Sorority rush, which concluded Jan. 31, saw a record number of participants and continued the trend of rising interest in sororities and raising the possibility of bringing a new chapter to Tufts.
According to senior Jillian Joseph, president of the Panhellenic Council, the body which oversees Tufts' three sororities, 168 women signed up to participate in the rush process, and 124 of them received bids.
Joseph said that Chi Omega extended 44 bids, Alpha Phi offered 42 and Alpha Omicron Pi (AOPi) gave out 38. She noted that this marked a significant increase from past years' numbers.
Last year, the number of rush participants was capped at around 100 women and approximately 75 bids, according to Joseph. Only two of the sororities participated in formal recruitment because Alpha Phi was at the time suspended for hazing and alcohol policy violations.
Dean of Student Affairs Bruce Reitman, who is currently serving as interim director of fraternity and sorority affairs, noted that the percentage of the student body involved in Greek life at Tufts is pushing past its historical numbers.
Joseph said the increase in participation was a sign that Greek life at Tufts is flourishing.
"The Greek community is really thriving at Tufts right now," Joseph said. "The large numbers of women we saw in recruitment are a testament to the strength of the Greek community here and should help bring attention to the successes of the individual chapters."
Senior Becca Weinstein, director of public relations for the Tufts Panhellenic Council, said that in addition to the increased participation in rush, the vast majority of bids extended were accepted.
"I think the high percentage of girls who accepted their bids this year reflects how smoothly recruitment went," she said.
The continued increase in rush participation this year has raised the possibility of opening a new sorority chapter at Tufts in coming years.
"I think … that we need a new sorority on campus," Reitman said.
He added that the decision to open a new chapter is largely in the hands of the National Panhellenic Conference.
"The university puts no roadblocks in the way of opening up a new chapter," Reitman said.
Weinstein agreed that bringing another sorority chapter to Tufts should be considered because of the benefits it would bring.
"I think the opening of a new chapter is definitely something that everyone is open to in the coming years if the numbers of girls interested in Greek life remain the same," she said. "It's obvious that a new sorority would be welcome on campus and would be a great way to give girls more options when considering rushing."
Joseph, however, raised the point that the process of creating a new chapter is complicated and requires that all sororities approach or meet member totals.
The current member total, which is set by the Tufts Panhellenic Council with input from the National Panhellenic Conference, is 60 women. This year all three sororities will each exceed this total after the initiation of their new members, according to Joseph.
Chi Omega President Lizzie Langer echoed Joseph and Weinstein in both expressing her support for bringing another sorority to Tufts in the future and acknowledging the challenges involved in such a process.
"It is very difficult to open a new chapter, so it is certainly a long-term goal," she said.
Sorority recruitment at Tufts is conducted through a mutual selection process, in which potential new members rank the sororities, which in turn rank a certain number of women at the end of each round of the recruitment cycle.
According to Reitman, Tufts' sororities generally have an assured bid system in place, meaning that if a woman completes all rounds of recruitment by attending mandatory events, she is guaranteed to receive a bid, though not necessarily from her top choice.
"The idea is that the girl should get to know the sisters in each chapter and give each house a fair chance," Weinstein said.
Joseph added that the sororities may within the next few weeks continue to hand out informal, or snap, bids to augment their pledge classes.
