“I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be.” ― Douglas Adams, The Long Dark Tea-time of the Soul.
First I would like to thank all of the fraternities at Rollins for hosting and entertaining the new class of pledges this rush season. Is participating in rush worth it? Short answer: yes. Long answer: YESSSSSSSSSS.
But in all seriousness, my decision to rush was a great one. I rushed for many reasons: I wanted to meet other guys, have a good time, and of course, eat some free food. Each fraternity at Rollins has a rich history to share with all prospective brothers. Going from one chapter to another, I met some truly awesome guys and I would like to say thank you – thank you for being so welcoming, not just to me, but to the entire Rollins Spring 2014 Rush class.
At Rollins there is no such thing as a bad fraternity, each is unique, and there is a place for everyone, whether it’s in Lambda Chi Alpha or Chi Psi. Just going through the process of rushing, I made friends I know I will stay in touch with long after I graduate.
At Rollins College there are five fraternities recognized by the college: Lambda Chi Alpha, Tau Kappa Epsilon, Chi Psi, Phi Delta Theta, and X-Club. The Spring 2014 Rush Season was very successful for each fraternity, with over one hundred guys participating.
Rush week consists of six days, with special events each day, hosted by the brothers of each fraternity. Sunday is orientation. On Monday and Tuesday, you meet each individual fraternity and learn what it’s like to be a member. On Wednesday, the fraternities host a special event open to rush participants. The guys at X-Club had food from 4Rivers and hand-rolled cigars. On Thursday, there are more special events, but attendance is by invitation only. If you show interest in a certain fraternity and they want to get to know you better, you receive an email inviting you back to hangout with them. Not receiving an invitation to a fraternity does not always mean a fraternity is not interested in you. Failure to maintain the minimum GPA required for that fraternity might prevent them from issuing an invite. Don’t let this dissuade you from participating in rush. It was an incredible experience and I would have regretted not participating.
Friday is business time – the illustrious Bid Day. Bid Day is a hodgepodge of thoughts and emotions. You walk into the Campus Center, are handed your bid(s), and then it’s decision time. After you make your decision, you head down the stairs into Dave’s, and walk to the fraternity you’ve decided to join. Reality hasn’t kicked in yet, and it won’t for a while. You are handed your Bid Day shirt with your fraternity letters proudly attached. After everyone has made their decisions, it’s time to run – literally! One by one, each fraternity and their prospective brothers run up the stairs and out of the Campus Center into a sea of beautiful sorority girls. I would like to give a special shout out to Nicholas “Daddy” Damiano for his beautiful stop and twist with the Lambda Chi Alpha flag as they ran out of the Campus Center. With adrenaline still rushing, each fraternity gathers with their newest members and takes the traditional group photo… and then it’s time to celebrate.
I would like to give a special thanks to a few individuals whose effort made this rush season amazing. Aubrey Frazier, the Assistant Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life, Navreet Dhaliwal, Cameron Lamir, and Elie Gottlieb – thank you for making Spring Rush 2014 incredible.
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