parents decided that middle and high school were the perfect times to fight and move out multiple times, so, needless to say – the future wasn’t high up on my list. I escaped into my activities! I had NOT yet chosen a college! So, I dreamed of going to my Grandpa’s school and being a DDD.
Fast forward to Fall of 1999. I am a college freshman. I took that SAT in March (rocked it.) Applied to my school in May, and was accepted in June (actually, on the paperwork I was accepted the day I graduated!) I was loving life.

My school did COB in fall and formal in the spring. I didn’t really look into COB much (I didn’t understand it much, and finding houses on my campus is hard! They’re official, but off campus and some were far away, like drive in a car far!) I was walking back to my dorm and I ran into my dance team captain! We will call her Kathy. Kathy was walking with another girl I knew from high school, and they both were wearing their MM stuff. She stopped and talked to me – and invited me to a MM bid party that night! I had no clue what a bid party was, but okay! They explained where the MM house was and went on their way.

That night I went to the MM party, but got a bit lost finding the house! I saw a girl wearing MM letters and asked her, she told me to follow her. I actually went in the back door of the house with her, which was a bit weird.
The party was fun. I don’t remember the theme, but I remember really liking the house and the sisters all being really nice. I could see myself being a MM, especially since I knew Kathy and another sister. At the end, we were all kind of funneled out of the door as the sisters all did a chant. I felt pretty good!

Fast forward to a few days later when I run into Kathy again, remember, I did not know what happened at a bid party, so I didn’t know what to expect after. She tells me that my grades from my senior year were not high enough to join MM, but they want me to come back next semester. Yes, my grades sucked. After my grandpa died, family life went to major crap and I was pretty depressed (my grandpa and his wife who passed in 1993, were my ROCK in life, and apparently my parents’ rock too.) so I didn’t do too hot. I gave up.

[WonderWomanAK]

Now, here comes spring. Formal recruitment! At our school it was aimed at Freshmen and Sophomores, but I believe that they did open it to everyone. I honestly encourage women to go through formal. It was SO eye opening. It made me realize some judgments you make about chapters are false, and make you think, “Hey, I could be an XYZ, some of their sisters are like me.”
We paid $3 to sign up. In my first year sorority scrapbook I have my flier with a note to call Kathy and ask her about what formal recruitment was! I have three sororities circled on the paper – MM, Batman and Flash. There was a meeting to let us know what was going to go on and I remember being given a large (probably 4x6) note card to decorate for a nametag. A HUGE name tag. I have mine in my scrapbook. I decided to collage mine, the same way I did my door. I went a little nuts with my door freshman year. The door and nametag were covered in things from magazines that I liked. It was a great conversation starter. I loved it.

Wednesday Feb 2, 2000
The first night of recruitment was “Meet the Greeks” In my booklet I have written “Black Pants.” I wore – you guessed it, black pants. I have a picture in the scrapbook; I also wore this red and white tie dye, long sleeved shirt with Japanese characters on it and a tattoo necklace. (REMEMBER, it was 2000, fashion was questionable then.) We met all 9 sororities. NINE? I thought you said 7?! Yes, we met the 7 NPC sororities and then the two NPHC, Alpha Kappa Alpha and Zeta Phi Beta. Afterward, if you wanted to pursue AKA or ZPhiB, you then dropped out. The parties were held in our science building and were 15 minutes long. I do not remember the order, but I will let you know my impressions! I am listing my “circled three” first. (I will let you know that I honestly LOVED every chapter. I think our Greek life, while we did have our spats, were pretty close.)

I had two super Rho Chis. One was my main Rho Chi and the other also worked with our group. They were very helpful in all of this decision making! I wondered what chapters they were from.

