Greek Recruitment Advisory Committee

263 Pages·2014·5.18 MB·English

Greek
Recruitment
Advisory

Committee
Final Report
6/2/2014
Contents
Project Charter .............................................................................................................................................. 3
Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 4
Context and Background Information ...................................................................................................... 4
The Greek Community .............................................................................................................................. 4
Definition of Recruitment Models ............................................................................................................ 5
Fall Recruitment .................................................................................................................................... 5
Delayed Recruitment ............................................................................................................................ 6
Deferred Recruitment ........................................................................................................................... 7
Layers of Research .................................................................................................................................... 7
Seven Core Ideas ....................................................................................................................................... 8
Document Review ......................................................................................................................................... 9
Peer Institution Interviews.......................................................................................................................... 11
Staffing and Structure ............................................................................................................................. 11
Institutional Statistics .............................................................................................................................. 11
Greek Community Statistics .................................................................................................................... 12
Fall Recruitment Model .......................................................................................................................... 13
Deferred Recruitment Model ................................................................................................................. 13
Notable Analysis ...................................................................................................................................... 14
Stakeholder Survey ..................................................................................................................................... 15
Respondents ........................................................................................................................................... 15
Results ..................................................................................................................................................... 17
General Recruitment ........................................................................................................................... 18
New Member Experience ................................................................................................................... 18
Fall Recruitment .................................................................................................................................. 18
Delayed Recruitment .......................................................................................................................... 19
Deferred Recruitment ......................................................................................................................... 19
Alumni, Chapter Advisors, House Corporation Members .................................................................. 20
Additional Feedback............................................................................................................................ 20
Pro and Con Table ....................................................................................................................................... 21
Limitations .................................................................................................................................................. 29
Conclusions ................................................................................................................................................. 30
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Recommendations ...................................................................................................................................... 31
APPENDICIES ............................................................................................................................................... 33
I. Recruitment Review Committee Roster ......................................................................................... 34
II. Bibliography of Document Review .................................................................................................. 35
III. Peer Institution Interview Protocol............................................................................................. 36
IV. Institutional Interview Data ........................................................................................................ 39
VI. Town Hall Meeting Minutes ........................................................................................................ 66
VII. GRAC Meeting Minutes ............................................................................................................... 72
VIII. Stakeholder Survey Results ......................................................................................................... 90

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Greek Recruitment Advisory Committee
Project Charter
2013-2014
The purpose of this committee is to examine the current Greek recruitment structure and evaluate
Committee Purpose if it best fits the needs (academic, social, emotional, transitional, etc.) of incoming freshmen
students and the Greek Community.
This committee will research, examine, discuss and reflect on how different recruitment time
periods might impact incoming freshmen students and the Greek Community. The committee
Committee Description should also evaluate logistical feasibility of any specific recruitment time period. The committee
will provide recommendations based on findings to the Dean of Students. The final decision about
any recruitment time period modifications will be determined by the Dean of Students.
Sponsor Lori Berquam, Vice Provost for Student Life and Dean of Students
Committee Chair Barb Kautz-Wittwer, Assistant Director of Involvement, CfLI
Facilitator Office of Quality Improvement Facilitator, Nancy Thayer-Hart
Advisory Committee Members from programs and organizations below will serve for the 2013-2014 academic year.
Representation This committee will start in Fall 2013.
This committee will include important stakeholders from the Greek Community and the University
Community who can best speak to how timeline changes would impact: incoming freshmen
Scope
students, freshmen student parents and the UW campus. This committee will also take into
consideration, the impact on Greek Chapters, Greek Housing and Greek Councils/Community.
