Sorry if this has been posted (I missed it), but how about this from Auburn's website:
"In 1992, the National Panhellenic Conference passed a resolution addressing letters of recommendation. The resolution, in part, states: "The responsibility of providing letters of recommendation for potential members rests with the members of NPC fraternities and recruitment information distributed through College and Alumnae Panhellenics shall contain nothing that infers letters of recommendation must be secured by the potential member." Each of the sixteen sororities at Auburn that participate in Fall Formal Recruitment is a member of the National Panhellenic Conference and is bound by this resolution" (I am adding here that Auburn actually has 17 sororities. This page apparently hasn't been updated
, but is the page you're taken to when in the 2013 recruitment section and click on the link about recs.)
https://fp.auburn.edu/greek/recommendations.htm
I knew about this NPC rule, but wonder how many sororities conducting recruitments for 1500 or more PNMs have the time to secure recs. However, the specific statement
recruitment information distributed through College and Alumnae Panhellenics shall contain nothing that infers letters of recommendation must be secured by the potential member may explain the position we're seeing on so many school Panhellenic sites where it has long been held that recs are mandatory. To say anything differently would be an NPC violation.
So -- how do we handle this? I still tell PNMs to GET RECS when going into these competitive recruitments. I have not seen anything valid to assure me that they have lost their importance...but I very much second adpiuf's suggestion about opening up dialogue with NPC groups about it. I am hearing from PNMs and parents about conflicting advice, including that SEC sorority women have told them recs are not needed, that they are not even looked at and that they mean nothing coming from alumnae who don't know the PNM personally...the idea seems to be that most recs come from avid "rec-writers" just shootin' 'em out the door.
Info varies depending on the school, though. Other PNMs/parents are still hearing that 2nd round won't happen without recs. Rec girls of mine who went through SEC rush just last year told me that, as the days progressed, it became very obvious their recs had been looked at. They were clued in when they were introduced to certain members who said, "We saw from one of your rec providers that you...whatever she did." At Tennessee's Panhellenic site, each sorority states how many recs are needed, and even the ones that say they aren't required still say they are recommended. The Ole Miss site says they are helpful in the recruitment process. Last year, they flat-out said they were often a tool for "managing the numbers" in large recruitments.
For now, I would say don't think about going into a competitive recruitment without them, no matter what the Panhellenic page says or what word on the street for your specific school is. But...I can sure see where they are extreme paperwork for sororities (imagine all 2000-plus Bama PNMs sending in 2-3 recs each. Yikes.) AND, if the perception is that most recs are coming from random alumnae just pulling from a resume, then yes, I can see where they carry less and less weight.
Let's talk.
