Sigma Delta sorority will pilot a shake-outprocess to recruit potential new members for the winter term. The sorority will notparticipate in formal recruitment this term, according toa Monday morning email announcement by the Pan-Hellenic Council.
The winter pilot program is intendedto determine how changing the recruitment process will affect potential new members and house "agency and happiness," vice president of operations Kate Healy wrote in a follow-upemail to The Dartmouth.
Healy said that Panhell has no current plans to continue the newshake-out process in the fall. Panhell, however, hopes that the pilot will lead to more changes to recruitment that wouldbenefit PNMs, giveagency to PNMs and increasetransparency of the process, Healy said.
PNMs will be allowed to both participate in formal recruitment and shake-out at Sigma Delt and Episilon Kappa Theta sorority, which moved exclusively to shake-outs in the fall of 2014.
Sigma Delt and Panhellhave been working together for many months to develop this initiative and figure out how it will work with EKT’s shake-out process and formal recruitment, Healy said.
Sigma Delt will hold their shake-out process in coordination with Theta’s schedule.
Sigma Delt will extend between 10 and 20 bids to women through the process this term. Bids can be accepted or declined by PNMs until 10 p.m. on preference night, Jan. 19, at which point they must drop out of formal recruitment if they wish to accept a Sigma Delt bid.
The statement released by Sigma Delt highlighted four key points in their rationale for switching to a shake-out process. These included criticisms of Panhell’s current recruitment process including alleged lack of agency for PNMs, bias against “shy and introverted personalities” and bias towards PNMs who already know affiliated women.
Sigma Delt believes that the shake-out process better aligns with its values as a local sorority, according to the statement.
This is a developing story —it will be updated as more information is reported.
Correction:This story originally ran under the headline "Sigma Delta sorority to host "shake-out" this winter, no longerparticipate in Panhell rush." The headline has been updated to more accurately reflect the nature of the program's pilot status.
