Every year, women on campus talk about the sorority rush process and agonize trying to find a better solution. After seeing rush from both sides and working closely with our houses and the rushees, we would like to propose the following alteration of the sorority system at Dartmouth.
We first want to emphasize that our experiences in single-sex organizations have been infinitely valuable and that we strongly feel sororities should be preserved. It is exactly for this reason that we feel changes need to be made in order to make women's organizations on this campus more effective and supportive.
A close examination of the rush process quickly reveals its random nature. In reality, the system of matching up women with their first choice houses and vice versa works for only a very small percentage of women going through rush. House advisors who have conducted the bid matching process can attest to this fact. Furthermore, these rankings of preference are based on short parties in which the women have little time to interact and meet the sisters of any particular house.
While some suggest a longer rush period or similar approaches to reduce the superficial quality of rush, we do not feel these measures are adequate. The portion of rush which we find most disturbing is the process of women deliberating on other women and ranking them accordingly.
We propose changing the rush system into a random lottery which would distribute women equally. This would not only ensure a more consistent membership size (making the feasibility of a seventh house greater), but also would remove the most superficial and often most hurtful part of the rush process. All of the houses at Dartmouth have something to offer women on campus, and all of the women at Dartmouth have something to offer to any house.
We are well aware that this proposal will come under criticism from women in the sorority system, some members of the community and indeed our own sisters. We have, however, met with rushees, unaffiliated women, affiliated women and administrators in devising this proposal and feel that it is in the best interest of women of Dartmouth and the sororities.
We have considered the criticisms of the lottery system and find them easily answerable.
Some argue that a lottery will destroy the unity and house character. Yet the perceived differences among houses are usually little more than dated stereotypes. The membership within every house is already representative of a wide array of viewpoints, and yet the women in each house have managed to bond and be unified in spite of, or more likely, because of this attribute. Furthermore, bringing women together who might not ordinarily meet will only encourage coalition building and communication on campus.
Others feel that a selective system is more representative of the real world. The most frequent argument we heard for this was that people were rejected and accepted when applying to Dartmouth and that a lottery was not a realistic approach to membership selection. Sororities at Dartmouth are not billed as an experience in the real world; they claim to be support organizations, yet the rush process is often more destructive to a woman's self-esteem than constructive.
Several people have expressed concern over randomly assigning people to nationals and locals without considering the differences. This is perhaps the most valid criticism of the lottery concept and one that must be addressed.
It is our belief that either all sororities should become local or the national organizations should appreciate the unique climate at Dartmouth and allow their Dartmouth chapters more flexibility in creating their own rules and bylaws.
The lottery system is an attempt to battle the exclusivity and superficiality of the rush process. We realize that financial constraints still offer a problem to joining an organization, but are currently working to address that situation as well.
The fact is that we recognize the worth of every woman on this campus and the unique contribution she has to offer. It is this idea that lies at the center of our proposal for change. Re-read our proposal carefully and if your opposition to this plan is no more than a belief that some women are more qualified to be in an organization with you than others, we ask you to take a good look inside yourself and reconsider your biases.
