Fall Rush '07 Numbers.

[banditone]

Fall Rush should be coming to an end for most chapters. When you hear of a chapters Pledge Class totals, post them here! Thanks.

[TrevorG]

Are you all already back in school? Classes don't start for me until the 22nd, and we don't have rush until October.

[Kevin]

Yeah, I don't think our guys have rush for awhile.

[ARSigmaNu]

Yeah, our's isn't til October either. 50 or so is my guess. Depends on the quality of the guys.

[KyleMcGuire1983]

I think a lot of Southern schools rush in the summer actually....they're just that damn cool

[Kevin]

I think a lot of Southern schools rush in the summer actually....they're just that damn cool

I don't see why everyone doesn't do it. Imagine if y'all headed into formal rush essentially knowing who was going to get a bid card and who would sign?

[KyleMcGuire1983]

I don't see why everyone doesn't do it. Imagine if y'all headed into formal rush essentially knowing who was going to get a bid card and who would sign?

a lot of us are at commuter campuses or at campuses where being greek isn't "cool" so we have to hunt people down during rush....

or schools where IFC is extremely picky about when you can start bidding

[Kevin]

a lot of us are at commuter campuses or at campuses where being greek isn't "cool" so we have to hunt people down during rush....

or schools where IFC is extremely picky about when you can start bidding

1) I went to a commuter college as well.. at least it was one. It's sort of transitioning to a more traditional school as it grows. That doesn't mean that we didn't go after kids from high school who we knew would be good prospects during the summer.

2) IFC rules can and should be changed when they hurt the entire greek system. You can have summer events which aren't recruitment events per se. Just have them be socials.. do camping trips, river trips, stuff like that. Invite whoever -- prospects, girls, etc. Talk up the entire fraternal system while you have those guys there. You should be able to at least get away with that until you can lobby IFC for some reform which will benefit everyone.

[banditone]

Wow. We'd have open rush all summer (informal). And when school started we'd already, pretty much have our pledge class. Then when we got back in school we'd have formal rush, which EVERYONE hated.

It usually went
Summer Rush 98% of the pledge class.
Formal Rush 2% of the pledge class.

[ARSigmaNu]

or schools where IFC is extremely picky about when you can start bidding

That's us. We rush guys hard all summer, but can't do anything "official" for a couple more months. It's no big really, it gives the guys a chance to visit all the houses and meet the guys in their native environment, go to a few parties, and start to form their own opinion.

[TrevorG]

How the hell does this summer rush work. 98% of our fraternity goes home for summer, many way to far away to come do anything. Only a few freshmen will be from the local area.

[Kevin]

How the hell does this summer rush work. 98% of our fraternity goes home for summer, many way to far away to come do anything. Only a few freshmen will be from the local area.

Some chapters around here actually rent Summer apartments in OKC and Tulsa where brothers will live and recruit out of. They're like little rush war rooms.

At any rate, you could probably do something like that -- have your strong recruitment people room with each other over summer and just work on putting together a good pledge class.

Also, we make sure everyone is in touch with guys from their high schools who would fit with us, etc. It's not all that tough. I'm probably not the best person to comment on what my chapter is doing these days, but in the past, summer was a 365-day-a-year proposition.. and it should be.

[SNUIGC]

We've been trying to recruit some all summer....basically talking it up to everyone we know, parents, wearing our letters, etc... however, kinda tough when nobody knows you really (since we're just getting back)

As to our rush... we actually extended bids in the last of the spring semester for fall... extended a couple over the summer... meaning we have 7 candidates for the Fall...however, we're hoping for at least 13 more so we can double our current numbers.

[Kevin]

We've been trying to recruit some all summer....basically talking it up to everyone we know, parents, wearing our letters, etc... however, kinda tough when nobody knows you really (since we're just getting back)

As to our rush... we actually extended bids in the last of the spring semester for fall... extended a couple over the summer... meaning we have 7 candidates for the Fall...however, we're hoping for at least 13 more so we can double our current numbers.

