New year, new Greek: 2019 rush season

Are you looking for a way to establish meaningful friendships here at Hope? Or perhaps an opportunity to take on more roles in leadership or service? Greek Life may be just the right pathway to fulfill these goals. Hope offers an array of different Greek organizations, including eight fraternities and seven sororities. Mentioning their names to students from other schools typically results in blank stares. This is due to the fact that 14 of the 15 organizations are local; therefore, they are not associated with national chapters presented at other colleges. The recruitment period for Sororities and Fraternities, which began over the weekend, lasts for about two and a half weeks.

Each Fraternity offered open events on either Friday or Saturday for males of any class standing to attend. For Sororities, on Sunday, Round Robin showcased each sorority for women interested in rushing. Around 220 women attended the open event, contrasting the 160 from the previous year. The increased participation from last year corresponds to the influx of female enrollment. Female rush events have continued throughout the week, allowing prospects to examine their options and find the sorority that fits them well. Alexander Pasker (’19) chose to rush his sophomore year to foster more male friendships. Coming to Hope as a dance major provided him with fewer chances to meet other guys.

After the hectic and somewhat worrisome time of rush, Pasker received and accepted a bid from Phi Sigma Kappa. “I get to be myself. I don’t have to play any facades or anything. They accept me for who I am,” Pasker said. Sophie Smith (’20) rushed her freshman year. Being from Colorado, she felt as though she had not yet found a tight group of friends and she wanted that sense of community. Smith became a Sigma Sigma and has since taken on the responsibility of being a rush chair. “You get to meet a ton of new people, which I love. In high school there tends to be a lot of drama. But in college you find people who support you, and it changes everything,” said Smith, reminiscing on her time rushing. The last rush event for women, referred to as Final Tea, adds a unique aspect to the process.

Every single sorority hosts this at the exact same time, forcing female candidates to choose the one organization they are most interested in joining. Women only have the possibility of receiving one bid, while men could land offers from multiple fraternities. After bids are sent out, the candidates are given roughly one week to turn in their acceptances. The enigmatic orientation process then begins and lasts multiple weeks. Each Greek organization is involved in a plethora of service work including the events Relay for Life and Dance Marathon. The latter was founded by Greek members in the year 2000. Greek Life can serve as an outlet for becoming a part of awesome events such as these, and with it comes a family that stands alongside one another.