Epsilon Kappa Theta sorority will not participate in the formal recruitment process this fall, instead opting for a more casual “shake-out” process, Theta executives said in a campus-wide email Tuesday morning. They referenced lowering exclusivity and superficiality in the sorority recruitment process and making the Greek system more accessible for female students and members of minority groups as reasons for the change.
Theta’s new recruitment process will resemble fraternities’ current system, but it will be more flexible, Theta president Emily Reeves ’15 said. Theta will participate in planned Panhellenic Council pre-recruitment events.
Potential new members who attend Theta’s shake-out events will not be bound to join the sorority.
Two shake-out events will be held, one before formal Panhellenic sorority recruitment begins and one near the end of the process. Potential new members who participate in formal recruitment will have the chance to drop out to attend Theta’s second shake-out event.
Theta is still working out logistics, Reeves said. As a local sorority, Theta is not bound by national guidelines on recruitment procedures.
In the past, Theta has offered a shake-out option alongside formal recruitment.
Reeves said in an email that the idea to withdraw from formal recruitment came out of a discussion among members of Theta’s Standards Committee at the beginning of the spring. After the sorority’s executives agreed to proceed with the proposal, sorority members approved it unanimously in an online voting process.
Reeves said that the sorority did not decide to change its recruitment process to gain more new members, though she noted that she would be pleased if the policy attracted new members given Theta’s comparatively low recruitment numbers.
She said that Theta’s sisterhood prides themselves on being a small, close knit sorority.
“We’re hoping to increase numbers somewhat, but we would not want to jeopardize that special thing that we have,” Reeves said.
Theta made its decision in light of an “escalating campus climate,” the campus-wide email said.
Recent campus events also motivated the change, Reeves said, noting charges of marginalization in the Greek system and the decision of several Panhell executives to abstain from winter recruitment.
Panhell president Rachel Funk ’15 said that Panhell supports the change.
“I think that this is the best decision for Theta,” Funk said. “This will just give women another alternative to participating in formal recruitment.”
Funk said the other local Panhellenic organizations, Sigma Delta and Kappa Delta Epsilon sororities, have pledged to partake in formal recruitment. Theta’s decision, she said, will have little impact on recruitment for the other sororities.
“There has been a lot of discussion about ways to change women’s rush in order make it a more inclusive and understandable process,” Sigma Delt president Annie Gardner ’15 and KDE president Emily Uniman ’15 said in a joint emailed statement. “As fellow local sororities, we applaud Theta’s initiative and willingness to modify the process to one that can better serve their house.”
Non-Panhellenic sororities will not be directly impacted by the change, as they conduct a separate recruitment process.
Panhell is planning adjustments to the fall’s formal recruitment season, Funk said. Though the council has not yet officially determined what will change, they will aim to deemphasize the performance aspect of recruitment, level the playing field between sororities and potential new members and increase socioeconomic and racial inclusivity.
Theta will continue to provide input on changes to formal recruitment, Reeves said.
Reeves announced the decision on Monday in a meeting with other Panhell sorority presidents. Since the announcement, Reeves said she has received support from other sorority presidents and from members of the Dartmouth community.
“We’re open to feedback — we’re open to more ideas, and we’re really invested in making Dartmouth better,” Reeves said.
Greek Letter Organizations and Societies director Wes Schaub said in an email that he supports the creative thinking embodied by the change.
“There are currently many discussions about different aspects of Greek life on campus, all with sets of suggestions and changes,” Schaub said in the email. “I’m open to experimenting with different ways of doing things to find out what works best for the community.”
Funk said that she is unsure if the shake-out process would work on a large scale.
“Panhell really wants this to succeed for Theta, and we’re working in collaboration with them,” Funk said. “They’re very much still a part of our community.”
All other Panhell sorority presidents did not respond to requests for comment by press time.
