The Houston Panhellenic Council will be proceeding with fall sorority recruitment virtually. | Christopher Charleston/The Cougar
Straying from traditional in-person sorority rush due to the coronavirus, the Houston Panhellenic Council is now changing how regular recruitment will be delivered for the fall semester.
The Houston Panhellenic Formal Sorority Recruitment is set to begin Sept. 17 and will be held virtually through Zoom. Some students appreciate this virtual transition that avoids the potential spread of coronavirus through in-person interaction.
“It makes me happy to see UH is being proactive in preventing big groups of people from joining together,” said history freshman Mackenzie Drago. “So while I do feel like I am losing an experience, I am sure that the recruitment process will still be loads of fun.”
Members of the recruitment team, chapter advisers and executive members have met biweekly since March to settle details and rules of fall recruitment and how it will look, according to assistant vice president of recruitment Hannah Felske.
“I know some (potential new members) may be concerned about the format, but we want everyone to be safe and unanimously agreed that online will be the best option for the safety of our members going through the process,” Felske said.
“Joining a sorority is an exciting experience no matter the format,” she added.
The Houston Panhellenic Council’s executive board is currently conducting practice attempts that involve the panhellenic advisers, recruitment counselors and sorority chapters to ensure that the process is efficient.
“I think there is always an underlying fear when you are trying something new for the first time,” Drago said. “I’m not super worried about it because I’m going into it with a positive attitude and I’m excited to try something new.”
During Zoom recruitment, each panhellenic chapter will have a room set up along with HPC executive members and recruitment counselors. The potential new members will remain in their recruitment counselor room until they’re freed to join the chapters they are scheduled to meet that day.
They will begin with the first two days of a sisterhood round where the potential new members will meet all of the seven chapters. Day three is the philanthropy round when they will return to four chapters. The following day is the preference round, where the potential new members will be called back to speak to two chapters.
The last round is bid day and will be held on Sept. 21. At this time, the chapters are deciding to host a supplemental bid day that will follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines, according to Felske.
“Our goal as a Panhellenic community is to provide a positive and memorable recruitment experience for potential new members,” Felske said. “We welcome any woman who is a full-time student at the University of Houston that wants to join a Panhellenic chapter.”
Members of the HPC executive board have attended the Orientation Team’s Cougar Carnival and plan on attending Cats Back to spread the word about Zoom recruitment. Along with continuing to host a Panhellenic picnic, where potential new members are able to learn and meet the chapters before the formal recruitment.
“I am honestly the most excited to be able to meet new people and hopefully make some new friends,” Drago said. “I’m sure that everyone has been looking forward to recruitment as much as I have been because now there is something positive happening in the midst of this whole coronavirus.”
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