Batman: These women were very similar to MM. They were very nice and I felt welcome.
Flash Again, pretty nice. Similar in “standing” to Batman and MM. I liked them, but didn’t seem to 100% click with them.
MM: I loved MM. I knew some of the women, I related to them. I wanted to be a MM!
Green Lantern: One of our “top” sororities. They had a large chapter. The women were great! I liked them.
Superman I assigned these randomly, but how funny. They were considered the “top.” I was a little intimidated before meeting them. They were all beautiful and put together. I didn’t think we’d have anything in common. I was wrong! I loved visiting Superman! They quickly became part of my top three. Could they replace MM?
Blue Beetle Another chapter similar to MM in “standing.” I liked these girls too (common theme!) However, I didn’t see myself as part of their chapter.
Aquaman I thought this chapter was very nice. They were the smallest of the seven, which made me think about how large of a chapter I wanted to be a part of.

Total at the time on campus was 60. The two top chapters (again, in my mind and from what the chatter was around campus) were usually around 60. Batman was usually around 50-60 as well. MM, BB and Flash were all between 40-50. Aquaman was a lot smaller, I believe about 20.

After we were allowed to choose FIVE parties.
My List:
Martian Manhunter
Batman
Flash
Green Lantern
Superman
XBlue Beetle
XAquaman

I just didn’t feel at home with Blue Beetle and I worried about the size of the Aquamanchapter. (They did eventually close shortly after I graduated. I ended up with two pretty close friends who were Aquaman!)

[angels&angles]

This is a great story!

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally Posted by WonderWomanAK

The first night of recruitment was “Meet the Greeks” In my booklet I have written “Black Pants.” I wore – you guessed it, black pants. I have a picture in the scrapbook; I also wore this red and white tie dye, long sleeved shirt with Japanese characters on it and a tattoo necklace. (REMEMBER, it was 2000, fashion was questionable then.)

HAHAHA, this was my freshman year as well, and, well, yeah. Loving the story!

[WonderWomanAK]

Thank you I wasn't sure if anyone would want to read it! Its been a blast looking through my old things and I can't believe how much I saved! I've been preparing my step-daughters (16 & 14) for college and the possibility of joining a sorority. My youngest seems more into it and asks a lot of questions. Currently we are in the "south" and she is so timid that I think she'd be eaten alive at a SEC school. She does have her eyes set on a small northern school though...

[WonderWomanAK]

Thursday February 3, 2000

The second night was “casual” parties. These were more like the COB parties. The events were 20 minutes long. I wore jeans and nice shirt. I was HOPING to find my sorority home! After some thinking, I had my mind set on three. My top two being Superman and MM and a close second being Batman. I didn’t know if Superman could see me as a sister, but, like I’ve read in several rush threads, I felt I was similar to the girls in MM & Batman, but I wanted to be like the girls inSuperman .

I visited:
Flash: This was one of my first “circled” chapters. I enjoyed meeting the sisters again and learning more about their sisterhood.
GL: I liked this chapter, but I wasn’t completely feeling that it was my home.
MM: Again, fantastic time. I was wondering if I wanted to join where my friends were, or if I wanted to go on my own and make new friends…
Batman: I liked this chapter a lot – I could fit well here.
Superman : Honestly. In the beginning I would have never THOUGHT about attending a Superman party. Recruitment was making me think I COULD be a Superman!

After these parties, it was in the sororities hands. We would be invited back to up to four parties for Philanthropy night. My HOPES were on Superman or MM. Both different. Both entirely awesome.

[WonderWomanAK]

Friday February 4th 2000 – NOON

I quickly hiked it to our student center and picked up my envelope with my invitations to the Philanthropy parties. Now, I wasn’t expecting much, I’ve always had a lot of friends, but I would never have called me popular, more of a kind of girl next door with a slightly nerdy/geeky exterior – which wasn’t “in” like it is today.
I opened my envelope to see a FULL SCHEDULE! I was invited back to: Flash, MM, Batman AND…… SUPERMAN ! Holy crap. I was NOT expecting to see that! I wasn’t upset about losing GL, I didn’t feel that I fit there as well as the others.


Later that evening…
My parties were as follows:
Flash: During their party we discussed their philanthropy – I honestly do not remember much about this party… (forgive me; it’s been 13 years – holy crap… I’m old.)

