Revised: 'Going Greek'

Jordan Wulforst

12 September 2011

‘Going Greek’

426 words

With 1300 freshman girls waiting to wear their letters, and Ole Miss Greek rush right around the corner, the question of adding more sororities on campus has intrigued many students.

Junior Bentley Bryant, recruitment team member for Kappa Kappa Gamma, commented on the matter. “It is unbelievable how many girls are going out for rush this year, we are so excited and expect to have a pledge class of 130 to 140 girls, versus last year’s 88,” Bryant said. “There has been a lot of talk about the addition of possibly two new sororities.”

Bryant explained that adding two new sororities on campus would be a beneficial thing. Rush would be less exclusive having eleven sororities, making it so that every girl has a home and a choice.

The question would be whether the school could handle adding two more sororities. The addition of two new sorority houses on campus would mean finding land to build them on and the finances to support it. This could mean that the sororities added to campus may not have a house, and if they do it most likely would not be on campus.

Sophomore Anna Kathryn Ward, Phi Mu rush team member, also spoke about rush this year and the possible addition of new sororities. “Last year Phi Mu took its largest pledge class consisting of around 100 girls. It is hard to say how many girls Panhellenic will allow us to take this year because of last year’s rush,” Ward said. “The addition of more sororities would be an awesome thing. It would really expand Ole Miss Greek life and strengthen the program. I know that there is major talk of adding sororities, and I really hope they do.”

Many sororities are eager for new charters to be set up on campus, this definitely taking some “rush pressure” off of the actives. For rush 2011, sororities will have to make wise decisions on what girls they can accept due to grades, and other factors that will affect a girl’s rush process. “Some sororities on campus are on probation for grades and have a very strict grade policy, this is definitely going to make the rush process more selective,” Bryant said.

Greek rush in the next couple of years may be looking at the slow addition of new sororities. Greek life is very popular at Ole Miss, while choosing not to rush is as well. Ole Miss is expected to grow in undergraduate student size in the years to come, which could possibly means a higher interest in Greek life.