RUSH IS the lifeblood of the Greek system. One semester's worth of poor membership recruitment can throw a house into financial straits or worse, while an unusually successful rush can ensure three years of stability and future growth. Over a year ago, I articulated support for a spring rush for first year men, considering the merits of making sure a student is socially and academically stable before pledging a Greek house. However, after witnessing several subsequent rounds of recruitment, my stance must be reversed. While there are decided merits to recruiting first year men in the spring semester, the Greek system and the first years in question stand to benefit much more from a fraternal affiliation that begins the first semester at the University.
For many, the transition to college life is a difficult one, both academically and socially. For those who could skate by without cracking a book in high school, the University requires a new scholastic diligence to stay afloat academically. Additionally, the first semester tests the social skills of new students, most of whom are required to form new social relationships at the outset of their tenure at the institution. This poses more stress for some students than with others. One argument for a spring rush has been that it allows a period of time for students to "find their niche" before engaging in the demands of rushing and pledging a fraternity.
However, there are many reasons this logic is not completely compelling. First, for those who do someday affiliate with a house, the pledge process and nature of the Greek system breaks or threatens the relationships built during the first semester. Speaking from personal observations, those friends who pledged were required to spend a majority of their time with other members of the fraternity during their pledge semester. As intended, this forms stronger bonds of friendship with the pledge class and leaves behind many relationships from the first semester. By having a spring rush, it places an unnecessary stressful burden on those students who choose not to join a house and are then left with the anxiety of plowing a new social life once a majority of his friends spend their time with a pledge class.
Secondly, most would admit that the first-year academic advising needs some help. There are institutional projects currently under way to remedy the program, yet as it currently stands, advising could be strengthened. By joining a fraternity in the first semester, students who struggle with the transition to college are placed in a tight, structured pledge process that has an opportunity to assist the student's transition to better organizational skills, study habits and access recommendations on what professors or courses are strongest within a given department. Put simply: First years can benefit from the experience of upper-classmen whom they may not have otherwise met.
It is up to the individual house to cultivate a pledge process that stimulates and encourages first-year development, yet as more houses are recognized for these benefits, the trend will likely accelerate in a positive direction. The Greek GPA average is well above the University average for males, proving there are those in the system who have much to offer first years in terms of getting their academics together.
In line with first-year development, many support a spring rush because it allows students to become involved in the University before submitting to a time-consuming pledge process that retards exploration into other extra-curricular pursuits. However, this process can be difficult when one does not know where to look. The activities fair is the traditional oasis of involvement resources, yet the experience can often lead to information-overload. If instead students could utilize the knowledge of older peers within a fraternity, they would have the resources and encouragement they need to become involved, even goaded to do so as part of a pledge program. Again, this requires a commitment on behalf of the Greek system.
The incentive for the Greek community to foster a better first-year experience is clear: They gain a semester more of dues; can make housing available to an entire class of second years, rather than those who can break a previously-signed lease; and most importantly, will save tens of thousands of dollars spent on "dirty rush."
It is this illegal recruitment, done during the fall, which is fostered by a spring rush. Clearly, there are many first years who know they wish to pledge a house and take advantage of a semester of being wined and dined on the fraternity's tab. This creates an economic drain on the Greek system. Moreover, it fosters incentives for showing first years a good time without the positive aspects of a pledge program: Learning a strong work ethic, promoting leadership and involvement, not to mention the threat of an unregulated rush. By allowing the Inter Fraternity Council to run the recruitment process in the fall, greater control and regulation can be brought to bear on the organizations.
Spring rush has been tested at the University for some time now, and obviously leaves much to be desired for the Greek system. In order to promote a more academically prepared, involved and socially stable student body -
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