Hillsdale has some well- known rivals — protestant versus Catholic, conservative versus libertarian, Simpson Residence versus everyone else — but one lesser-known competition is found within the Greek system of recruiting.
Sororities have a more effective system than fraternities, proven by the highest number of members, highest retention rates, and most Hillsdale-centric policies.
Spring rush offers the best system given the college’s distinct position. The freshman class size is typically about 350 students. With such a small pool of freshmen, Greek women and potential new members alike are uniquely situated to get to know each other through natural interactions during the first semester. The day-to-day behavior of a sorority member is what should inspire an observer to join that member’s Greek house. It is more truthful than a few recruitment parties over the span of a couple weeks.
Especially since many freshman picture Greek life as it’s portrayed at state schools, their first semester on campus shows them the genuine opportunities available specifically in the Hillsdale Greek system.
Members of Hillsdale’s sororities and fraternities are consistently the highest-achieving students on campus. Each semester the Greek average GPA is greater than that of the all-school average. The college itself highlights the Greek system as a positive force on campus, since it furthers Hillsdale’s mission through philanthropy, fellowship, and strong academic achievement.
“Our four fraternities and three sororities stress the importance of academics, character, leadership, and service to the community — all of which complement the mission of the College,” according to the school’s website. “Hillsdale College has been named one of the fifty best colleges in the nation for Greek life, according to Best College Reviews, which noted that our sororities and fraternities are ‘dedicated to making Hillsdale a better place.’ Over 30 percent of our students are members of Greek organizations. And as a group, they’re among our highest achievers.”
Jason Cimponer, the recruitment chair for the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity, said a lot of men on campus are more interested in rushing in the spring after taking the time first semester to understand more about Hillsdale Greek life. Although he said that it’s most beneficial to have both semesters as options to rush, Cimponer admitted the pledge class in the spring is typically larger than that of the fall.
“When guys come to campus some are hesitant, but then they see the character of ATO and how we hold ourselves to high standards on campus,” he said. “So that’s why I think you get guys who have taken it all in by the spring.”
The rushing system for women at Hillsdale is not without flaws. According to Anna Katherine Daley, the former Chi Omega sorority recruitment chair, each rushing season poses its own set of challenges. For example, a delayed recruitment process also opens the possibility for misconduct from sorority members in the form of ‘dirty rushing.’ Also, girls who could have gained a lot from a sorority and been a valuable addition to the organization, on the other hand, might miss out because of seeing a few misrepresentative women acting in bad taste.
However, Daley said she likely wouldn’t be in Chi Omega had the rushing process been first semester.
“I personally think that being delayed, especially for women, is better,” she said. “I think that it gives them an entire semester to take time to think about things and to mull it over.”
While both systems pose various advantages and disadvantages, the sorority recruitment system yields better results. Even the sorority with the lowest number of members, 80, far exceeds that of the fraternity with the highest number of members, 60, and more than twice the second highest number of members in a fraternity: 38. The average size of sororities are around double the size of fraternities.
For women, the actual formal recruitment process itself is only three days. After 45 minutes in some of the houses each day, the system gives a small taste of what the houses have to offer. At Hillsdale, however, one’s actions speak louder than words. Daley chose to join Chi Omega because of the values she saw members of the sorority display on a daily basis. Similarly, I knew I wanted to rush Kappa Kappa Gamma within weeks of my first semester because of the older girls I admired from class and cheerleading. Witnessing first-hand their diligence toward their work and kindness toward peers encouraged me to model my behavior after theirs.
Although men get to rush in the fall, as is normal for most fraternity and sorority rushing across the country, Hillsdale is different and should be treated as such. For our school, this process aligns with the college’s type of student and garners the best results for the Greek system — and, therefore, students overall.
Allison Schuster is a senior studying politics. She is an Associate Editor for the Collegian.