1. IFC representative-Trevor Donahue
2. MGC representative-Arturo "Tito" Diaz
3. NPHC representative-India Anderson-Carter
4. PHA representative-Claire Usher

5. House Corporation Board representative-Anne Lawrence
Members
6. Alumni Advisory Board representative-Troy Vosseller
7. University Housing representative-Phillip Werman
8. Center for First Year Experience Staff Member-Chris Verhaeghe
9. Center for Leadership & Involvement Staff Member-T.J. Sargent
 Recruitment time period needs to take place during the academic year
 Students are unable to move into the residence halls early for recruitment
Assumptions
 Deferred Recruitment will be one of the time periods that will be evaluated
 Recruitment dates will not conflict with any religious observances
 Committee convenes & receives charge
 Review of literature on first year experience/Greek recruitment
 Peer institutions interviews & data collection
Work Plan  Research & impact analysis (stakeholder survey)
 First draft of findings
 Final report due
 Presentation of findings to Dean of Students for review
The committee will present viable recruitment period options to the Dean of Students by end of
Deliverables
the Spring 2014 Semester. Each option will include a list of pros and cons and be based on a
(Recommendations)
literature review, peer institution data, and incoming freshmen student/stakeholder impact
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analysis.
Introduction
Context and Background Information
The Greek Recruitment Advisory Committee (GRAC) grew out of a situation during the fall of
2013 when the Panhellenic Association’s Recruitment Period overlapped with Jewish high holidays. The
Dean of Students Office was notified in April 2013 by campus area Jewish Student Support groups that
the conflict would likely affect the sizable population of Jewish women who are members of sororities
and also have the desire to observe and celebrate high holidays. Multiple meetings between the Center
for Leadership & Involvement Staff and Dean of Students Office Staff resulted in questions about the
challenges and benefits of recruitment as it was currently organized. These discussions resulted in a
desire to look further into recruitment process options, thus the committee charter was created.
Overall, the Dean of Students Office had a variety of concerns with Greek recruitment processes
at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. These concerns focused around the notion that current
recruitment processes could potentially be challenging to first-year students’ transition (academic,
social, emotional, etc.) to the UW-Madison campus. Additionally, when looking to match an individual
with a values-based organization, members within the Dean of Students Office questioned whether or
not it is plausible for an individual just out of high school to be able to identify their values and how the
values might match with organizational values. Overall, the Dean of Students Office Staff wanted to
know whether or not there was a better recruitment model and process for Greek-letter organizations
at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
In creating the committee, it was important to consider the engagement of students and staff as
part of the research and project. In doing so, representatives from across the four governing councils of
the Greek Community, as well as other integral areas that are affected by recruitment were included
(please see the committee roster in Appendix I for this information). The committee was charged with
investigating specific sources of information and research, which came to include: review of scholarly
literature and data, interviews and data collection on similar peer institutions, and analysis of the impact
on stakeholders throughout the Greek Community. Furthermore, the committee was to provide a list of
pros and cons for each recruitment model considered.
The Greek Community
Currently the Greek Community at the University of Wisconsin-Madison is organized into four
governing councils: Interfraternity Council (IFC), Multicultural Greek Council (MGC), National Pan-
Hellenic Council (NPHC) and Panhellenic Association (PHA). Each council serves as a representative and
governing body for the chapters with membership in the council. At the time of the report, the
community is comprised of 59 individual chapters and approximately 3,800 undergraduate chapter
members. This represents approximately 13% of the UW-Madison Undergraduate population.
The Interfraternity Council represents 30 men’s organizations, most of which are nationally
affiliated with the North-American Interfraternity Conference (NIC). The average chapter size is 63 and
18 of the organizations have official chapter facilities. While located within close proximity to the
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university campus, these properties are owned, managed, and maintained privately, often by a group of
organizational alumni known as an Alumni House Corporation.
The Multicultural Greek Council recognizes 10 fraternities and sororities, which represent a
number of different cultures and identities. The member groups of this council also hold national
organizational membership in the National Asian Pacific Islander American Panhellenic Group (NAPA),
National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations, Inc. (NALFO), and the National Multicultural
Greek Council, Inc. (NMGC). This council counts approximately 100 members in total membership. None
of the MGC organizations currently have official housing.
