Section
Pepperdine Links
Online Publications
Choosing a sorority can be an overwhelming experience. During recruitment, a Potential New Member will find herself faced with rooms filled with girls singing loudly and smiling brightly.
This persuasive appeal can become a fog that is difficult to see through. Recruitment counselors are there to guide potential new members through the chaotic process.
A recruitment counselor, or Rho Chi, is a woman who voluntarily disaffiliates from her sorority to help potential members go through the recruitment process with a non-biased view.
Each Rho Chi comes from one of the seven sororities on Pepperdine’s campus. This year there are 34 Rho Chis. One Rho Chi from each sorority serves on the Panhellenic Executive Board, which oversees recruitment.
Chris Van Velzer, student organizations coordinator, chooses the other Rho Chis based on their applications and interviews. The desire to be a Rho Chi is one of the main characteristics Van Velzer said he looks for in the applicants.
“I really try to make sure people have a heart for others and aren’t just worried about their own chapter.” Another important quality is that each Rho Chi must be able to maintain a positive go-Greek attitude at all times.
With the stress and emotional levels running high the week of recruitment, Rho Chis need to be emotionally stable and calm so they are fully prepared to help, Van Velzer said.
Rho Chis stay non-biased by disaffiliating with their chapter during the month of recruitment. This means no letters, no talking to chapter members and their pictures must be taken off of Greek-related Web sites or scrapbooks.
“I miss my sisters so much, and it’s hard not being able to talk to them,” head Rho Chi Lani Camacho said.
Chelsea Coons, a returning Rho Chi, said she finds it hard to see women getting upset when they have their hearts set on a certain sorority and don’t get called back.
“It’s difficult because I can’t do anything about it,” Coons said.
The decision about which sorority to join is made in just five days but can be lifelong commitment, and many women rely on the Rho Chis to help them make that decision.
Van Velzer said the Rho Chis serve as their own sorority over all the other sororities on campus. They create a special bond during the month of recruitment and rely on each other for advice and friendship just like they would with their own sorority sisters.
The Rho Chis don’t just spend their days helping potential new members and preparing for recruitment. They also have an annual retreat where they go out to dinner, play games and do activities that help them get to know each other better.
“I realized how amazing the Rho Chis are and how proud I am to be part of this group of girls,” said Coons about her retreat experience.
Camacho said being a Rho Chi has allowed her to build relationships with people whom she wouldn’t have otherwise gotten a chance to know. Rho Chis have the opportunity to get to know the freshman women in a different way than the women on the recruitment floor. Camacho said the most rewarding night for her is bid night.
“I love watching the potential new members get their bids, and then seeing the expression on their faces when they see which Rho Chis are in their chapter,” she said.
Being a Rho Chi is something that Camacho said she thinks every sorority member should experience. As a Rho Chi would say, “Go Greek.”
Submitted 09-22-2005
MALIBU, CA