Very nice! Now, do be careful that your chapter is ready to work as hard to retain these guys as you did to get them in the first place. You only double your chapter size if these guys are initiated. If they drop or get cut, all of this energy you've spent on rush is wasted.

-- I'm not saying you're going to have a problem, retention was just something that plagued us when I was active.

[banditone]

University of Georgia (Mu) got 20 candidates for fall, per their website.

[KyleMcGuire1983]

San Jose State Update: After 2 events we have about 15 guys we're interested in. We still have two weeks to go and plenty of guys to meet. Unfortunately school started on a Thursday, so by Friday the campus was dead and only three of us fraternities actually had events (DU, Pikes, and us). I'm sure by Monday things will be back to full swing and Rush will get big. Our bid goal is 25-30 with 20 guys getting Knighted.

We might try adding a Riley University type day to our Candidate program for like a Saturday. If you don't know about Riley University I recommend you talk to National about it, it basically teaches you Fraternity crisis management...

[Kevin]

Things are going well at Central Oklahoma. No numbers yet, but what I hear is very encouraging.

[ZK761]

One thing IFC recently changed was that we can't hand out bids till the day before rush week ends. They want to stop the "dirty rushing" and give everyone an equal chance. They are starting to implement the same rules to IFC as the sororities. The way I see it, if you can't get guys to come to your house and want to rush it, then you need to change something or do something to capture peoples attention

[banditone]

Things are going well at Central Oklahoma. No numbers yet, but what I hear is very encouraging.


That's great to hear Kevin. And if you find out anything about OSU or OU pass it along please. I'm very interested in OU to see if they are rebounding still. Not so worried about OSU's numbers :rolleyes:

[Kevin]

OU should be doing well with that recent 1.5 million makeover for the house.

[SigmaNuHX766]

So far so good @ Eta Chi chapter... we have about 12 interested guys, and our first event isn't until tonight.

We're media-blitzing campus this year. Facebook, ODU TV (3 of our bros are working for the channel, including me), the student paper, and all 55 of us are out there in letters, in rush shirts, etc. every day.

This is going to be a huge semester for us. It has to be... we're losing 40% of our guys to graduation by May.

[banditone]

Kevin, I knew they were going to do some work on the house, but had no idea they already started, or that it would be 1.5mil worth. Nice.

HX766 - Good luck brother. I hope you guys pull a monster class.

[SigmaNuHX766]

Just got back from the event... excellent turnout! We had a total of about 80 guys there (including brothers)!

This looks like it's going to be a good semester.

[Kevin]

Kevin, I knew they were going to do some work on the house, but had no idea they already started, or that it would be 1.5mil worth. Nice.

HX766 - Good luck brother. I hope you guys pull a monster class.

Actually, they finished a couple years ago.

It's VERY nice on the inside.

Still looks iffy outside :)

[banditone]

I was going to say.... I was on campus not too long ago, and it looked a bit rundown from the outside. I haven't been inside in well over 10 years.

[TrevorG]

Our Rush is in mid October, but so far we've had easily the best recruitment semester in my memory. We have have a number of guys who have flat out said that they are extremely interested, and several others who are asking the lead up questions. We've got a great buzz going on campus, which is great since in the past we've sort of floated under the radar. I'm extremely excited by the turnaround, and psyched to see the level of momentum we have going into Rush.

[SNUIGC]

No firm news yet, as our Rush doesn't start til the 9th...but, we definitely have alot of people that are interested and have been over to the apartments to hang out.

...also, it kinda sucks, we only have 1 night... since we don't have a house yet (colony and all) we're going to be doing it at either the Phi Mu house or the Delta Delta Delta house (which is good because they're both power houses at our campus)
, but, we only have 1 night due to them having to completely abandon their house until we're done (IFC/PHP/NHP rules here).

[banditone]

That is extremely cool that they would help you guys out like that. I hope it goes with the Tri-Delt house. I've got a thing for those gals :rolleyes:

[SNUIGC]

Haha, well, if you like that, get this... one of the 2 for-sale houses on campus (actually, the main house we're looking at wanting to buy) is right next door to the tri delt house....actually less than half an acre away. :D

[banditone]

LSU chapter (Phi) took around 16 guys. Not bad considering they are just getting back on that campus.

