enforcing study hours

BootyKBG · #1 01-24-2002, 11:24 AM

Hi,

We have decided to impliment mandatory study hours this semester. We have set two hour blocks Mon-Thurs available for any of the girls to come and study, and each girl is required only two hours per week. The problem is, we have not even started the study hours program yet, and already I have gotten refusal by at least one person to participate. She complained that she is very busy and "doesn't have time to screw around with some study night" so we should "not bother signing her up for it." I'm busy too! I'm president or VP for THREE organizations, as well as a full time student and have a job! How do we enforce the importance of academics and make everyone understand that we do not intend to make this an optional thing? What can we do to discourage people skipping out on study hours?

Annie

dzrose93 · #2 01-24-2002, 11:56 AM

Two words: Fine them.

If y'all are making study hours mandatory, then any sister who misses the study night and does not have a decent excuse for attending should be fined. I know it sounds negative, but sometimes it's the only way to get people places that they need, but don't necessarily want, to be.

It sounds as if y'all have made the hours VERY flexible. Only 2 hours a week?

Most girls would jump at that! My chapter required 10 hours per week! So, the sisters who are complaining really have no reason to be. Academics is why they are in school, and your sorority is offering them a time and place to help them do better in classes. They should be grateful.

BootyKBG · #3 01-24-2002, 01:41 PM

any suggestions aside from fining? We are using fines for missed meetings and such, but I was wondering about suggestions other than financial. Not that fines are bad...they get the point across...

GammaPhiBabe · #4 01-24-2002, 02:01 PM

Our study hall hours were based on GPA.
All new members were required to do 10 hours/week for the first semester. No exceptions. All seniors in their last semester were exempt from study hall hours (unless their GPA was lower than 2.0).
It seems like the GPA breakdown went something like:

4.0- no hours
3.9-3.5- 2 hours/week
3.4-3.0- 4 hours/week
2.9-2.5- 6 hours/week
2.4-2.0- 8 hours/week
below 2.0- 10 hours/week

We had a book in the study hall room that had a page for each member. When she did her study hall hours, she signed in and out on that page. The study hall hours were proctored by scholarship committee members (or very well-trusted, responsible sisters). The proctor had to sign your page when you signed in or out of the study hall. That way, you couldn't cheat on your hours.

The scholarship chairwoman took the book at the end of each week and added up the hours for each sister. If you missed hours, you could make them up the next week... during dead week and finals week there were extra study halls, so lots of people made up missed hours during those times. She sometimes gave other opportunities to make up hours: for example, you could bring in old tests for our test file and that would give you an hour for each test...or you could do certain community service activities to make up hours. If you failed to make up your hours or if you got waaaaaay behind, you were fined $5 for each hour and you could have social privileges revoked. Also, the scholarship chair wrote letters to people's parents if they got really behind on study hall hours! Nobody liked that!! (I will say that the scholarship chair has to have a STRONG backbone... ours had to put up with a lot of crap from angry sisters.) But our chapter GPA improved.
If you had a heavy courseload and had a job/other responsibilities, the sholarship chair would often work with you...one semester I was allowed to do my study hall hours in the computer lab or in my room.
Good luck!

SigkapAlumWSU · #5 01-31-2002, 08:14 PM

We had a similar GPA/study hours ratio. I think that our were a little different though.

4.0-3.5 none (you were obviously studying enough)
3.4-3.0 5 hours
2.5-3.0 10 hours
2.0-2.5 15 hours
2.0 and below I think 15-20 + big time study buddies.

This year they made a list of all the classes and who was in them, so if you ever need help, you don't have an excuse. You had to have a certain number of hours proctored and the rest could be on your own. It shouldn't be something that sisters don't want to do. The reason you are there is to go to school, and if they can't "make time" to do study hours, then I think some priorities are off. I can't think of a reason why study hours would hinder anything you do in college. If there is a valid reason why you can't make it at specified time, work it out with your scholarship chair and I'm sure it will be all right.

BootyKBG · #6 02-04-2002, 09:44 AM

Well, we decided to change things up a little bit. We are still going to offer the study sessions because most of us think it is a good idea, but for those who were griping and throwing such a fit about having to get together with everyone, we've decided to let you do your 2 hours with a partner at whatever time you designate each week. Basically your partner is just there to vouch for you as having done your hours. It really upsets me though that these girl say they commit to the sorority, but then aren't willing to abide by everything we ( the e-board) feel is important for the sorority. Its difficult because we are the founding members right now and we are designating what is required by our group. But anyway, two hours, still required. Hopefully everyone will be satisfied now, since we can hardly make it any more convienient for everyone!

Fayissi · #7 02-04-2002, 08:40 PM

I just want to say that I completely agree with everyone above. You are there to learn and I for one love the idea that at least some study time is enforced for those who are not quite as academically motivated have to help themselves. What about if there is a system sort of like 'big sister, little sister' but where an older member who has the same major as a newer member is paired up. Or a group of people with the same or generally the same majors are randomly grouped together. Not only can girls who might not otherwise necessarily hang out together have the chance to do so, but they can also acquire study hours. -lea

SATX*APhi · #8 02-04-2002, 08:43 PM

We don't have mandatory study hours, but my big sis and I study every evening.

DZTUBAGIRL · #9 03-03-2002, 04:24 PM

Just wanted to put my 2 cents in. At my chapter we have mandatory study hours and they are according to our gpa. We have to do half of them in the chapter room and half can be somewhere else. Also the new members (me being one of them) have decided to do 6 hours a week. We also have a mentor in the sorority that we have to study with for one hour a week. I think it is a great idea to have mandatory study hours becuase it gives us a reason to study...other than getting good grades.

