For some women, sorority house rejection brings solace

Women stepped off of the bus in front of Pi Beta Phi and ran down the street in their cocktail attire and UGGs, heels hanging out of their purses and dangling in their hands.

They’d been walking up and down Third Street and North Jordan Avenue all day, watching videos about how much each of IU’s 20 Panhellenic chapters mean to the women who call them home.

As recruitment progressed, they were getting closer to being part of it themselves.

Formal recruitment wrapped up Thursday through Sunday with First Invite, Second Invite and Preference Round. The process will conclude with Bid Night tonight.

Gretchen Catron was among the potential new members, or PNMs. She had been through 20 Party, 14 Party and 8 Party. She submitted rankings, and the houses ranked her. She even started seeing herself in a house, imagined being part of a new sisterhood.

But, Sunday morning, Gretchen’s recruitment journey came to an end.

“I was hoping to get (my top choice) back, and I didn’t want to take up a potential bid from someone who really wanted it at one of the other two,” she said. “I just couldn’t see myself living there.”

Gretchen wasn’t alone.

As recruitment continued through the weekend, the field was narrowed.

Panhellenic Association uses a process of mutual selection, said Ashley Clark, vice president of communication for PHA. With this system, the PNMs rank their top choices, and chapters make lists of women to invite back, both selecting each other to ensure the best fit for all. The rankings are then checked and entered into a computer.

“We use the system to be efficient, organized and unbiased,” Clark said.

Freshman Anna Sloss said she felt the pressure of the process during the weekend.

“Going from 14 to eight was a really tough cut,” she said. “A lot of people didn’t get a house back that they really loved.”

After 8 Party on Saturday, the weekend continued to Preference Round, in which PNMs visited as many as three chapters.

“It’s more of getting to know the chapters on a personal level,” Clark said. “They get to see the sisterhood we live every day.”

Sloss said spending so much time with the houses made each cut harder.

“I’m not a person who cries, but I can see now how people do become emotional,” Sloss said. “You put a lot into it.”

Rho Gamma Jana Kovich’s job is to help guide PNMs through the process. She said she tries to encourage the women in her group, even if she knows they are upset.

“Not getting a house back that they enjoyed being at doesn’t have anything to do with them as a person,” she said. “I try to remind them of that.”

Though Kovich tries to be encouraging, some PNMs do decide to drop from the process. She said she realizes the greek system isn’t for everyone.

“Although I’d be proud to call them my sister in the Panhellenic system, I don’t want to push them into anything they don’t feel comfortable with,” Kovich said. “There’s a reason only 20 percent of the campus is greek and 80 percent isn’t.”

Though Gretchen said she had imagined herself in a sorority, meeting new people and getting involved on campus, she said she realizes IU has other things to offer. She said the process brought her closer with girls on her floor, and she might live with some of them next year.

“I was just frustrated because I’d spent so much time,” she said. “For me, I just wanted to make sure I got the full college experience. I wanted to rush to see if a sorority is where I’m supposed to be.”