Theta Phi Alpha, a national sorority founded in 1912 and brought to Sacred Heart in 2009, is currently holding open recruitment to allow students who did not join an organization during formal recruitment to learn more about theirs.
“We are a very diverse organization that comes together to bring awareness to our philanthropy,” said junior Alexis McCartney, President of Theta Phi Alpha.
Their philanthropy, a charitable project sponsored by their organization, is hunger and homeless awareness.
For open recruitment in the past, Theta Phi Alpha has held events such as lawn games and pizza and “Tie-Dye with Theta Phi,” but this year they are required to hold most of their events virtually.
One of these events was “Get to Know Theta Phi Alpha,” where students had the opportunity to learn about Theta Phi Alpha’s members, sisterhood and philanthropy.
On Oct. 29, Theta Phi Alpha hosted an in-person event called “Treat Yo’ Self With Theta Phi.”
“We’ve come up with COVID-friendly ideas that are still fun to do,” said junior Lindsey Rosania, Recruitment and Public Relations Chair. “We’ve done make-your-own sugar scrub and make-your-own candy bag events.”
Open recruitment is not limited to those who can attend these events. Theta Phi Alpha has been connecting with students in other ways as well.
“We have been doing table times for the past two weeks,” said junior Claudette Garcia, Assistant Recruitment Chair. “It’s the easiest way to get to know people.”
This year, Theta Phi Alpha, along with all other sororities at Sacred Heart, had to participate in virtual recruitment.
“Virtual recruitment had its difficulties,” said McCartney. “But it was necessary to keep everyone safe.”
Virtual recruitment was held from Sept. 25 to Sept. 27.
“It definitely took lots of practice mastering breakout rooms and Zoom itself,” said Rosania. “I was happy to see it go well virtually.”
While virtual recruitment was an adjustment, some members found it to be beneficial.
“I think it helped all of us new recruiters get used to recruiting people,” said Garcia. “And allowed us to sit in comfy sweats instead of standing the whole time.”
Right now, Theta Phi Alpha is looking to recruit members who hold their core values– justice, wisdom, honor, faith, loyalty and truth.
“Theta Phi Alpha encourages members to find their true self and embrace it,” said Garcia.
Although many students participate in formal recruitment, not everyone joins an organization by the end of the weekend.
“I know freshman year can be a lot as it is, so providing the option of doing informal recruitment is very beneficial,” said Rosania.
Some students may opt-out of formal recruitment entirely to participate in open recruitment instead.
“To some people formal recruitment is intimidating, but they still want to join a sorority,” said Garcia.
Open recruitment allows potential new members to talk to existing members of Theta Phi Alpha numerous times and then decide if they would like to join the sorority.
“It’s more relaxed,” said Garcia. “With open recruitment, it’s meeting over coffee or getting lunch and just talking about Theta Phi Alpha.”
Formal recruitment has gained popularity over open recruitment, but it may not be favored by all.
“I think women who wait to rush after formal recruitment will have a more seamless process of joining a sorority,” said Rosania. “It’s less energy and less stress.”
Theta Phi Alpha encourages any student who is interested in joining to reach out to them and find a time to meet with a sister. They will also be holding recruitment during the spring.
“I personally went through open recruitment and it was the best decision I made,” said McCartney.