Anne Marie

kdgirlie · #10 03-03-2002, 06:17 PM

we have the GPA thing as well but instead of having study hours at the library we have study buddy program. I personally don't study well with people around me so the library is out of the question-- it works well if most of the sisters live off campus

MooseGirl · #11 03-21-2002, 02:53 PM

It's good to see that you all have programs. I'm trying to start one up too, but it is impossible! I'm now alum so it's not possible for me to make the actives do anything. i just find it pathetic that I won our chapter's scholarship award and I graduated with just a B average (9.6 on scale of 13). This year's scholarship winner had a B+ but that's only based on her first semester.

What is worse is that many girls do fine their first semester and then horrible their second...we had one sister almost kicked out of school last year because of her gpa. (we have no access to member's grades and have to rely on them giving them to us).
We don't have a house or room on campus that we can go to, so how do we do it?
Study buddies sounds the best way to go, but I guess I don't trust my sisters to actually do it. I can imagine them just saying they did it, and not actually getting together.

any suggestions?

Fayissi · #12 03-21-2002, 07:38 PM

Make them do it in a library, and have a sign up sheet of some sorts. For example . . . Make up a sheet for every then she must have the librarian sign her in at a certain time and out (to verify time spend there) and other things such as the date, and maybe even the material/topic that was studied and/or have the girls set a goal (write it on their sheet) of what exactly they want to complete that session (do this at the start of their study session) then at the end have them write what was actually accomplished.

As far as the grades go instead of putting so much emphasize on the grade itself why not make up a type of 'questionnaire' (very brief) to had out to each of their teachers regarding anything from their attendance to their class participation or their level of enthusiasm for the subject at hand.

kmp1552 · #13 03-21-2002, 11:31 PM

I know when I was an active we really didn't have study hours but our new members did during their new member program. They had study hours M-R for two hours a night in the library under the supervision of older sisters. When I was going through though it was very easy for us to get out of the study hours and being that I was older and just joining I had a little more freedom because I knew what I needed to get done to get good grades. I also found it very hard to study in the library with a lot of people around especially when there were typically two or three other pledge classes there at the same time so it turned into a gossip session betweek everyone. I am all for the importance of grades and think EVERY chapter should have some sort of system.

Also one thing we did was mid-semester progress reports. Every sister regardless of year was required to have all their professors fill out a simple report and turn it into our scholarship chair. That kind of made you feel responsible for whatever that report said!
I hope that helps at least a little, keep trying it will work.

Kate

Psi Beta
Phi Mu Alum

LeslieAGD · #14 04-17-2002, 01:59 PM

My chapter has been through a ton of different study programs in the past three years. All of them were based on your GPA.

Program 1: Sign in sheet at the library. Everyone had to sign in and sign out. This didn't work because people would just go hang out at the library and flub the hours or commuters would complain about having to go to the library.

Program 2: Each chapter officer holds two study hours at a set time during the week (VP officers hold four in two hour blocks). This didn't work because it would turn into a social hour or people would flub the hours for their friends.

Program 3: Same as Program 2, except only VP officers held the study hours.

Program 4: Program from IHQ - Strive for Pi...if you have a 3.14 or above you only have to do honor hours. If you don't, you have to do a certain number at either the campus regulated study hours or in the computer labs.

I think the best way to impliment a program is to give members some flexibility...let members do some proctored hours and some honor hours. Also, incentives have worked really well for us. The person with the most study hours gets a free semester of dues and people with the most improved GPAs get gift certificates or something.

prophet · #15 07-24-2002, 06:16 PM

What is wrong with you people!? Lose a voice and fine em', are you people hella rich? What gives you the right to fine and tell your own BROTHER or SISTER they have to give some hard earn scrilla($) and can't say what they feel at a meeting because they did not show up to a damn study get together. How, much of the 2hours is really spent on studying and not just talking about fraternity/sorority shitnik? If you say all of it, come on

How is it that a person who goes to all socials, fundraisers, community service, and rush events going to have to respond to paying money because he or she dose not want to spend time studying in a group? Ever think they may do better studying alone. Now, if it is a single person who does poor in his or her class or classes they need to go to a tutor. If it is a group of people-what sense does it make to have them studying together

think people. I will tell you this: people who have a problem with certain classes need to bring it up in a meeting and ask for a brother or sister to help on a one on one session. I could never study math and have a brother studying history next to me because it would either stop my learnig or his learning. What you need is to tell brothers or sisters, that if they have a problem with a class to just say it at a meeting and have a volunter help em'.
If they don't have a volunter from your org. tell em' to get a tutor, I'm sure there are tutors offered by the school for free. Plus, making em' pay sounds like hazing to me. Oh, but you all have to do it, answer to that one is: not the brothers or sisters with the good grades, they don't have to even show up to a study session, right? So for all you chapters with the idea of study session think about it hard. Plus, it may back slap you if you are worried on the whole hazing issue, remember that to define hazing it is a broad meaning and can be twisted, so be careful. Last but not least; to all you who said, take their voice and make em' pay $, you need to think harder on how to make some corrections in your chapter. It sounds like a DICTATORSHIP to me. Oh, yea I did get a 3.3 on my Gpa for the total years I have been in college, 3yrs.
-Heath

FKT
www.bspotonline.com /phitau