Hey everyone,

I wanted to share some news with you that I've just received. If you all remember back to a couple of posts ago, I mentioned that I was going to give Rush Week a try. Well, once finding out the financial cost of joining the sororities, I decided to wait instead, at least until I felt more comfortable with the finances. And then, unexpectedly, I was contacted by one of the sororities on campus: Alpha Gamma Delta. 

She introduced herself as one of the campus representatives and wanted to let me know that the sorority was interested in recruiting me in a more personal manner called "Continuous Open Bidding". 

I'm not going to lie, I haven't heard about this type of recruitment before, so I was a bit hesitant at first. I tried researching some more information regarding this type of recruitment process, but I wasn't successful in finding some information, so I decided to compile this process in a singular post for all of those curious.

Continuous Open Bidding (COB) is a process that is typically conducted a short time after actual Rush Week. COB is usually done in an effort to meet a quota, however Potential New Members (PNM) are still sorted out beforehand to see if they're a good fit. COB can last anywhere from one meeting to a couple of them; all with current sisters. 

My first meeting was on September 21st at 9:30 in the morning. I had agreed to meet with a sister outside of Starbucks and go over any questions I may have. What I liked about the first sister was that she too, had gone through COB, meaning she knew firsthand what I was going through. While it was challenging coming up with questions about greek life and the greek scene at Manoa, I quickly became very comfortable and felt relieved at how informed she was. A little bit into our conversation and we were joined by another sister, this time a girl who had been in the sorority for 3 years. She was also very knowledgable about the sorority, and didn't hesitate resolving any of my concerns, such as why they were recruiting me. 

When I asked this question, "Why is AGD recruiting me?" I was met with an overall shocking answer. In complete honesty, the response was, "We are looking to meet a quota. We didn't reach our mark for this past Rush, so now we have about 17 other girls we're trying to recruit." I can't lie and say that I was disappointed by this answer, because I did see it coming, but I was definitely saddened. I knew there had to be another reason for them to be trying to get to know me all of a sudden, but "to meet a quota" was definitely not something I was prepared to hear. 

After my first "Coffee Date", as it was referred to, I have one more meeting and then will find out whether or not I'm going to be receiving a bid. As of right now, I'm really excited. I'm curious to hear more about the Greek life at Manoa, and I'm curious to hear more about the sisterhood within Alpha Gamma Delta. 

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My second meeting was the following Monday. This meeting was in the afternoon and would consist of me sitting down with the same girl from the first "date" along with a new sister. This meeting was much shorter, with the girls asking me if I had any questions. When my questions were answered they told me that I would hear from a sister shortly with a possible bid. In total the meeting lasted 10 minutes.

I heard from the next girl a few days later, receiving a long text that congratulated me on my acceptance and ended with an offer into the sorority. 

While I was initially thrilled, it soon hit me that the entire basis of them even reaching out to me was to "meet a quota". I had a hard time looking past that, and even after talking about it with Daniel I started to realize I could not be in the sorority. 

I can't be in a group that does not want me for me. I cannot be in a group that needs me only to "meet their mark". And, above all, I cannot be in a group that I did not work for.

For all of you curious about the greek life at Manoa, this is it. This is what could very well be your own experience, but by no means is this a holistic representation of the greek life. 

Until next time,

Aislinn