Pi Beta Phi and Pi Kappa Phi set their origins at Quinnipiac only one semester ago and must now look to their fellow Greek chapters to assistance them through the upcoming recruitment week.
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- Pi Kappa Phi President Michael Weiner and Pi Beta Phi President Sara Leduc are preparing their chapters for the upcoming recruitment week.
Both chapters have been informed of the methods of recruitment through advisers as well as workshops held by the other chapters.
“The Greek community has been extremely supportive, which I can’t express how thankful I am for that,” Pi Kappa Phi President Michael Weiner said. “Every sorority and fraternity has reached out to us in some way, shape or form.”
While there might not be a difference in the recruitment process itself, the additional chapters allow perspective members to take advantage of many options when deciding which organization to join.
“If you think of it like a buffet, you can always find something,” Assistant Director of the Student Center and Campus Life Courtney McKenna said. “But then they bring out that other option and you’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, I never thought about that and that is what I really want!’ So that is how we really look at it.”
Sara Leduc, Pi Beta Phi President, is excited for Panhellenic formal recruitment.
“I think it will be a great bonding experience for not only our chapter but for all of QU’s Panhellenic organizations,” Leduc said.
Men and women’s recruitment periods are drastically different, with women partaking in a more formal set of events than the men’s unstructured process, McKenna said.
For Panhellenic recruitment, the women go through a three-day process starting Feb. 9, when both the chapters and recruits create a “wish list” of who they would like to meet again. By the third night, students meet with only two of the five sororities in hopes of receiving a bid.
Men’s recruitment lasts 12 days, starting with an open house on Feb. 6. Instead of creating a wish list, recruits get to know each of the fraternities before making any decisions.
Each chapter has its own criteria for selecting its members, but ultimately it is as much the choice of the recruit as it is the organization’s. At the end of recruitment, potential new members can either accept or deny a bid if the fraternity or sorority chooses to extend one.
Unlike rush week in the fall, freshmen are now allowed to join upperclassmen in the recruitment process as long as they are in their second semester, McKenna said.
Recently there has been some speculation on changes in fall recruitment, with many saying that first semester freshmen will be able to rush. McKenna confirms that the Interfraternity Council President Jaime Mor and the IFC Executive Committee have researched peer institutions and Greek communities to gain more insight on how other IFC’s do things. The research is not based only around recruitment but includes a more holistic review. McKenna said Greek life is keeping its focus on getting through the formal process for this spring.
Though Pi Kappa Phi and Pi Beta Phi are currently the newest chapters on campus for this recruitment period, they will soon be the experienced ones. Quinnipiac plans on expanding the number of sororities and fraternities within the next few years, according to Assistant Director of the Student Center and Campus Life for Greek Life Gregory Fink
