Rushes put their name on the dotted line

Over 400 freshmen and sophomore men packed a Logan Hall auditorium for nearly an hour last night to make their formal commitment to an Interfraternity Council fraternity. Rushes signed bid cards to accept or reject offers to become members of an IFC fraternity. Bid signing culminated the five weeks of the IFC rush period, where houses try to recruit students they feel will fit into their fraternity. The rushes, most of whom will begin pledging as early as tonight, climbed over chairs and crowded around IFC executive board members to receive their bids. But before they lined up, they sat restlessly on the edge of their seats of the lecture hall chatting with their friends with most paying only partial attention to the reflective remarks by IFC officers and Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs Assistant Director Eric Newman. Newman cautioned the prospective brothers that once they became members of a fraternity, their actions as individuals would reflect on their house, citing the Psi Upsilon kidnapping as a situation where an entire chapter suffered for the actions of "a few people." IFC Vice President for Rush David Hecht congratulated all those who received bids and said that they were fortunate to be involved with the University fraternity system. "You're coming into an era where fraternities dominate every aspect of this campus," Hecht said. He added that being offered a bid to a fraternity meant that the fraternity trusted them with fate of the chapter. "They've given you their future," Hecht said. "You become the future of the fraternity you bid." Most students signing bids said last night that their choice was easy, but a few said they agonized up to the time they signed their bids on which house they would choose. "I liked all the people I met," College sophomore Ken Liu said. "It was a difficult decision. I made up my mind an hour [before bid-signing]." And while many people said they were excited to begin "non-hazing" pledging, at least one pledge said he wasn't looking forward to it. "I'd rather just become a brother, but I guess you can't," College freshman Brian Levin said.

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