About two weeks following formal recruitment for sororities, the seven fraternity chapters on campus began their own, and rather different, process for recruitment. As the sororities hosted very structured events, or parties, to get to know their potential new members, the fraternities took a different approach.
Because of the drastic difference in numbers of potential members, the many parties over the span of three days was not the direction that the Inter-Fraternity Council chose when recruiting new members. They used a system that involved interviews, games like cornhole and movie events to find their newest members. This process took a few days while classes were in session, leading up to Friday, Jan. 24, which was Bid Day and Men’s Walk.
While some of the men entered recruitment uncertain of which fraternity was the right fit, others felt like they already knew where they belonged. Since recruitment took place in the spring, many of the men had had the entire semester prior to get to know the different fraternities on their own terms.
“I showed interest in the fraternity that I liked throughout last semester, so when it came time for recruitment, I already had an idea of who I wanted,” said freshman Forrest Morrill, who received a bid from Sigma Nu.
Freshman John Rambo, a Sigma Nu pledge brother of Morrill, added, “So when we said that we were looking to go Greek, they decided on whether or not they wanted us, and that was that.”
On Bid Day, the men waited all day to see if they would receive a bid to their fraternity of choice. Around 4 p.m., they made their final decisions to accept their bids and participate in Bid Day. At that same time, the active members of the fraternities circled around the back entrance of the Lankford Student Union and set up to receive their newest members during Men’s Walk, where the men who accepted bids ran to their fraternity.
“I was so nervous, I ended up skipping all of my classes that day except for one. But once I got that call to get my bid, it was an indescribable feeling,” Rambo said.
Students from all over campus attended Walk in order to support Greek life. Sorority members, in particular, were encouraged attend. Tayler Morris, freshman and new member of Zeta Tau Alpha, said she felt a connection during her first experience at Men’s Walk.
“Watching the boys find their new homes only two weeks after we did was unreal,” Morris said. “It’s hard to imagine that just two weeks ago, I was going through the moment of finding my home away from home. It was polar opposite as well because I think with us girls it was a complete emotional roller coaster. I think, while it may have meant something different to them, in the end we are all watching amazing people find a place where they belong. It is complete happiness that fills you, seeing this sense of belonging and love evolve.”
After waiting through the fall semester, many of the men found their places in their chosen chapters for the next two to four years, depending on their academic status.
“Guys pretty much know who they want to go to,” Morrill said of the differences between fraternity and sorority recruitment.
Morrill continued, “And for me, at least, I’ve been hanging out with them since the very beginning of first semester. So it’s not like we go through all of these events [to] see if they like us; it’s like we find a place that we can feel comfortable that’s almost like home to us. For us, Sigma Nu just felt right.”
Longwood students gathered behind Lankford Student Union to watch as the men of Longwood fraternities welcomed their new members during the IFC Men’s Fraternity Walk on Friday, Jan. 24. Connor Ackermann, Joe Bass, Tim Miller and Joey Siberd, among their other Sigma Nu brothers and IFC President Montu Jani, welcome one of their new pledges as a new member. Sigma Nu had a total of 11 new members, and more than 50 men walked overall.
