Dodging the Bullet: Stress-Free Rushing
First-year Jennifer Clogg discusses her experience in the sorority recruitment process
By Jennifer Clogg, Staff Writer
My mother has talked about the incredible family of sisterhood that comes from rushing a sorority since before I can remember. Connections, fun sorority pride; I have waited patiently for my turn to begin rushing a sorority. Finally, my turn is almost here. About a month ago, I signed up to rush. Ever since, I have attended events for “pre-rush,” the process that girls must go through before actual rush, held the fall of sophomore year.
The first event, Sorority Recruitment 101, was held on March 20th in Mara Auditorium. Many hopeful girls packed into the lecture-style classroom, chattering excitedly and anxiously awaiting the start of the initial discussion of what would be expected in going through the sorority rush process. I sat with three friends from my hall, two of whom I did not know were interested in rushing.
I did not know about the rest of the girls there, but I felt pretty serious about pre-rush. Where I come from, sororities are kind of a big deal. My mother was a Kappa Kappa Gamma, and many of our closest friends are members of Alpha Chi and Chi Omega. In this initial meeting, we were spoken to about behavior, dress code, and keeping an open mind. The sorority system at Gettysburg puts a great deal of emphasis on keeping an open mind, urging students to not pick a favorite sorority without giving the rest a fair chance. It was a fairly brief introduction, including a short animated video about one of their philanthropic projects: an organization that helps underprivileged girls gain access to education.
Since Sorority Recruitment 101, I have attended one other pre-rush event. On March 26th in the CUB Ballroom, I attended an event called “Sorority Speed Dating,” a way for the potential sisters to get to know each sorority a little better. I was a bit concerned that this event would be intimidating, but it was completely comfortable and stress-free. The ballroom was lined with tables from each sorority. Groups of girls were put into groups with other non-sorority girls and rotated sorority tables every 10 minutes so that the potential recruits had a chance to get to know members from each sorority more intimately. I found it easy to talk to all of the girls from the different sororities; they were all so sweet, welcoming, and clearly very eager to make sure that our first-time experiences with meeting individual sorority girls was a positive one. The event was well-organized, well-staffed, and a generally enjoyable way to get to know our potential sisters.
The next event that I will be attending will be an event for a specific sorority, “French Fries with Gamma Phi.” In the upcoming weeks, each sorority will hold individual events to get to know girls on an even more personal level, through fun and unique occasions such as “Service with Tri Sigma,” “Adventures with Alpha O,” and “Explore Chi O.”
Currently, I am having no difficulty in doing what I have been told to do and keep an open mind; each sorority seems fun, inclusive, and dedicated to hard work. I am excited for the rest of my pre-rush and rush experiences, and cannot wait to see the outcome of what sorority I will join here at Gettysburg.
Editor’s Note: This article is the twenty-first of our series “Dodging the Bullet: The First Year Journal,” in which The Gettysburgian‘s staff members from the Class of 2021 share stories, reflections, and perspective on their first year experience. You can read the full series here. (-B. Pontz)