[dover]

We had the honor of having 22 new members join this week!

It was 21 or 22 ... don't quote me on 22. :D

[banditone]

Rock on Central Florida. Have you guys got into a house yet? Can't you lease one of the houses from a chapter that's been booted?

What is the university doing with the Pike house, SAE house, and I think Phi Kap?

[dover]

No... UCF has tried to get the houses now and no one knows what is going to happen. Right now SAE, Sigma Phi Epsilon, and PIKE are all not lived in and Greek Park 2 was supposed to be constructed by 2006/2007. But with all things it was pushed back. We make due and continue to push.

It ended up that we had 22 but one couldn't do it this semester so we pulled in 21 quality guys! We are so excited down here.

No house yet but we are slowly working on it. We are coming along though and I am just excited to see all these guys on a regular basis again.

Our Recruitment chair busted his butt to get us where we are and I know I am very grateful for the commitment he has shown. He "Did Work!"

[Kevin]

Not bad at all!

Congrats Mu Psi!

[Zipcreature]

I don't see why everyone doesn't do it. Imagine if y'all headed into formal rush essentially knowing who was going to get a bid card and who would sign?

We're trying this this semester for the first time. We've one legacy whose older brother was our commander last year, and severel others who we believe are worthy of a bid.

Pre-bidding is for guys we have already hung out with for several weeks and like what we see. Hopefully once they get a pre-bid they will actually help us recruit others, and it also asks them to make a commitment to us that they won't accept a bid from another fraternity, so they are in a sense 'locked in' to Sigma Nu.

[SigmaNuHX766]

Well, Rush is going great here so far! We have about 30 guys that are definitely interested, and 2 weeks left of Rush before the last round of bids go out (we do 3 rounds of bids, then begin LEAD I).

As promised, here are some photos of our badass Rush T-shirts:
http://photos-b.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v112/134/89/704142080/n704142080_128389_4422.jpg
Front view, as modeled by HX 785, Daniel Sensi

http://photos-d.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v112/134/89/704142080/n704142080_128387_3877.jpg
Back view as seen on Ryan Blank, HX 720. It reads "Walk in our shoes... or stand in our shadows." (I'm on the right)


Some event photos:
http://photos-080.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sctm/v121/134/89/704142080/n704142080_143879_9280.jpg
Bowling Night (tonight)... about half of those pictured are rushees/bid recipients

http://photos-b.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v112/134/89/704142080/n704142080_128337_936.jpg
16-way Halo tournament in the student center

http://photos-d.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v112/134/89/704142080/n704142080_128263_2278.jpg
Football on the quad... getting organized.

http://photos-d.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sctm/v121/134/89/704142080/n704142080_142195_9786.jpg
Kicking Pi Kappa Alpha's ass in IFC Flag Football on Foreman Field.

http://photos-a.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v112/134/89/704142080/n704142080_128392_5274.jpg
Rush kick-off BBQ at Eta Chi #2's house (he was our 1st commander, and one of the 5 founders).

[KyleMcGuire1983]

SigmaNuHX766 we used those SAME shirts in Fall 2005! Same back too....man I love that shirt. We're talking about getting some again next semester.

San Jose State Unviversity got 17 Candidates, official as of tomorrow (Thursday) at noon! This is our largest starting pledge class for the entire decade (yeah we've had our share of struggles) and we're very excited to see our chapter continue to grow!

SNETT!

[banditone]

Very cool shirt, I love it. Also love the Sigma Nu flag going with you out on campus.

Good job San Jose, now you need to make sure your brotherhood knows it's up to them to take an interest in helping these candidates reach their goal of initiation - a 17 man class can pave the way to larger things :cool:

[SnuKnight172]

The Lambda Chi chapter at Cal State San Bernardino has yet to start school. They have been doing recruitment over the summer and are going into rush with 30 names.

