Preview Weekend 2013 Parents’ Informational Session
Why join a sorority or more importantly why even come to The University of Alabama?
Why Alabama? • Small College Atmosphere/Large University • Supportive Administration - New Housing - Growth in the Community • Athletics - Football • Location - Far Enough/Close Enough • Increased Diversity - Over 50% Out-of-State Students
Greek Points of Pride •
Social fraternities and sororities have been a valued part of student life at The University of Alabama since 1847
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The Greek population at UA has more than doubled in size since 2002 and now for the 3rd year in a row, with 7,538 students in 60 organization, UA has the the largest Greek community in the nation
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Approximately 32% (4,732) of undergraduate women at UA are Greek
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Fall 2012 statistics indicate that 27% of the student body at UA is Greek-affiliated (7,538 members)
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In 2012, 50% of fraternity and sorority new members were from out-of-state
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Sorority women can be found in leadership roles in almost every student organization – Student Government, XXXI, Capstone Women, Avanti, UA Athletics, Honor Societies, etc.
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Last year, the UA Greek community donated over $100,000 to local non-profit organizations in the Tuscaloosa Community and this year, the UA Greek community is building a Habitat House in Alberta City
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Since 1927, the All-Panhellenic and All-Sorority GPA have been higher than the All-Women’s and All-Undergraduate.
Greek life at the Capstone Alabama Panhellenic Association (NPC) • Historically Social Sororities • 17 NPC sororities & 1 national Christian sorority • Over 4,700members Inter-fraternity Council (IFC) • Historically Social Fraternities • 27 national (NIC) fraternities & • 1 local Christian fraternity • Over 2,800 members National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) • Historically African-American Fraternities/ Sororities • 4 NPHC fraternities & 4 NPHC sororities • Over 125 members
United Greek Council (UGC) • Culturally-based Fraternity/Sorority • 1 fraternity & 1 sorority • 10 members
Family Discussion We encourage you to have a meaningful discussion with your daughter prior to registering to participate in Greek Life at UA. Having a family discussion will help you understand the type of commitment she is about to make. Below are some helpful questions to get you started. • Why join a sorority? • Can you financially manage being in a sorority? • Do you think you can balance your course work and sorority membership Being Greek at UA is manageable, but students and parents need to be aware of the commitments prior to receiving a bid for membership. Participating in Recruitment should be the decision of the Potential New Member It is IMPORTANT for a Potential New Member to form her own opinions about Greek life and not be pressured by family or friends to participate in Recruitment or join a particular sorority
Scholarship/Academics •
While there is no minimum grade point average to participate in sorority recruitment, it is HIGHLY recommended that you be at or above a 3.0 cumulative high school or college grade point average.
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Academics are a top priority for every sorority and as such, in order to remain an active member you must maintain your grades during your membership.
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Each sorority implements programs to assist their members in their academic pursuits - Many sororities offer in-house tutoring, study hall, incentives and scholarships
Since 1927, the All-Sorority GPA has been above the All- Women s (Fall 2012) – All Sorority GPA 3.32 (4,732) – All-Panhellenic GPA 3.32 (4, 663) – All-Women s GPA 3.20 (14,927) – All-Independent Women s GPA 3.14 (10,195) – All-Greek 3.17 (7,538) – All- University 3.06 (27,820)
Leadership • Leadership opportunities are numerous within the sorority community - Members have the opportunity to assume many leadership positions within their chapter from sisterhood chair to treasurer to president • Women are encouraged to get involved within the chapter and on campus - Sorority women can be found in leadership roles in almost every student organization – Student Government, XXXI, Capstone Women, Avanti, UA Athletics, GAMMA Peer Educators etc.
Greek Capstone women @ UA
Philanthropy & Service • Greek women s interests and concerns go beyond that of campus life…sorority women donate their time and financial resources to national philanthropies and local charities • Sorority members actively participate in their own chapter s philanthropy events as well as support other chapters’ efforts • Annual events include: Trick or Treat on Sorority Row, Laps for Cystic Fibrosis, Easter Egg Hunt on the President s Lawn, Take Back the Night, and Beat Auburn Beat Hunger
Social
• Sororities provide a wide variety of social programs and activities for members -
Formals & date nights Swaps Retreats & sisterhood events Game weekends & Homecoming - Parents weekends - Greek Week - Intramural sports • Each chapter maintains a responsible social event policy to promote fun activities in a safe environment
What Is Recruitment? •
Recruitment, which begins on August 9th with Convocation and ends on August 17th with Bid Day, is a nine day process that allows prospective members to meet women in the UA Panhellenic community, visit their homes, hear about their philanthropic endeavors, and learn what being a member of sorority means to them.
