University of Oklahoma Panhellenic Association

Potential Members Guidelines and Regulations

Summer Contact

1. A chapter member, alumna member or anyone acting on a sorority's behalf shall not initiate contact in any manner with a potential member (i.e., a woman participating in, or going to participate in, formal recruitment week) during the summer months or anytime outside a scheduled formal recruitment event. Likewise, potential members may not be sent flowers, gifts, correspondence, mementos, etc. According to the NPC Manual of Information, "NPC believes that normal, social contacts should not be disrupted in the case of long-standing friendships by prohibiting all contact between sorority women and potential [members]. (Normal contact implies relatives, friends, neighbors, co-workers.) However, each sorority is charged with the responsibility of seeing that unfair advantage is not taken of such contacts."

2. No woman is eligible to join a sorority during the summer months.

3. A chapter member, alumna member or anyone acting on a sorority's behalf shall not imply to a potential member nor her family that she has an invitation to a party, ask her to pledge, nor imply that she will receive a bid.

4. A chapter member, alumna member or anyone acting on the sorority's behalf who is unknown to the potential member shall not contact a potential member nor her family for the purpose of soliciting photographs or other information.

Legacies

1. A legacy is defined as a granddaughter, daughter or sister of an initiated sorority member unless an inter/national organization recognizes additional relations.

2. A legacy may not be given any gifts by the sorority.

3. Potential members may not spend the night at a sorority house unless prior approval is received from the Panhellenic Adviser. However, a legacy (as defined above) is permitted to spend the night at a sorority house, upon invitation, during the academic year.

Formal Recruitment

1. Formal Fall Recruitment consists of five stages: Round 1 (Open House - all sororities visited); Round 2 Invitational (maximum of eight parties); Round 3 Invitational (maximum of five parties); Round 4 Invitational (Preference Party - maximum of two parties); Round 5 (Bid Day).

2. A woman must be an enrolled, full-time undergraduate student at the University of Oklahoma, Norman campus or University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, to be eligible to participate in formal or informal recruitment activities.

3. Potential members must register with the University of Oklahoma Panhellenic Association and pay the registration and housing fee to participate in formal recruitment. All women participating in formal recruitment must live in the residence halls during the week.

4. Potential members must abide by the Recruitment Guidelines published in the University of Oklahoma Panhellenic Association Recruitment Manual and National Panhellenic Conference UNANIMOUS AGREEMENTS.

5. Chapters may not allow potential members to leave the party with any item(s) received during the party (e.g., gifts, letters, napkins, cups, etc.).

6. Alcohol is prohibited during recruitment and new member activities.

7. Hotboxing and/or any inappropriate conversation are strictly prohibited. Hotboxing is defined as any situation in which the potential member is intentionally separated from typical recruitment activities by conversation and/or position. Parents, guardians or relatives of a potential member may not attend any recruitment party during formal recruitment unless the person is an official chapter advisor.

8. A potential member may not have guests (including family members) in her residence hall room from 7 p.m. on Thursday, August 13, 2009 until AFTER the distribution of Bids on Tuesday, August 18, 2009. All guests must be met in the lobby area of the residence hall.

9. Males may not participate in any recruitment event. Employees of the sorority may be in the chapter house during recruitment week, but may not have verbal contact with any potential member.

10. Potential members participating in formal recruitment must wear the nametag provided by Panhellenic during all formal recruitment week activities.

11. Potential members participating in formal recruitment must be in their own residence hall room every night by 11 p.m.

12. Potential members participating in formal recruitment may not visit any fraternity chapter house or any event/facility associated with a fraternity from 8 am Thursday, August 13, 2009 through noon, Wednesday, August 19, 2009.

13. Potential members must attend all formal recruitment events at the designated time. A potential member must receive prior approval from the Panhellenic Recruitment Chairman or the Panhellenic Adviser to miss any event during the week.

14. A potential member participating in formal recruitment shall not be, nor ever have been, an initiated member of a National Panhellenic Conference organization.

15. A woman is ineligible for membership recruitment if she has been a new member of an NPC sorority at the University of Oklahoma within the same calendar year.

16. A woman shall complete the "Membership Recruitment Acceptance" card immediately following the last preference event she attends. Once a "Membership Recruitment Acceptance" has been signed and submitted, no change may be made.

17. A woman signing a "Membership Recruitment Acceptance" card and receiving a bid at the end of formal recruitment shall be bound by the agreement for one calendar year at the University of Oklahoma.

18. Failure to follow any of these rules could result in dismissal from the formal recruitment process.