Watch the new sorority bids celebrate the beginning of their sisterhood.
Credit: Quan Nguyen“Welcome home, Zetas!” cheered a Zeta Tau Alpha sister as she hugged a girl who had just been offered a bid by her sorority.
Girls who went through sorority recruitment this past week experienced a homecoming of sorts last night, as they turned the corner from Claudia Cohen Hall. They were greeted by their new sisters at the Perelman Quadrangle.
Girls from Penn’s eight sororities clapped, cheered, sang and hugged each other as they met their new bids. Face paint, balloons, giant greek letter cut-outs and signs like “Theta love” filled Perelman Quad. The girls kept the energy level up by singing songs like Wiz Khalifa’s “Black and Yellow” and David Guetta’s “Where Them Girls At.”
Although the girls present had been informed on Thursday over the phone that they had made the cut, none of them knew which sorority had bid for them until that evening, when they opened an envelope containing the name of the sorority that wished to recruit them.
“I was so nervous, my hands were shaking,” said Engineering freshman Davita Frankel, recalling the moment she opened her envelope. “As soon as I saw the name of the sorority, I texted everyone I knew.”
Frankel was offered a bid to join Chi Omega, her top choice.
College freshman Dylan Smith, who was offered a bid by Sigma Kappa — also her top choice — shared Frankel’s excitement. “To be honest, the feeling I had when I opened that envelope was the same feeling I had when I found out about my acceptance to college. It felt great,” she said.
The night was equally exciting for current sorority sisters.
College senior Aileen Palmer, the outgoing president of Sigma Kappa, said she couldn’t wait to meet her sorority’s new girls. “It’s always a difficult decision to make this time every year. So many girls are interested but we can only give so many bids.”
For College sophomore Rama Hamarneh, a ZTA sister, the night was “loud.”
Stacy Kraus, associate director of the Office of Student Affairs/Fraternity and Sorority Life, said she was pleased that everything went smoothly. “We have a lot of women who are very happy with their bids.”
Five hundred and seventy-five women went through sorority recruitment this semester, a figure slightly higher than last year’s, according to Kraus. Of the 575, about 400 were offered bids. Kraus confirmed that each sorority house is given a quota of the number of bids they can give, with this year’s number at about 50.
This night marks the end of the initial stages of the Panhellenic sorority recruitment process. After meeting their bids, the girls walked up Locust Walk to their respective sorority houses while cheering, chanting and singing. The revelries, which began at 8 p.m., extended well into the night.
“I have been looking forward to this night for the entire year. It’s the best night of the year.” said College senior Ashley Miller, a sister at Alpha Chi Omega who wore her sorority’s letters as she cheered with her sisters. “Everyone seems so happy with their bids,” she added.
College freshman Gabby Mastero, who was offered a bid by Sigma Kappa, found the night “so exhilarating.”
“The entire process has been hard, but it’s worth it.”
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