Starting Monday UCF’s Greek Row will be teeming with thousands of sorority women and potential new members who will begin making decisions that can impact the rest of their lives.
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Sorority rush starts Monday, and KnightNews.com drove around the Greek Park Drive Sunday to shoot some video showing how everything is ready to go, including decorations and large white tents where Rho Gammas, disaffiliated sorority women who serve as “recruitment guides,” will gather their group of potential new members as they visit each house as part of the process to decide which sorority they could make their new home.
Those participating in sorority rush were allowed to move in to their UCF affiliated housing early. The recruitment process is a week long, starting Monday, August 16 and ending with bid day on Saturday, August 21, where those going through rush find out which sorority they can join.
According to the Panhellenic website, the cost to participate in sorority rush is $60. KnightNews.com has learned at least 700 have signed up so far, but that number is likely to increase because students wanting to rush can sign up until at least noon on Monday, according to the Panhellenic site.
Over the six days of sorority rush, different events are held to explain how Greek life works at UCF, and each woman going through rush gets the chance to meet each sorority. Through a process called “mutual selection,” the woman going through rush picks sororities she’d like to meet again during the week, and sororities list potential new members they’d like to meet again.
On Monday, a Greek night line up event will be held for potential new members to get a run through about what to expect during the week, as well as a parents’ forum where finances will be discussed to parents wanting those details.
Tuesday is when potential new members will visit all 10 UCF sorority chapters to “get a glimpse of each sorority,” according to the Panhellenic website.
Throughout the rest of the week, different people will visit different chapters, depending on the choices made during the mutual selection process. On Wednesday, a woman going through rush will vist up to eight sororities to lean about their community service philanthropy and the meaning it holds to that sorority.
Thursday is “Video Day.” That’s when potential new members will visit a maximum of six sorority chapters to watch a video the sorority made to show off its creativity. By Friday the ladies going through rush will visit no more than three chapters — which is where the toughest decisions will take place. Known as “Pref Day,” the sororities and potentials will both have to rank their top choices about where the potentials will end up. It’s regarded as a very sentimental day.
Saturday is “Bid Day,” the last day in the process and a time for celebration. Sororities extend bids, or invitations to join, and the ladies going through rush open envelopes to find out where they can join. At that point there is a sorority stampede to Greek park, where all the women run to their new sorority home.
Bid Day from Last Year:
It’s also at this point where the Rho Gammas, who had to disaffiliate and conceal their identities with nicknames, reveal who they are by running to their chapter as well.
Women wanting to register for sorority recruitment can do so by clicking here. Questions can be directed to the UCF Fraternity and Sorority Life office at (407) 823-2072.
Editor’s Note: Our requests to interview a Rho Gamma about why they recommend going Greek to new students were denied because Rho Gammas were told they were not allowed to comment.
