Joining a fraternity or sorority at Ferris has a specific process, but it is a worthwhile experience.
Ferris nursing senior Leanna Kwilos is a member of Zeta Tau Alpha at Ferris State University, and she explained that spring recruitment is a little less formal and they do their formal recruitment in the fall. Spring recruitment is very structured and split up into three days. This semester, ZTA has 35 active members, and are looking for six more girls to join their sorority.
In the fall, at the end of day three, girls are given a bid by a sorority if the connection is right and the meeting sessions went well. In the spring, continuous open bidding occurs, which means bids can be handed out anytime to a girl that is interested in joining.
Ferris social work sophomore Taylor Gentle is a member of Phi Sigma Sigma and said that when joining a sorority you gain a huge support system to turn to for any reason and obtain communication skills, great opportunities, a great sense of sisterhood and a home away from home. Phi Sigma Sigma is hoping to gain nine girls this semester through spring recruitment.
Ferris biology and psychology junior and the Alpha Sigma Tau President Camryn Booms said that she gained leadership experience and opportunities and has developed so much over the last few years she has belonged to this sorority. She has also developed connections and relationships and has acquired a job from the sorority, leadership positions and travel opportunities from AST.
On the fraternity side of Greek Life, things are a bit different. Ferris history junior Larry Bogus is the Inter Fraternity Council President and Sigma Pi member. He shared that in the spring it is the exact same process as in the fall; the turnout in the fall has a lot more incoming freshmen who are interested in joining Greek Life though.
The spring has fewer men interested because most begin college knowing if they want to join a fraternity or not, but several do decide to settle in their first semester, then rush in the springtime. Bogus described spring recruitment as the process to get young men to see if they want to join a brotherhood and fraternity.
“They get to experience each fraternity and go to a room and get a slideshow presentation about the fraternity and talk to the brothers and ask questions to see what they are all about,” Bogus said.
Sigma Pi currently has 26 active members, but are hoping to gain around 10 new members this semester to make their fraternity grow. There is no capacity for how many members can join a fraternity on campus.
Kyle White, a junior facility management major and Sigma Alpha Epsilon President, explained that there are four or five events held by each fraternity over the next two weeks for new members, and these events give the men a chance to get to know the brothers in the fraternities on campus and see which one they are interested in joining. SAE has 24 active members, and are hoping to gain another 14 or 15 to their brotherhood.
Casino night, game night, fraternal house of pancakes − where new members make pancakes for potential new members − and watching the Super Bowl together are events hosted by SAE this spring. The events vary from fraternity to fraternity. Formal interviews are held after the other events as well, which are invite-only. The fraternities proceed from there, giving bids to men they feel are a right fit for their brotherhood.