Panhel welcomes new sisters

Three hundred women went through the entire rush process, and 270 were offered bids last night. The screams of joy were deafening and the excitement palpable as hundreds of nervous freshmen women packed into Logan Hall's Terrace Room yesterday to receive their sorority bids. Bid day, the day when freshmen women learn which sororities they have been invited to pledge, marks the end of the sorority rush period, which began on January 18. According to Panhellenic Council Rush Chairwoman Cara Schmid, a College senior and Alpha Phi sister, only about 30 women -- out of 300 who rushed for the entire four-stage process -- were not offered bids. Four hundred and thirty two women originally registered for rush. After two weeks of social events and visits, the women ranked their top two choices on Saturday and waited to discover their Greek future. Although the atmosphere in the Terrace Room was tense at first, it quickly became celebratory as the women tore open their bid envelopes and shrieked in delight. "Everyone seems to be happy," Associate Director of the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs Debra Bonaminio said. Engineering senior and Phi Sigma Sigma sister Janet Duscher, who acted as a rho chi during rush, agreed. Of the women in her rush group, she said, "They all got their first choices -- I'm very happy for them." The women who got bids from their favorite houses were overjoyed as well. "Being in a sorority is something I've wanted to do for a long time," said College freshman Alison Rose, who got a bid from Phi Sigma Sigma. "When I got the phone call, I was so happy I was going to be in a house." Wharton freshman Maurene Preas, who received a bid from Pi Beta Phi, said she was also very satisfied. "I'm glad I met the girls in this house," she said. "They seem like really sweet, wonderful people, and I think I'm going to have a lot of fun with them." While most of the women were happy, there were a few who were not, because not everyone got her first choice. "It's a game of numbers sometimes," Bonaminio said. Just because some women did not get bids from their first-choice sororities, she continued, "it doesn't mean the chapters didn't like them. It's a matter of going from 300 girls down to 38." Bonaminio also said that women who are not happy with their bids can rush again next year. "Keep trying," she advised. "It's not a one-time shot." Some rushees did not receive bids at all, but they were notified by phone ahead of time and did not attend bid day. After the bid event was over, sorority sisters visited their new pledges' rooms to welcome them into the group with flowers and congratulatory posters. Many freshmen expressed relief that the rush process has finally come to an end. During the first two days of rush, rushees were led around to each of the eight sororities in the Panhellenic Council by rush counselors, or rho chis. After the initial open events, Panhel held three more rounds of rush. In each round, the sororities invited fewer women back and the women were allowed to visit fewer houses. The final rush events were preference parties, which were held on Saturday. Each rushee went to her two favorite houses where the sisters talked about what being in a sorority means to them. Following the preference parties, the rushees ranked the two houses, while the chapters decided on whom they wanted to offer bids.