From Sept. 8-18, the College Panhellenic sororities of Samford, including Alpha Delta Pi, Alpha Omicron Pi, Chi Omega, Tri Delta, Phi Mu and Zeta Tau Alpha, held their annual Panhellenic recruitment.
The recruitment process begins with an orientation for potential new members. Afterward, interested members go through different rounds to learn more about each sorority and create new relationships.
After the rounds, potential new members attend Bid Day and are officially welcomed into a Panhellenic sorority.
This year, sororities were able to have in-person recruitment events while adhering to masking and other COVID-19 guidelines.
When asked about the recruitment process for Alpha Omicron Pi, Chapter President Rose Tarwater said this year, things were more similar to years past.
“Recruitment for [Alpha Omicron Pi] was very successful,” she said. “Despite COVID-19, we were able to have relatively normal recruitment compared with last year.”
Tarwater also discussed how Alpha Omicron Pi would hold virtual Zoom parties for potential new members who were either sick or had to quarantine.
Chi Omega Chapter President Emma Buckles welcomed the return of in-person recruitment..
“Honestly, it was great to be in-person again and getting to physically see everyone. It was a difficult week of long days and hours, but being able to form new relationships makes Panhellenic recruitment worth it,” Buckles said.
Both Tarwater and Buckles discussed this year’s challenges. Tarwater said that because of last year’s virtual recruitment, some members were unfamiliar with how to do in-person recruitment and therefore had to be trained on how to do the in-person recruitment process.
Buckles said the hardest challenge of recruitment is trying to balance one’s academic priorities while also investing a long amount of time in recruitment events.
Buckles shared a piece of advice for those who are part of the Panhellenic community as well as those who are not.
“Don’t try to match who you are to whoever you think you need to be,” she said,“because ultimately, you are who you are for a reason.”
For more information on Panhellenic recruitment, contact Panhellenic President Bethany Luke at bluke@samford.edu.
Staff Writer
