To the Editor:
I would like to reply, at least in part, to Katie Greenwood's Jan. 30, 2002 editorial in The Dartmouth, "System Failure." Admittedly, the Greek rush process is not perfect, and it does exclude people. I am very sorry that Ms. Greenwood's friend did not get a bid and that she was home when her room door was going to be decorated for her roommates. Her situation is unfortunate, and I am sure it was emotionally difficult.
Let me preface my remarks by saying that the last rush I was involved in helping with was the Fall term of 1999, right after my graduation. Perhaps things have changed since then, but what I am about to say comes from my knowledge. Time and again undergraduates, the administration and faculty, the Trustees of Dartmouth College and even people unaffiliated with the college rail against the exclusive nature of the Greek system and its failure to guarantee membership to everyone interested.
Well, Ms. Greenwood, et al., let me give you some other facts about the Greek system. The administration of Dartmouth has put a limit on the total number of members a Greek house can have. The administration has also put a moratorium on new houses within the Greek system. What this means is, no matter how many men and women participate in rush, there is a set number of members each house can accommodate. There is no wiggle room. The College simply will not allow it. The sororities in Dartmouth's Greek system really go out of their way to make sure as many women as possible get bids. Some houses are allowed to give more than their chapter's allotted number of bids if their membership numbers are not at the campus total. If this all sounds complicated, it's because it is. Sorority rush is an incredibly complicated process for both the houses and the rushees.
I think that Ms. Greenwood and others also need to recognize that this exclusivity goes both ways. For 1998 Fall term rush, there were seven sororities. After rush, one of them, Zeta Beta Chi (formerly Delta Gamma) chose to close their chapter because not enough women were interested in joining their membership. A group of women could have joined that sorority and made it into whatever they chose. Since the closing of Zeta Beta Chi, the college has repeatedly refused requests for a new sorority. As a result, the six sororities in existence are forced to face the fact that not every woman who rushes can receive a bid. If this simple fact makes you angry, please place the blame where it belongs -- on the administration. Sorority rush used to guarantee bids. Now it cannot.
If you want to right some of the wrongs with the rush process in the Greek system, convince the administration to allow the formation of more Greek houses. With the losses of four Greek houses in the last few years, the Greek system is becoming less and less able to accommodate all interested students. And while this will not fix all of the problems that Ms. Greenwood addressed, it is a beginning.
