The Evolution of Greek Life
“You are what you recruit,” says consultant, David Stollman, to fraternities and sororities on campuses across the country.
“We claim to seek high quality members who will lead our chapters into the next century, yet we often end up with members from the shallow end of the gene pool!”
Stollman has been consulting with fraternity chapters, national organizations and campus Greek Councils for nearly ten years on the subject of recruitment. He has spoken on more than 250 campuses and served on the faculty of numerous university and fraternity leadership conferences nationwide.
According to him, fraternities need to change their methods to fit today’s changing student. It is no longer sufficient to advertise in the paper or put up a few flyers on campus and then expect people to come flocking to us, Stollman says. Instead, fraternities and sororities need to think about what kind of members they want and then go out and get them.
In the fraternal world, survival of the fittest is a rule of thumb. Some chapters thrive while others hang near extinction. Struggling groups must approach member recruitment in new ways in order to be successful in today’s campus climate.
Stollman’s motto is, “recruit, follow, or get out of the way!” Where and how chapters look for new members is important, he says. “Chapters have to be ready to do things differently and accept change in order to prosper,” he stresses.
Too many chapters are content to sit back and wait for those people who are interested in joining. Far too often, he says, those are not the members we want. Unfortunately, many of the students are the ones who know us by our negative stereotypes. They believe in the Animal House image, and that is what they are looking for. These people are not often productive chapter members, but they are often the ones that give Greeks a bad name and help perpetuate the negative image.
On March 26, 2004 at 10am, David Stollman, will appear at the 57th National Convention to speak to Alpha Rho Chi about recruiting the members we need. For more information about attending his presentation, contact Greg Pelley, WGA, at 704-333-2811 or via email at apxwga@alpharhochi.org.
