Kicking off the start of the semester on Jan. 18, six of the eight sororities at Sacred Heart University began the Spring Recruitment process.
Alpha Delta Pi, Chi Omega, Delta Delta Delta, Delta Zeta, Kappa Alpha Theta and Kappa Delta are all in the midst of searching for potential new members (often referred to as PNMs) to fill any available space in their chapters.
“Any chapter that is below 200 members has the opportunity to participate in the Continuous Open Bidding process,” said Nick Frias, Director of Fraternity & Sorority Life. “This has been our largest campus total, probably ever.”
Campus total refers to the maximum amount of members that each sorority can recruit.
“When Covid hit, a lot of campuses that had sororities saw a decline in sorority recruitment registration and therefore a decline in membership,” said Kathryn Ionta, Assistant Director of Fraternity & Sorority Life. This decline affected how campus total was determined for any participating schools; hence why a majority of the sororities at Sacred Heart were eligible to recruit this spring.
Every fall semester, all eight sororities on campus recruit new members over a weekend with multiple meet-and-greet style events. Recruiting during the spring allows any participating organizations to vary their timeline.
“Spring recruitment is more informal and a continuous process until the sorority decides when they would like to end,” said junior Mia DiTizii, Vice President of Membership for Delta Zeta.
Those who were unable to join a sisterhood during the fall semester gain the opportunity to individually build a connection with any organizations that pique their interest. This can last anywhere from three weeks to the entirety of the semester, depending on what the independent organization chooses, or when they reach their campus total.
The Chi Omega chapter at Sacred Heart made an Instagram post on Jan. 29, with a caption reading “Registration to sign up for recruitment is in our bio!” The link led to a form in which PNMs could express their interest in joining the sorority.
Although multiple chapters have had similar interest forms, they still hold individual events to get to know interested students.
“For the most part, sororities will promote on Instagram, at table times, and events to inform people that they are currently recruiting,” DiTizii said.
Freshman Loriann Connolly was sent a bid from Alpha Delta Pi in January.
“Besides attending table times, a coffee date, and the hot chocolate night hosted by Alpha Delta Pi, there were no other events I attended during this process. It was really short and sweet,” Connolly said.
Although Panhellenic Fall Recruitment is more traditional at SHU, Spring Recruitment is a better fit for some individuals.
“In the spring, because its more informal and it is more lowkey, that entices a whole different group of students that are turned off by the formal, hectic, craziness of a weekend,” said Ionta.
The unique laid-back and intimate nature of second-semester recruitment is one of the main appeals to Connolly and other PNMs.
“Coming from somebody who was hesitant about joining a sorority because the fall recruitment process seemed so stressful, I would definitely recommend joining in the spring,” said Connolly.