The National Pan-Hellenic Council is the collegiate governing council for the national umbrella
organization, National Pan-Hellenic Council, Incorporated. The chapters who are members of this
council are historically African-American in membership. On the UW-Madison campus, six or the nine
eligible organizations are recognized. NPHC total membership is approximately 60 undergraduate
students. No chapters currently have official housing locations.
The Panhellenic Association is comprised of 11 chapters who are nationally represented by the
National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) and two associate member chapters. Average chapter size is 163.
10 of the 11 NPC organizations have officially recognized chapter facilities, which, similarly to the IFC
organizations, are run by an Alumni Housing Corporation. Each of the 10 housed organizations also
employs a live in staff member, often referred to as a house mother.
Definition of Recruitment Models
Through the GRAC’s review of literature, described in further detail later in this document, three
options for recruitment models were determined to be plausible for investigation. These models would
each take place over a three -to four-week period during the academic year. However, the time of year
and limits on eligibility of participation were noted as the core factors differentiating each model.
Fall Recruitment
Fall Recruitment is the term used to refer to the current primary recruitment time frame that is
structured primarily for the IFC and PHA. While some MGC and NPHC organizations may take members
in the fall, these individuals are usually upperclassmen. A majority of MGC and NPHC intake activities
occur during the spring semester. Under this model, first-year and transfer students are allowed to
participate in recruitment activities and receive a bid to join an organization at any point during or after
the designated bid day.
The PHA organizes and facilitates the fall formal recruitment process as outlined in the NPC
Manual of Information (MoI). This process is designed to allow for a systematic and fair evaluation of all
chapters by potential new members (PNMs) and likewise for chapters to evaluate potential membership
for incoming individuals. The mutual selection process currently involves three rounds of recruitment
activities in which groups of PNMs visit chapters to interact with current members and learn about each
organization. The Panhellenic recruitment process is the most structured of any council, but also
provides organization for the 800+ women who register for the process each fall.
Campus total is evaluated for NPC organizations following the conclusion of the formal
recruitment process and uses both average chapter size and historical statistics in developing a
recommended number. Campus total is intentionally set so that at least half of the NPC groups will have
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the opportunity for Continuous Open Bidding (COB) during the spring semester, if not earlier. Chapters
whose membership is below the campus total may conduct recruitment activities and offer bids to
individuals until they reach campus total.
While Panhellenic recruitment for the fall of 2014 will take place over the course of four days,
the addition of another chapter will also necessitate the evaluation of the three event model and will
likely lead to a four event model in the near future where PNMs will have the opportunity to visit a
maximum of 12, 9, 6, and 3 chapters respectively during each event period.
According to the current PHA recruitment schedule, the first round of events takes place on the
Saturday and Sunday immediately preceding Labor Day, the second round takes place on Labor Day, and
the third round (Preference Night) takes place on the first Friday evening after classes begin. The
following Sunday is organized as Bid Day. Additionally, a recruitment orientation and organization of
recruitment groups, led by current PHA members (Rho Gammas) is held the Friday before the start of
formal recruitment (Friday before Labor Day). Women who are members of the PHA Executive Board
and Rho Gammas must temporarily disaffiliate from their chapters beginning one week prior to the start
of formal recruitment and extending until Bid Day.
Fall Recruitment is also the primary recruitment period for IFC chapters. Approximately 500 men
join IFC chapters each fall. The IFC provides a semi-structured recruitment schedule that involves a week
of IFC-hosted events in which all chapters have the opportunity to participate. The week of IFC-only
events begins the Thursday before instruction and extends through the end of the Wednesday after
instruction begins. Individual chapters may then hold recruitment events as they see fit. A semi-
structured bidding process allows for chapters to hand out bids and receive commitments
approximately two and a half weeks after they are first allowed to hold recruitment events.
All IFC and PHA chapters take part in dry recruitment. Alcohol is not permitted at chapter
functions until the Thursday after IFC bids are allowed to be handed out. Chapters are also not allowed
to host social events until that Thursday as well and must complete a six-item checklist before being
eligible to register and hold events.