MM: We made goody bags for something (can’t reveal, it will give it away) that dealt with their philanthropy. During this time I was able to chat with sisters that I didn’t get to talk to before. I wasn’t sure of the philanthropy – I didn’t have a connection, but that is one small part of being in a sorority! I loved learning more about MM!

Batman: We talked about their philanthropy and what work they do support it. I believe we made something that went along with it. I remember there being a lot of hands on things! I connected with this cause through my volunteer work as a teen.

Superman : We made items that went along with their philanthropy. I really connected with this cause; it has affected my life in many ways. I felt I also connected with the sisters.

The next day was Pref…

[WonderWomanAK]

Saturday February 5th 2000 – 9am Invitation pick up…

We could be invited back to three parties. I understood that if I was invited to a party, the sorority wanted me to be a member. I was nervous.
I picked up my envelope – I was invited back to two…
Martian Manhunter and…
…
Batman. I wasn’t terribly upset. I was rooting for MM, Batman and Superman, but I guess I wasn’t 100% Superman material, and you know what? I knew that. I fit SO much better with Batman and MM. I was comfortable with the women and I felt that I could bloom and grow in the environment created by the women most like me!

12:20 Report to Auditorium
Since I didn’t have a party until 1:30, I had to wait… nervously.

MM: I was walked in by Kathy – the sisters talked about their time in the chapter. There were tears and laughs and I was picturing myself with these women. I saw the other PNMs and felt that these could be my sisters. MM could be my home too.
As I left, Kathy left me with some closing thoughts…

Batman: A sister walked me into the room, again, there was talking about their lives in the sorority and how it has changed them. I looked around at the women and PNMs and wondered if this was home. I wanted to find a sorority home where I was comfortable, and was this it? As I was leaving, a Batman sister also left me with some thoughts, and at that time I was thinking something too – “I hope I can remain friends with you if I become a MM…”

After the parties we had to fill out our preference form. My PX explained that I should put both down, in order of preference. If I did not match with my first choice, I could always get my second choice. I asked if I HAD to put both – she said that you shouldn’t “suicide,” and encouraged me to list both chapters. I was thinking about both, the entire saga of joining a sorority and where I felt the best. I knew where my heart was and I did not think I would be happy if I ended up in the other chapter. I had my choice. On my preference card I wrote:

1. Martian Manhunter
2. ________________

Yes. I suicided. (and I am told by the computer that this is not a word… but I am using it.) I know I probably shouldn't have, and looking back, it wasn't the best idea, but it happened.

We had to wait by the phone (again, 2000…) from 6:30-6:45 in case we didn’t match. This was the worst 15 minutes. My packet says “Tell Tonica not to be on the computer…” (yes, dial up modems in 2000, millennium problems.)

No call.

[WonderWomanAK]

Sorry it took so long to post - work has me swamped and our internet has been pretty terrible!

[TriDeltaSallie]

Now don't leave us hanging! I need to know if MM is DDD! LOL!

[WCsweet<3]

Arg so close to the end of the story! Hope you are free this weekend!

[honeychile]

ACK! Just when I allow myself to be sucked in! Hurry back!

[WonderWomanAK]

Next step?

Report to the activity room in the student center at 7:30…

We all were sitting in chairs in a room down the hall; I was talking to another girl who also had attended MM pref. She was so nice and I was hoping to be her sister!

We were called one by one into the activity room. I pretty much knew what the outcome was, but again, I had no idea about this stuff! Finally I was called – my PX walked me into the back of the activity room (I believe behind a curtain?) and said… “Martian Manhunter would like you to become a member of their chapter, do you accept?” I was giddy with excitement, “YES!” I accepted the bid and was “shoved” into the room of waiting sorority women while my PX shouted, “The newest member of Martian Manhunter…. WONDERWOMANAK!”

My new sisters and all of the other women cheered! The nice girl from the waiting room was also a new Martian Manhunter! I was home. There were four of us total from formal. Four came later from COB & Snap Bids. Later in the semester we took two more (after my “half” was initiated.) for a total of 10 in my class!

