Seeking sisterhood? For some, not too late

Signs welcoming girls who are "too hot to handle" are popping up on dorm-room doors.

But these signs, accompanied by streamers and balloons, are showing up a little late, posted for women who did not join a sorority during formal recruitment, which officially ended with Bid Night on Jan. 22.

Phi Sigma Sigma and Alpha Phi - those with the too-hot pledges - are currently extending bids to potential sisters in an effort to fill their respective classes for this year.

Phi Sigma Sigma president and College junior Allie MacDonald said she has 10 spots to offer.

Alpha Phi president and College junior Ali Kwiatkowski would not say how many spots she would like to fill, though Panhellenic Council president and College junior Alex Tryon said the sorority is seeking eight more members.

For both sororities, continuous open bidding will likely continue until spring break, when each sorority formally initiates new members.

Kappa Alpha Theta is also eligible to participate in COB - its class also falls short of the uniform median size of 156 - but is refraining from doing so.

"We are really excited about our pledge class this year, and we're not sure if we want to add any more girls," Kappa Alpha Theta president and College junior Frannie Felder said.

Meanwhile, in a relaxed process compared to formal recruitment, sisters will recommend girls they know through sports, extracurricular activities or friends, usually ones who either dropped out of rush early or did not participate at all, Tryon added.

But offering additional bids is not just for the sake of filling spots.

MacDonald said her sisters would recommend girls they think "fit well with our chapter," adding that no girl would be offered a spot just to increase numbers.

And those participating in this later recruitment process see only benefits to joining late.

Nursing freshman Randi O'Neill received a bid from Phi Sigma Sigma after she did not join a sorority through formal recruitment, and officially accepted it about two weeks after Bid Night.

Continuous open bidding "is definitely better than formal recruitment," O'Neill said. "You get to know the girls that you'll be with, and you get the chance to take it slower."

Tryon, an Alpha Phi member who joined during COB, pointed out that the process is less time-pressured.

COB "puts some of the control back in the freshman," Tryon said. "You can't say, during recruitment, 'Give me a week.'"

Once current seniors graduate this year from all eight of Penn's sororities, every sorority class will be under the median size of 156, making each sorority eligible for COB in the fall, Tryon said.

Stacy Kraus, Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs associate director for programming, was unavailable for comment.

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