Colonizing class of Carolina chapter created
The more than 240 girls who became Pi Beta Phi’s colonizing class at USC will define the sorority for years to come.
“I like the idea of not having a set stereotype of a sorority. Most sororities have a mold you have to fit into, but we get to make our own mold … We get to decide the outcome of what we get to be,” said Chelsea Helms, a first-year nursing student and Pi Beta Phi member. “Pi Phi is extremely diverse. You can’t stereotype us. There’s every type of girl imaginable.”
Hundreds of girls participated in at least part of the process and, according to leadership development consultant Kathleen Mariano, those who would “best represent [the] organization’s values” were extended a bid.
Interested women registered online, then met individually with one of three leadership consultants.
“When I actually did meet with the Pi Phi representatives … they were welcoming and so flexible,” said Samantha Barnhart, a first-year sports and entertainment management student. “It’s like they really wanted me to be a part of it, and it is such a good feeling to be wanted in something.”
The recruitment process was largely similar to that of formal sorority recruitment, but many potential new members were attracted by the concept of a non-traditional recruitment process.
“I researched other sororities, but I never felt like who I was matched with who they were as a sorority," said Krista Stanton , second-year psychology student and Pi Beta Phi member. "But I started researching Pi Beta Phi when I heard they were coming, and I immediately felt like I belonged.”
The recruitment period lasted three days, during which potential new members learned about the sorority's philanthropic efforts, sisterhood and values. Sisters from the University of Georgia chapter of Pi Beta Phi assisted with recruitment in order to provide a different perspective.
Many of the UGA members were hesitant about the recruitment process at first — but now it's a unique memory.
“It’s just an amazing opportunity,” Stanton said. “How many people do you know can say they colonized a sorority while they were in college?”
Over the next eight weeks, these new members will participate in Pi Beta Phi’s New Member Education Program, which will serve as their orientation.
The three resident leadership development coordinators will remain on campus throughout the rest of the year in order to help develop the South Carolina Alpha chapter of the sorority.
“Each has expressed interest in personal and academic enrichment, philanthropic involvement and lifelong bonds of sisterhood," Mariano said. "The Pi Beta Phi colonizing team is confident in the women's abilities to make a lasting impact at the University of South Carolina.”