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Recruitment will give your daughter a chance to meet as many Greek women as possible and investigate each sorority as well as Greek life as a whole.
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It is important to know that participation in Formal Recruitment does not guarantee an invitation to membership in a sorority, nor does it obligate a woman to join.
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Recruitment is a process of mutual selection • Just as you will narrow down your choices of which houses you would like to return to, the sororities will also be required to narrow down the number of Potential New Members they can invite back.
How Do I Register for Recruitment? •
Please note that you will need to register for recruitment as this is a different application than that of Preview Day and the Recruitment Interest Database.
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Links to Registration are online at www.uapanhellenic.com or www.greekaffairs.ua.edu.
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Online registration opens on May 1st • Regular Registration: $150.00 (May 1st - July 15th) • Late Registration: $200.00 (July 16th - August 8th) • Onsite Registration: $250 (August 9th) *Please note that all registration fees are non-refundable, no exceptions.
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Once registration is complete, payment needs to be made with a credit card or online check through GreekBill.
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The registration fee covers the cost of Preview Weekend, Recruitment Publications, use of facilities and computer labs, transportation during recruitment and two t-shirts
Sigma Rho Chis •
Recruitment counselors, referred to as Sigma Rho Chis, are undergraduate women at UA who have disaffiliated from their chapters—your daughter will be assigned to a Sigma Rho Chi group and will have meetings with her throughout the process
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Sigma Rho Chis have been through extensive training to help potential members have a successful recruitment process
Guide Aide Counselor Friend Helper Mentor
Helper Friend Mentor Aide Guide Counselor
Open House • Your daughter will visit all 17 chapters that participate in formal recruitment during first the two days of Round One and events are 20 minutes long. • Alpha Delta Chi (Christian Sorority) does not participate in formal recruitment, but they will hold open recruitment events immediate following. Sigma Delta Tau will only participate in the Open House Round and then will host open recruitment events immediately following the conclusion of formal recruitment. • Open House is meant to introduce your daughter to every chapter before she begins to make decisions • After this round is over, Potential New Members meet to select the 12 sororities they would like to return to during Philanthropy Day. • What to wear: Sundress and flats or flip flops
Saturday, August 10 & Sunday, August 11, 2013
Philanthropy •
Events are 30 minutes long and you may visit up to 12 sororities
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During Philanthropy, the sorority members will give your daughter a glimpse of the importance of community service.
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After this round is over, Potential New Members will meet to select up to 8 sororities they would like to return to during Skit Day.
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What to wear: Recruitment t-shirt, shorts, and tennis shoes or sandals. Skirts and short shorts are not recommended! Monday August 12 & Tuesday August 13, 2013
Skit Day •
Your daughter may visit up to 8 sororities and parties are 45 minutes long.
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On Skit day, she will get to see the true personality of each sorority through their skit and conversations.
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After this round is over, Potential New Members meet to select the chapters they would like to return to for Preference. Please note, that she can only select up up to 3 sororities.
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What to wear: Dress or skirt set and comfortable heels. Bring flip flops for use in between parties.
Wednesday August 14 & Thursday August 15, 2013
Preference Day •
Your daughter may visit up to three sororities and parties are 50 minutes long
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Preference is the most serious round. Sorority members will present a ceremony explaining what it means to be a sister and what their organization has to offer
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She will make her final decision about which sorority she prefers most during this round
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After Preference events, Potential New Members will meet to rank their choices of which sororities they would be willing to accept a bid for membership.
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What to wear: Nice dress and comfortable heels. Bring flip flops for use in between parties.
Friday, August 16, 2013
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Bids will be distributed on Saturday, August 17th at 10:00 am in Bryant-Denny Stadium. Parents are invited and encouraged to attend.
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Bid distribution is followed by a lunch at the sorority houses for new members and their parents
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Each new member will receive a Bid Day bag with goodies
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New Member retreats are on Saturday or Sunday night following Bid Day.