I facilitated a rush workshop with them on Sunday and set their goal at 250 names 30 Guests at events 20 - 25 bids and then initiating 15-20 guys. A class of 10 - 15 would be average for us but tops on campus. Trust me they will all be quality guys as well.

Best of luck to everyone.

[SigmaNuHX766]

We just got our 17th bid acceptance, and 5 bids are still out, with more nominations next week... 1 more week until we stop bidding and start Lead I.

This is our biggest candidate class since we were a 100 man chapter in the 1970's!

Also love the Sigma Nu flag going with you out on campus.

Sigma Nu flag: $30 on Ebay
improvised flagpole: $12 at Home Depot
Turning heads when you run an event on campus: Priceless. :)

[ZK761]

LoL flag on ebay...i can't find Sigma Nu stuff as much anymore on ebay

[Salamandar]

I think LU ended up with around 9 or 10, probably 8 or 9 by now as a few tend to flake during the first week or two. I have yet to meet any. I hear one is a 3rd generation legacy though. I'll have to check for sure the next time I am able to get to the house.

[SNUIGC]

Mississippi State - Iota Gamma colony coming in with 3 we picked up in our ONE DAY for this Fall rush... plus the others we've picked up in the spring that will be going through it this semester... giving us an unofficial total of 8 candidates for the Fall... LEAD I beginning in October.

[Kevin]

Excellent work. Iota Gamma.

I don't have the numbers from Mu Tau yet.

[AXi1257]

I heard theta beta chapter got 5... thought you might like to know. :)

[ealymc]

Lambda Phi at Central Arkansas has now picked up 6 gentlemen, I do believe.

[ARSigmaNu]

We just got 40 of the biggest ballers on this campus! Gamma Upsilon, UofA

[Kevin]

Mu Tau got 13.

[banditone]

way to go guys!!!!

AR, good to see Gamma Upsilon getting back up to the top! Do you know how the other houses did? (curious about EX and KE's classes)

[Zipcreature]

Mu Gamma's Alpha Gamma class is 9 guys; another 'largest class' since Pi class 5-6 yrs ago! Its great seeing everyone coming out with these strong numbers - we must be doing something right guys ;)

[Kevin]

I'll repeat here what I told someone from our active chapter. As leaders, you guys need to make sure that your chapters don't look at these great classes and rest on their laurels. Getting good guys isn't that tough. Keeping them and developing them is MUCH more difficult. Make sure the entire chapter is focused on making LEAD a success. Now is not the time to kick back and marvel at what you've accomplished. There'll be plenty of time for that once you graduate :)

Congrats guys.

[ARSigmaNu]

way to go guys!!!!

AR, good to see Gamma Upsilon getting back up to the top! Do you know how the other houses did? (curious about EX and KE's classes)
Not sure on numbers, KE especially usually takes huge classes. I am biased, but I'm pretty sure that we got better guys than all of them, pretty much all the top guys had us, EX and KE as their top three on pref night, with EX being the only one that really took anybody that we wanted. We took guys from everybody. There weren't as many signed up for rush this year, I think only 509? Had above average drop out rates as well.

[banditone]

Dude, you are still freshly back to campus, and you took 40??? That is greatness man, you tore it up...

NOw, How anyone would pledge a chapter called "fabulous" is beyond me. Might as well put highlights in your hair. :rolleyes:

[SNBullet]

Zeta Sigma is Gettysburg got 14 this semester, that doubled our numbers. We were at 9 coming in. We look to get 2-3 more in the spring. its going to be a good year.

[banditone]

Good stuff Getty's!

[SnuKnight172]

The Lambda Chi chapter at CSUSB will be extending 33 Bids today. Doubling + 2 the chapter from 31 to 64 guys. By far the best and largest chapter on campus. By Thanksgiving break I would suspect that the Candidate class will be down to 25 or so solid guys. If all 33 were to initiate it will brong total badge numbers to 299.

[LyonLuv]

I'm the Mu Iota Sweetheart and I can't tell you how happy it makes me to see my Sigma Nu's all around the country doing so well!

[banditone]

Ole Miss chapter took 40 men this fall according to their website.