An air of excitement sweeps the Ball State campus as potentialsorority members wait anxiously. After visiting 11 of theparticipating Pan-Hellenic sorority suites during First Rounds ofSorority Formal Recruitment, which began Sept. 8 and ended Sept.10, the potential members ranked the sororities by which ones theyliked best. The Pan-Hellenic Council then matched the girls andsorority chapters together based on rankings they received fromboth sides.
"I was a little nervous," said freshman Jennifer Tarrance,"(Eleven to seven) was a big cut-off."
The Daily News has been following Tarrance throughout therecruitment process.
After cutting her choices down to seven on Wednesday, Tarrance'sPi Chi, a sorority woman who disaffiliated from her chapter to leadgirls through sorority recruitment, delivered an envelope revealingwhich seven sorority suites she would return to for SecondRounds.
Second Rounds began Thursday and continued Friday.
"I got all but one of my top seven choices," said Tarrance,which was a great relief to her. She then spent 50 minutes witheach of the seven sororities, allowing her to get a better view ofeach one.
"[Second Rounds] was more thorough," Tarrance said. "It was morethan just casually introducing yourself. You meet a few morepeople, which was nice. I got a better feeling of what eachsorority was about." The chapters conveyed their individualmessages through skits, videos, slide-shows and songs. Once thepotential members left the last suite Friday night, they pickedtheir top three choices.
"Seven to three was the hardest (decision). I had one sorority Iknew I wanted and had a second one I was pretty sure about," saidTarrance who struggled with deciding what chapter would be herthird choice.
The girls' top three choices were once again matched to thechoices made by each sorority. Saturday they were given the list ofwhich three chapters they would be visiting that day for PreferenceParties, the third stage of recruitment.
Each potential member spent 90 minutes in each of the threechosen sorority suites. This was the most formal of all therecruitment stages and for Tarrance was the most emotional.
"The atmosphere was more solemn while the other rounds were veryupbeat and casual," she said. "It was more focused on sisterhood,how it's going to be a family. When [the sisters] were talking itwas really emotional. There were seniors with this being their lastrecruitment. Tears were everywhere and people got choked up. It wasa lot more personal."
At the end of the day the crucial decision needed to be made.Potential members made their final decisions and ranked the threechapters visited during Preference Parties in order of which onethey like best. These lists would determine what sorority theywould receive a bid from. A bid is the formal invitation from thesorority to join their chapter.
Sunday was Bid Day. Pi Chis met with their recruitment groupsand handed out the envelopes.
"We had to wait because some girls were running late," saidTarrance. "We were really antsy." The letter inside was a bid fromthe sorority that accepted her.
Senior Amy Morris, president of Alpha Omicron Pi, said that eachgirl is offered only one bid by what her preference was. She caneither choose to accept or decine the offer.
"Some girls were really happy but some were really upset. One ortwo didn't get the one they really wanted." she said. "I got myfirst choice."
Tarrance is now a proud sister in Alpha Omicron Pi.
Tarrance, like many, was hesitant going into the recruitmentprocess. All she new about sororities came from MTV's "SororityLife," and she was worried about all the drama that could arisefrom 50 girls in one room. In retrospect, she, along with Morris,feels that recruitment is an experience every girl can gainfrom.
"There is definitely a sorority for every type of woman," saidMorris. "Every girl can have a spot. Even if you don't join you getto meet so many people. You'll definitely make great friends out ofit."
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