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What to wear: shorts and tank top with tennis shoes or flip flops
Bid Day
Saturday, August 17, 2013
What To Expect • The first semester as a new member is the busiest due to new member meetings, chapter meetings, study hours, socials, etc. - this can provide structure and help with time management skills to help them adjust to college • New members are given a Big Sister to serve as a mentor and offer guidance and help them acclimate to their first semester of college life
Frequently Asked Questions
Freshman & Upperclassman Quota •
UA utilizes a separate quota for freshman and upper-classman, and a PNM’s classification is by their year of high school graduation.
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To be considered a freshman, you must have graduated in spring 2013 or December 2012. Any PNM graduating prior to this date, will be classified as an upperclassman.
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An Upperclassmen Quota is a separate Quota that is used to specifically place Upperclassmen Potential New Members. Its purpose is to give upperclassmen and transfer students a greater opportunity to pledge during Formal Recruitment.
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An Upperclassmen will be identified by the letter “U” after their last name. - Example: Jane Doe (U)
Where Will Your Daughter Live? • Your daughter will be allowed to move in to her UA residence hall on August 8th or 9th if she is living on-campus. For more information on University housing please see the Housing website: http://reslife.ua.edu/ • Majority of incoming freshmen women interested in Sorority life will choose to live in Tutwiler due to the close proximity to Sorority Row, however, she may live anywhere on campus that she qualifies for her freshman year. • If she is living off-campus, she must make arrangements to move into her house or apartment prior to the start of Recruitment.
How Much Does It Cost? •
Sorority members pay dues each semester. Many groups use Greek Resource Services (GRS) or another financial management company, which offers online access and monthly payment plans.
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Membership is most expensive when you first join due to many one-time fees and we suggest you anticipate the total fees using the higher projections.
In-House (per semester): • High: $7500.00 • Average: $5933.82
Out-of-House (per semester): • High: $4000.00 • Average: $3300.25
New Member Fees:
*includes one-time fees, i.e. Initiation
• High: $913.50 • Low: $165.00 • Average: $472.00
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You can find out more about individual sorority financial costs at the Sorority Meet and Greet.
What About Meal Plans? •
When your daughter pledges a sorority with a full service kitchen, her meal plan will automatically be changed from the meal plan she chose when she registered to the Greek 55 meal plan, which is 55 meals per semester and costs $466.
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A credit will then be applied to her student account. If she wants to increase her meal plan to more than 55 meals a semester she can do this and will be charged the difference, or she can cancel the meal plan altogether and pay the dining services fee. (All meal plan prices are subject to change)
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Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are served at sorority houses from Monday to Thursday. Breakfast and lunch are served on Fridays. As a sorority member you are billed for the sorority meal plan, however, you are not required to eat at the house.
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The sorority meal plan will be billed to each new member as part of their semester dues. This price varies from house to house. During the Sorority Roundtable each house will be able to tell you how much their break down is.
What Are Recommendations? •
A Recommendation/Reference (also called a RIF or REC) are letters or statements from sorority alumna that serves as your introduction to the sorority, so their members can get to know her in advance of formal recruitment in the fall.
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These official forms are unique to each individual sorority and UA Panhellenic does not have access to individual sorority Recommendation/Reference Forms.
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Please note that additional Letters of Support recognized at the University of Alabama.
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If a PNM wants to actively seek out letters of rec, she is only encouraged to secure one to two recommendations per chapter. Remember that it is ultimately not the PNM s obligation to secure recs - if you can t find a letter for every sorority, don t worry! If she can’t secure a rec, she is encouraged to send the chapter a copy of her resume, a transcript and a headshot.
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Only an alumna of a sorority or a current collegian should make direct contact with a sorority regarding recs. - The alumna or collegian should include her sorority s form if possible (can usually be found on sorority s website or in the national magazine) - It is also recommended that you provide the alumna with a professional headshot, transcript and resume
are not required or
Letters of Rec Continued… • A list of mailing addresses to facilitate the recommendation process can be found on the UA Panhellenic website and in the Greek Chic Recruitment Handbook. • If a PNM is looking for an alumna to write her a recommendation, she should think about family members, teachers, friends, coworkers, members of your religious/ spiritual affiliation, etc. - She can also contact a local Alumnae Panhellenic in herarea. NPC has an updated list located on their website at http://www.npcwomen.org/alumnaepanhellenics/directory.aspx. • If a PNM is having difficulty locating a recommendation for a particular chapter, she is encouraged to send the chapter a copy of her resume, transcript and headshot to the address on the Chapter Profile page. This will notify the chapter that she were unable to secure a recommendation.