Delayed Recruitment
This model would keep the same format described through the Fall Recruitment process, but
would shift the time of implementation to later in the fall semester. Structured recruitment periods for
both IFC and PHA would not begin until October and would likely conclude by early November at the
latest. PHA rounds would be conducted over the course of two to three weekends and IFC events would
be throughout a three-week period, similar to that described in the Fall Recruitment outline.
First-year and transfer students would be ineligible for a bid prior to the official bid day, likely in
mid- to late October. However, since the campus and Greek Life Office supports a 365 (year-round)
recruitment policy, upperclassmen would be eligible for bids before the start of the structured
recruitment “freeze” period during which recruitment events are being conducted. Using this model,
Panhellenic Executive Board members and Rho Gammas would likely be asked to temporarily disaffiliate
at the beginning of the fall Semester through Bid Day.
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Deferred Recruitment
The Deferred Recruitment model would again mirror the same functional setup as both the Fall
and Delayed options. The main difference here is that this model would place the organized recruitment
activities at the beginning of the spring academic semester. Additionally, recruitment events would
likely not take place until the first week of instruction, as opposed to prior to instruction as found in the
Fall Recruitment process.
First-year and possibly transfer students would not be allowed to accept a bid or participate in
recruitment activities until the spring semester. Again however, in keeping with the idea that the
campus and community support continuous recruitment operations, upperclassmen would be eligible to
participate and join organizations during the fall academic term. Panhellenic temporary disaffiliation
would likely run from the end of Thanksgiving break until bid day, likely in early to mid-February.
Layers of Research
In looking to conduct a structured and systematic evaluation of potential recruitment process
options and in order to address, as best as possible, questions posed by the Dean of Students Office, the
GRAC decided that multiple layers of inquiry were necessary. To this point, the committee deduced that
information should be gathered from: previous works and data collection from other researchers and
institutions relating to Greek recruitment and new student transition, peer institutions who may have
similar or different recruitment processes, and from Greek Community members and stakeholders. The
ultimate goal of this multi-layer approach was to provide the committee and Dean of Students Office
with a wide range on information and support for the pro and con list that was to be created.
The first of the three layers involved review of literature. A majority of this portion of the review
focused on articles and documents pertaining to orientation for first-year students, elements of student
success, research on deferred recruitment and new member education, and the effects of Greek
membership on academics and grades. The second layer of research involved interviews with peer
institutions, including other Big Ten universities and larger public colleges and universities. The
committee completed interviews with 11 institutions, three of which either currently utilize or have
utilized a Deferred Recruitment Model in the past. The eight remaining institutions currently operate
using a Fall Recruitment Model, similar to that currently in place at UW-Madison. None of the
institutions interviewed were currently using a Delayed recruitment Model. The final layer of research
involved an Impact Analysis Survey in order to collect input and information from various stakeholders
within the Greek Community. The survey included a variety of questions in order to gain information
regarding individual experience, as well as perceived benefits and disadvantages of the three different
recruitment models.
As a result of the information garnered through these formats and basic analysis that took place
after the conclusion of each layer, the committee added two additional data collection tools. The first of
these was a Town Hall style meeting, which allowed community members to directly speak with a
representative from both the committee and the Dean of Students Office. The minutes from this
meeting can be found in Appendix VI. In addition, during the town hall meeting it was requested that
chapters be afforded with the opportunity to provide an Individual Chapter Impact Analysis Report to be
included with the final report. After two requests, no Chapter Impact Analysis Reports were submitted
to the committee.
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Seven Core Ideas
As the committee began to gather large amounts of information from multiple sources, a
method of organizing the information into effective and easily identifiable categories became necessary.
In order to accomplish this organization, the committee used the original charter and reasoning for
creation of the committee, as well as preliminary information to establish a set of core ideas that were
integral to both the Greek Community and the recruitment process. These core ideas would then be
used in a matrix with the three different recruitment timeframes that were to be investigated to create
an organized and easily defined pro/con evaluation. The seven core ideas are as follows:
Academic Performance – how Greek students perform in the classroom. More specifically,
known and anticipated impacts on overall individual, chapter, and community wide semester
grade point averages.
