Kappa Alpha Theta’s new member class of 2022 unites for the first time at bid day on Sept. 19. After a weekend of learning about each sorority, new members discovered which chapter offered them a bid. Photo courtesy of Sasha Brendan
The start of a new academic year at Pepperdine brings many traditions — one of them being sorority recruitment.
Pepperdine’s seven Panhellenic sororities held formal recruitment Sept. 16 through Sept. 19, and welcomed new members into their chapters. After a weekend of orientation events, bonding parties and opportunities to learn about each sorority’s philanthropy and culture, potential new members received their bids to join their sorority, according to Panhellenic’s website.
Abbie Cooper, junior and Delta Gamma recruitment chair, said 351 potential new members participated in recruitment.
“I was very anxious on bid day because of the high stakes,” said Cadey Comey, Kappa Alpha Theta new member. “But when I opened my envelope and saw Theta, I was ecstatic and felt welcomed by a new community.”
Planning for Recruitment
The amount of planning that goes into sorority recruitment is a months-long process, Theta recruitment chairman Olivia Hale said.
“We spent about 200 hours preparing for recruitment,” Hale said. “My work started in April, and I spent about 40 hours per week on recruitment in August.”
Olivia Borchert, Kappa Kappa Gamma recruitment chairman, said she and her assistants organized multiple workshops and coordinated meetings to prepare her chapter for the recruitment process. Kappa spent an intensive weekend at the University of California, Los Angeles’s fellow sorority house, Borchert said.
“We take the time to teach our active members the basics of recruitment and also strengthen our sisterhood for the upcoming school year,” Borchert said.
Formal Recruitment
The process of sorority recruitment involves both informal pre-recruitment events during the first weeks of school and formal recruitment during the third weekend of September, Borchert said.
Pre-recruitment events are designed to help PNMs learn about fraternity and sorority life and decide if they want to register for recruitment, according to Panhellenic’s website.
PNMs must fill out an application to register for fall recruitment and pay a $25 registration fee, according to Panhellenic’s website. PNMs also have the option to film an introductory video to present themselves before meeting the chapters.
Each chapter holds two informal pre-recruitment events to advertise their organization to PNMs before the formal recruitment process begins. Hale said pre-recruitment is a great way for PNMs meet sorority members and also to make new friends.
“It’s a great way for girls to meet new people, even if they don’t end up rushing,” Hale said. “It offers a taste of sorority life before recruitment starts.”
Formal recruitment begins with an orientation night, where PNMs are organized into their Rho Gamma groups and meet their Rho Gammas, according to Panhellenic’s website. Rho Gammas are temporarily disaffiliated members of Fraternity and Sorority life who guide PNMs through the recruitment process.
Following orientation is open house, where PNMs meet with all seven sororities and learn more about each chapter’s values and philanthropy, according to Panhellenic’s website.
Subsequent events, including sisterhood and preference night, are meant to help PNMs to narrow down their selections to which sororities they see themselves in most, Borchert said. At the end of preference night, PNMs rank their top two sororities.
“I talked to all the sororities throughout the process, but Theta really stuck out to me because of the genuine kind-heartedness from the girls, and their passion for their philanthropy,” Comey said.
On bid night, PNMs gather in Firestone Fieldhouse for Rho Gamma reveals and to open their bids. After they discover which chapter offered them a bid, PNMs and active members of each sorority attend a celebration and meet their new sisters, Borchert said.
“We went to a house in Malibu where we gathered to celebrate and participate in yearly traditions,” Borchert said. “Each new member has the opportunity to share their hopes as they enter the chapter.”
After receiving their bids, new members of each sorority must complete new member education courses and a new member module, in which they are educated on their sorority’s practices and history, Borchert said.
After completion of these educational courses, new members are initiated into their sororities.
“I am thrilled to gain new friendships and experiences through Theta,” Comey said.
Pepperdine’s fraternity recruitment occurred from Sept. 23 to 26, and bid day is Sept. 26. The business fraternities held recruitment Sept. 12 through Sept. 18.
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Contact Terra Hernandez via email: terra.hernandez@pepperdine.edu.
