1,400 women commence formal recruitment with tours of houses

The clusters of freshman and sophomore female students donning long-sleeved black T-shirts all over campus this weekend were in search of their future homes.\nMore than 1,400 women participated in 19 Party Saturday and Sunday, the first stage of the Panhellenic Association's formal recruitment where potential new sorority members tour all 19 chapter houses on campus, said junior Jaclyn Reinking, PHA executive vice president of recruitment.\nNineteen Party was about 20 hours long, from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday. The potential new members visited each house for about 30 minutes.\n"They get to see what kind of rooms we live in and they talk to numerous women from the chapter," said senior Leslie Friedman, recruitment chair for Alpha Omicron Pi.\nFriedman was animated Sunday afternoon, wearing the red long-sleeved t-shirt required of sorority members for 19 party. She said having everyone wearing the same shirt creates equality among all the chapter houses, which is necessary at this point in recruitment.\n"It's supposed to be like we're all equal," she said. "In 19 Party, women are encouraged to go greek, not to join a specific house."\nTo further this notion, Friedman said chapters weren't allowed to decorate their houses for 19 Party and they can't have any contact with women participating in recruitment until after the process is finished on bid day in January. Nonetheless, all chapters had a cheer prepared for the potential new members as they entered and exited the houses in groups of about 70.\n"The cheers show the spirit of the chapters," Friedman said. "We're spunky."\nOnce potential new members were in the houses they typically paired up with a member from the house and took a tour or had questions answered. \nBy Sunday afternoon, freshman recruitment participant Danielle Kinney was apathetic.\n"It's overwhelming and tiring," she said.\nKinney said while she enjoyed meeting members from all the houses, the process got repetitive as it went on. "You make small talk with people but it will never be anything more," she said.\nBut freshman Caitlin O'Hara said 19 Party was a positive experience. "It's good to see if you really want to do it," she said. "It determines your next three years."\nBoth Kinney and O'Hara said they'd planned on continuing with the recruitment process, which resumes Jan. 4 with First Invite.\nOn Sunday night, women who partook in 19 Party ranked the 12 houses they liked the most while chapter members ranked the women they'd like to invite back to their house.\nFriedman said there has to be a match for women to get invited back for First Invite and that this is essential so women become involved in the chapter that is fitting for them.\n"That's why the recruitment process is so long," she said. "It's important to find the right house"