I’ve been writing recs since I graduated in 1974. The last couple of years I’ve been lucky enough to be working with a chapter during recruitment.
I’ve seen crap recs and great recs, both in SEC and non-SEC schools, and from all over the country. Southern ladies can write garbage recs as well as anybody else; non-Southerners can write wonderful recs. Depends on the alumna and her training when she was a collegiate.
A great rec is where the alum knows the girl, has known the family forever and can tell you cute stories about her from Sunday’s church service.
A great rec is also where the alum doesn’t know the girl, maybe doesn’t know the family, but knows people who know them – through church, school, work, etc. A great rec verifies grades, verifies honors, tells you something about her personality, morals, background…good or bad! Say Sally PNM says she was Junior Miss for her county, and the alum says she was 2nd runner-up Junior Miss (which has happened once or twice). This says worlds about the PNM – aren’t you glad you found out before you pledged her?? Or the alum lets you know about major drama, the family filed for bankruptcy, a parent was found guilty of murder…doesn’t happen often, but it does happen. That stuff you aren’t going to find on a PNM’s application.
OTOH,
a crap rec is where an alum just put in the same info the PNM did and signs. Tells us NOTHING about the girl…kind of like the rec where the alum meets the PNM for the firs time for a 20-minute coffee date. I hate those. It doesn’t help one bit. I'd just as soon have no rec!
I would not necessarily discount the girl with no rec. If they're interested, the chapters I’ve worked with do try to find out something about the girl.
As far as the entire chapter reading the rec, no, that doesn’t happen. Recs actually become more and more important toward the end of recruitment. A rec is a chance for an alum to say “go for it” or “warning.” It’s up to the chapter to make the final decision.
Busy work for the PNMs? I do hate that they’re told they have to get them. It shouldn’t be that way – it should be the chapter working with their alumnae to get them. Hard to get 2,000 of them without some help, though!
A few of you have bemoaned the fact that you wrote a rec or three, and the chapter didn’t pledge them.
Out of the 40 to 50 recs I write every year for girls from my hometown, maybe 3 or 4% pledge Delta Gamma. Plenty of years nobody pledges DG. That’s just statistics. You have to look at the long-term view. Out of 38 years, I have recommended 76 or so new Delta Gammas, and that’s not too bad!