Affinity for UW-Madison – strength of relationship and connection to all things that constitute
the University of Wisconsin - Madison. Interpreted for both undergraduate members and alumni
members.
High-Risk Behavior – use of and exposure to alcohol and other drugs. Also, acknowledging
hazing, sexual assault, or other physical/mental harm.
Housing Operations & Community Living – the business and financial workings of owning
and/or leasing a housing facility. An understanding of current University and surrounding area
housing information and practices. The impact of living in a space with other students and the
environment and/or programming provided for those residents.
Mental Health – psychological and emotional well-being of students. Especially in balancing
commitments, relationships, and expectations.
Social Skills – development of abilities used to communicate and interact with others, including
verbal, non-verbal, and proper decorum.
Student Involvement – understanding what a student does in addition to classroom time while
enrolled at the University. This could include lab/research work, clubs and organizations,
employment, sports and fitness, volunteering, etc.

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Document Review
Scholars and researchers who have analyzed Greek recruitment over the past 40 years have
identified both positive and negative aspects of fall, delayed, and deferred recruitment. Taking into
account student development theory, collegiate pressures, and long-term effects of the Greek
experience, they provide multiple angles from which to consider the three recruitment options. The
majority of studies discussed below focus on data regarding social sororities within the National
Panhellenic Council and social fraternities within the North-American Interfraternity Conference.
Academics, involvement, and retention emerge as major themes regarding the impact of Greek
recruitment and membership on the undergraduate experience.
When considering the academic impact of joining a Greek organization, it is important to
differentiate between the short and long term. Most scholars agree that for first-year students, joining
a Greek organization will likely negatively impact their GPA during that semester. The pressures of the
first or second semester of coursework and the time commitment associated with Greek membership
make it more difficult for newly affiliated students than for unaffiliated students to adjust to university
academics (Kuh et al., 2006). Numerous studies demonstrate that this affects men more than women;
affiliated women tend to earn higher GPAs than affiliated and unaffiliated men and unaffiliated women.
An unpublished study from Clemson University found that men’s lower academic performance during
the pledging semester was confined to that semester. It did not matter if pledging occurred in the fall or
the spring—the new members’ GPAs lowered during that semester and rose after (Auburn University,
2011; Pascarella, et al., 2006). But another study demonstrated that “deferring membership from the
first semester to the second semester had a significant impact on the academic performance of both
men and women” (DeBard et al., 2006). In a study conducted with data from a private, large
northeastern university in 1991 and 1993, the GPA gap between affiliated and non-affiliated students
that emerged in semester 1 had narrowed by semester 10, with the affiliated students maintaining
slightly higher GPAs (Nelson et al., 2006). Overall, while most studies conclude that joining a Greek
organization adversely affects the GPAs of men more seriously than women, the effect is short-lived and
confined to a single semester. Moreover, many researchers consider GPA to be only one measure of
multifaceted undergraduate intellectual growth.
Affiliating with a Greek organization usually increases students’ involvement across campus and
enriches their overall academic experience. Assuming that the values and goals of fraternities and
sororities are aligned with the host university, the Greek organizations can foster important out-of-class
learning for their members. Thus the earlier students join, the sooner they gain access to such
opportunities (Kuh et al., 2006; Nelson et al., 2006). Greek organizations can provide these
opportunities directly to their members through chapter-sponsored service, philanthropic, and social
events. They often also encourage members to engage in intramural sports, to attend other
organizations’ events, and to partner with other groups in academic- and service-oriented projects. All
these opportunities provide Greek students not only with social outlets, but also with additional learning
opportunities, both of which contribute to student satisfaction. The researchers who compiled a report
on student success, commissioned by the National Symposium on Postsecondary Student Success,
conclude: “Students who belong to Greek-letter organizations are generally as or more engaged than
other students in educationally effective practices” (Kuh et al., 2006).
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