spring rush

People like you are the reason Theta is closing. “Maybe you will get a mid house”? Not everyone wants to be a tri delt. I know that’s hard for you to believe but it’s true. A sorority should be a place where friendships are made and community is supported. Stop talking tiers - you are in college now, stop acting like a middle schooler.

Truth is probably one of those Moms who's been busy on here saying "It's not the Moms, It's not the Moms!"

I like this idea but here are the issues. Not every sorority has room (numbers) to take additional girls. If a sorority is at quota and doesn't look any members over holiday break then they are not allowed (by panhellenic and their national org) to take new members. I am wondering how panhellenic will handle this with 88 girls released back. I think they need to raise the number of girls we are allowed to take.

Here is my unasked for advice for Theta pledges. DO NOT INITIATE. Why would you want to pledge your loyalty to an organization that has none for you. Tell Greek Life you are interested in COBs. Network. Tell all your friends and classmates that you like that you are looking to join a sorority. If you do not receive a COB in the spring, hire a rush coach. Go through fall rush fully prepped to find a new house. If we have one fewer house, all the houses will have to take more because quota is set by how many PNMs pref.

Some thoughts: a new org will come in and that might also be an opportunity for Theta pledges in the next few years. International KAO has been a horrible member of Panhellenic here. The University is very happy with their chapter and is appalled they are closing. Theta will not be allowed to recolonize here because of how they handled this closure.

Cranberry is right that it’s unlikely any chapters will be able to COB these new members. However, there’s a snowball’s chance in hell that a new NPC sorority will colonize at ole miss in the next 4 years. I would NOT bank on Zeta or Alpha Chi or Gamma Phi or anyone to come and absorb these girls. Their best bet is to COB since they will be eligible, then if that doesn’t work try fall. Or transfer to a school with winter rush.

I can guarantee some girls will initiate only because they always planned to transfer for sophomore year.b OM was their backup school and they wanted to go somewhere easy to get a gpa high enough to get into the school that rejected them as an incoming freshman. Those are also competitive schools where theta is top tier and they wouldn't have been able to get in during that school's recruitment. So they initiate theta here then affiliate at their new school (or if they end up not getting grades to transfer, they graduate OM and come home to an area where being a theta alum is a very important thing for life. This has always been a well known backdoor into theta at Texas and west coast schools and pretty much everywhere. Theta is a very strong national and it's only unpopular in the south. Those girls are going to game the system and get what they wanted in the first place.

I know Theta is an excellent sorority nationally and super duper competitive at a lot of schools. As far as initiating and transferring this year, I'm not sure how that would work because KAO org. is going to make the Ole Miss thetas alumnae. Once you're an alumna you cannot affiliate as a collegian. That said, I hope I'm wrong and you're right and they ride off into the sunset in victory.

The release from theta literally says they’re not making the Ole Miss chapter girls alums for that exact reason. They’re staying unaffiliated in case they want to transfer and will become alums at graduation.

That would be a great idea if a couple of things could be guaranteed. One, the student is admitted to the much more competitive UGA or UT. Those schools are no joke to get into. Both use a top 10% of their high schools approach to decide admissions. I believe it is why we see so many Texans at Ole Miss. They are often the type of students that in years past would have gone to Austin, but now do not get in. I don't mean that to insult those students. Getting int to UT is VERY competitive.

Secondly, sororities vote on whether to allow transfer students to affiliate. It is not a guarantee that the new Theta members would be welcomed into the other chapter.

It's an idea. I just wanted to weight in on some caveats.

I should add I totally agree with your instinct that they should leave the toxic UM environment and get a better degree in the process. These girls deserve better than how they've been treated.

@cranberry your points are valid. Sometimes it's easier to get into a school as a transfer butI feel like they take people w slightly lower grades than they normally would. They are trying to fill the gaps of people who transferred out so they quietly take people who might not would have gotten in as freshmen. I know two people who have transferred to better schools and they got in as transfers and prob wouldn't have as freshmen.

As to affiliation, you are right. They do have to vote. But it's not like the Thetas here are trolls or anything. They are cute girls with great personalities and will be transferring with the best Mississippi has to offer: charm, good manners, etc. I feel like in general chapters take affiliates. Now, the transfer girl will never be as "in" as the girls who pledged together. She just won't have that bond with her new chapter. But she will be going to some awesome parties and will be participating in fun, established philanthropy activities at a super strong chapter.

I wish they would all peace out and find the greener pastures they deserve. They got a raw deal.

You are right about it being easier to transfer in. That's a really good point. I agree that these women deserve far happier times ahead. Thank you for the conversation.

Some sororities allow automatic affiliation and there's no vote required. Just saying.

Schools like UGA and UT are much easier to get into as a transfer as long as you get a decent GPA at your original school. That's the reason so many pick places like Ole Miss and Bama. Easy admission. Easy academics Easy initiation into a sorority that is top tier at the school they plan to transfer to from day one. It really is a thing.

I agree about leaving the toxic dump here.

As for affiliating at a top chapter elsewhere - good idea in theory, doesn’t always work in reality because a Theta at Ole Miss might not have gotten into a top Theta chapter at, let’s say, Texas. So there’s a personality mis-match of sorts.

That mismatch happens even when girls transfer schools where the chapters are more alike than not. Doesn’t always work.