Final Reminders about Recs • Only an alumna or current sorority member can write a rec to her sorority. A Potential New Member should provide alumnae with a resume, transcript, and headshot. A PNM should not send this information to a sorority herself unless she was unable to secure a recommendation. • Recs are like extra credit- it s great if you can do them and we suggest it, but they are not required by all chapters. Some chapters may have policies that require PNM s to have at least one Recommendation/Reference on the sororities official recommendation form in order to be eligible for membership. • If a sorority really wants to pledge someone, they will find a recommendation for her. They won t let her get away just because she can t find her own recommendation. • We encourage you to mail recs by July 15th to ensure they arrive before the start of Recruitment.
What Is A Legacy? • If your mother or sister was/is a member of a sorority, you are considered a legacy to that sorority - Some sororities also consider granddaughters to have legacy status. • Please note that Panhellenic does not have any policies regarding legacies because each sorority has its own policy and it is up to the discretion of each individual sorority as to whether they are interested in offering membership to a legacy. • Sororities want to know who their legacies are, so there is a place on the online recruitment registration form for her to indicate if you are a legacy to a sorority. • Sororities can only see the legacy status of those women that are legacies to their chapter.
Legacies Continued… • No Potential New Member has to choose the sorority to which she is a legacy • No sorority is required to choose any legacy - each Potential New Member is considered on an individual basis. - Some sororities will have more than 200 legacies coming through Recruitment - that is almost twice the average pledge class size! • Consider your own compatibility with the group and do not feel obligated to a group because of your family members - Sororities are different over time and between campuses - Keep an open mind!
Recruitment 2012 Recap •
1,993 women registered for fall forma recruitment and 1950 participated in the the Open House Round.
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Of the 1,950 women in the Open House Pool (OHP), 86% (1,687) women completed the recruitment process and received a bid.
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Of the 1687 women receiving a bid, 90% (1442) matched to their first choice, 12% (193) ) matched to their second choice, and 3% (41) ) matched to their third choice.
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Of the 14% (282) not completing the recruitment process, 8% (159) withdrew, 5% (105) were released, and less than 1% (18) participated in bid matching and did not receive a bid.
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States with highest number of new members: Georgia (201), Texas (158), Florida (126), Tennessee (88), California (57), and Illinois (46)
In-State vs. Out-of-State Myth: It is tougher for women from out-of-state to pledge a sorority at The University of Alabama. Fact:
Four of the ten Panhellenic Executive Board members are from out of state (Texas, Florida, Kentucky, & Virginia).
Fact:
In Fall 2012, UA had an 86% overall placement rate & 83% of out-of-state women received a bid.
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In 2012, 66% of women participating in Fall Formal Recruitment were from out-of-state.
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Women representing 44 states were placed in 2012
UA Fall 2012 New Member Demographics
Playing By The Rules •
Sororities cannot have any contact with potential new members after May 1st. This limit of contact excludes any normal contact that occurs on a daily basis between sorority members and potential new members who already have a previous relationship
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Sororities cannot have gatherings which include a potential new member after the May 1st cut-off.
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Potential new members cannot stay with sorority members or have any contact with sorority members during summer orientation
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Potential new members or their family members may not send money or gifts to a sorority member/chapter or an alumna for the purpose of securing membership, preferential treatment or in payment for writing letters of recommendation.
How you can help your daughter… •
Work together on the online registration form and have all of your daughter s information readily accessible prior to starting the application.
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Ensure that her final high school and/or college transcript is sent to the University by July 15th to ensure that they are in on time!
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Start early on securing recommendations and reach out to your friends, family members, people you work with, etc.
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Encourage your daughter to keep an open mind, all of our sororities have something great to offer their members.
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Emphasize how important it is for her to be herself. She needs to find a chapter that best fits her as well as her personality and interests
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If your daughter has a question or concern about recruitment or sorority life at UA, please have her reach out the Office of Greek Affairs or UA Panhellenic for correct information. Try to avoid websites, blogs, and rumors, as they are often have inaccurate information and are the just the opinion of one person or a select few.
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Most importantly, remind your daughter to have to FUN!
University of Alabama Panhellenic Association 343 Ferguson Center Box 11055 Tuscaloosa, Al 35486 (205) 348-6219 www.greeklife.ua.edu alabamapanhellenic@gmail.com alabamarecruitment@gmail.com