[NYCAlumna]

Hello my fellow Greeks! I have read through all of the colonizing posts but have seen little about the process of a local sorority being absorbed by a national organization, so I am starting this post in hopes of being able to best help my chapter through this process.

I am the alumnae advisor of a VERY small local sorority that has been dormant for a few semesters on our campus. The girls we crossed last semester are incredibly dedicated to reviving our chapter, but our campus has become increasingly unsupportive of local growth. When I rushed, Greek life was a fraction of the size it is now, and locals out numbered the nationals. Since then, some very well known nationals have come to campus, some locals have been booted, and others absorbed. Mine is one of the last few, and we're hanging on by a thread. Seeing the writing on the wall, my girls made the hard choice to initiate the process of being absorbed and I am committed to helping them in every way I can. Our other alumnae have been informed, and were (shockingly) overwhelmingly supportive, considering the fact that this was a very unpopular subject when I was in school. In fact, some of our more active founding sisters have even stepped forward to say they support it. (We were founded 26 years ago by 28 women who broke off from their fraternity's sisterhood.)

But we are facing some unique challenges. Because of our dormant status and small size (4 active sisters) we don't have many current ties in the greek community. Their IGC advisor (same person it was when I was there) has even told them that it will be entirely up to Panhel who absorbs them. I know for a fact that according to the Green Book a local sorority is permitted, once the exploratory committee votes yes on expansion, to seek out and contact NPC sororities on their own. Is it because of our dormant status and small size that we are being told this? Are they allowed to do this, or do we have rights?

It is a priority for us that all of our alumnae are able to be initiated if they choose it, that we be able to incorporate the history of our local sorority into the chapter's new member process, and that we stay committed to recruiting diverse women of every race, creed, class, etc.

So in addition to the questions I've already asked, what are your experiences with "going national?" Which orgs were great, which ones not so much. How did the national treat the history of your local and how well did they work with you on respecting your legacy and traditions? We are willing to accept the new letters, symbols, meaning, history etc of a new organization, but we want to make sure it continues to be made up of women who will respect our past and our values.

All my thanks in advance,
NYCAlumna