Our PXs revealed their chapters – and now I knew why mine were so excited – my main PX was…. A Martian Manhunter! The other PX we met? ALSO A Martian Manhunter!

Now my big reveal, did I become a DDD? Was I at my grandpa’s school?

I did not attend Lafayette College… so no grandpa’s school.

However, my FAVORITE member of the Justice League, Martian Manhunter, just happens to be….




















PHI SIGMASIGMA
at Clarion University!

In case you were wondering – I am in fact AngelPhiSig.


Some interesting things about my story:

-My sister attended CU during 1998-1999. She then left to go to another school. She had an interest in joining Phi Sig. She did not have the GPA at the time.

-"Kathy", my dance team captain from HS? She turned out to be my “New Member Educator” or at that time in Phi Sig terms it was MOC. A job that I then had right after her! (Kathy is NOT her real name)

-The clothing item that would give my campus away? We have these “bowling jackets”… they’re interesting. Phi Sigs are BRIGHT YELLOW. DZ used to be pink – now white, Zetas were blue, all others were white… they’re easy to see across campus. The stuffed item? A teddy bear, our local mascot.

-The other PX? She turned out to be my BIG

-The nice girl who took me to the bid party? She ended up disaffiliating, however, she was my BIGs first little.

-The time between Philanthropy parties (Feb 4th) and Pref (Feb 5th) a year later, would be my initiation into Tau Beta Sigma… midnight on Feb 5th 2001.

-The nice girl from the waiting room? Jess_Pom who used to post on GC.

-The shout out sorority, Hawkgirl? ASA, my shout out to 33Girl, who I haven’t seen in years, since I haven’t been able to go to ALF (aka homecoming.)

So, who were cast of players in this story? As I said, I found value in all of the chapters. I was NEVER turned off by any of them and when making “cuts” I did so in thinking about how I fit into the picture. It was NEVER a case of, “They’re not pretty” or “They were mean..”

The fantastic women of the CU Greek system in 2000 were:
Martian Manhunter – Phi Sigma Sigma
Batman – Delta Zeta,
Flash – Alpha Sigma Tau
Green Lantern – Delta Phi Epsilon
Superman – Zeta Tau Alpha
Blue Beetle – Sigma Sigma Sigma
Aquaman – Theta Phi Alpha.

I would love to see TPA come back to Clarion - I want our Greek system to be thriving and to expand. I did hear of some fraternities coming back, which is great. We had 9 when I joined... then a lot left.

I will tell you; this scrapbook is like a time capsule. I saved EVERYTHING. I have my brochures from ALL of the sororities. I have my nametag from my first bid party with Phi Sig (fall 1999!) I have ALL of the stuff from formal – flier, info packet, schedules for the parties… I saved EVERYTHING. I am excited to have this so that I can better explain it all to my step-daughters who will be college bound in two and four years. My oldest and I just scheduled her first college visit & my youngest keeps asking about joining a sorority! Especially since I have just started a new Beta Sigma Phi chapter and re-discovered my love of GC, our house has been sorority central.

I hope you enjoyed this! I had fun reliving my time and how young and naive I was back then! I also love looking at my pictures and seeing my pre-recruitment, Meet The Greeks outfit, my pinning (with my BIG!), our fun times during our new member period, my initiation (St Pats Day 2000!) and so many other fun times during my first semester in Phi Sig!

Thank you for reading!! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! It was actually the topic of my novel for NaNoWriMo this year - but life got in the way of finishing it!

<3Alison

[lovespink88]

What a fun story, thank you for sharing!

[AngelPhiSig]

You're welcome! I would have loved to have posted a "live" one on GC - but I wasn't a member back then!

I really truly love the Greek system at CU and I hope it thrives and grows! I'm so excited to be taking my oldest on a college visit next month - and my chapter sisters said to stop by (like I wouldn't!) However, I always tell them to check it all out and see where you're comfortable!

Thank you to anyone who has read this!