Hundreds of male members of the Class of 2000 will take their suits and ties out of storage this evening and take part in the quintessential Fall-term ritual for sophomores: fraternity rush.
Fourteen fraternities open their doors to the Class of 2000 tonight and tomorrow night from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Some houses will have another day of informal rush on Thursday, according to Interfraternity Council President Spiros Maliagros '98.
Rush, the formal process by which men visit and formally request membership at fraternities, can be "a little awkward," according to Alpha Chi Alpha President Jonathan Davis '98.
On the whole, Davis said, the process is "not overly pleasant but you meet a lot of nice guys."
Brothers at a fraternity deliberate about the men they meet during rush, and vote whether a prospective member is given a "bid," a formal invitation to join the house; a "call-back," a request that he return to the house for another night so the brothers can interact with him more; or a "ding," where he is not invited to join the house.
Maliagros said fraternity members will not see many new faces during rush. Some houses have been holding pre-rush barbecues to attract this year's rush class since last Spring term.
The barbecues were well-attended, Maliagros said, and he is optimistic most of the fraternities on campus will be pleased with the number of rushees who visit their houses.
"I have a feeling things are going to turn out well and the numbers will be up," Maliagros said.
Besides the College's 14 IFC fraternities, three co-ed fraternities will also be holding rush activities this week.
Phi Tau co-ed fraternity will have rush on Thursday and Friday from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m., according to President Amy Nathanson '98.
Alpha Theta co-ed fraternity's rush will take place tomorrow and Thursday from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m., said rush chair Clair Jones '98.
And the Tabard co-ed fraternity will have rush from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday, said the house's president, Miles Bingham '98.
