Greetings from your Grand Vice President for Collegiates!

It's hard to believe that the fall semester is almost over! It has been amazing seeing all the incredible things you have done this semester. I have been blown away with your creativity and dedication to promoting our new Women's Health Initiative of skin cancer and to supporting Project HOPE! You should be proud of your hard work and dedication!

This semester, we focused on recruitment. Recruitment is mostly seen as a once or twice a year occurrence directly before Orientation. But to effectively recruit amazing Potential New Members (PNMs), we need to change our mindset and think of recruitment as a constant process. By developing a strong recruitment program, we can attract the best PNMs to make a stronger future for our chapters and fraternity. 

I would also like to encourage all collegiates to apply for Educational Grants! The Educational Trust Liaison Committee works very hard to provide $1,000 grants to eight well-deserving students. You can find out more information and apply here. The deadline to apply is January 15th!

I hope you all enjoy this Winter Edition of LinKS. Please keep in touch!

Follow these steps below to ensure a successful recruitment process!

1. One (or Two) Person(s) in Charge
   • Elect one or two people to solely be in charge of recruitment. This should be an executive level position with a year-long term in office. Pick a strong leader who is organized. 
2. Post a "Wish List"
   • Make a list of people who you WISH were members and make it visible every time you have a meeting. 
   • The list should be 3-4 times the size of your current chapter.
   • Keep track of which sisters have met each person on the wish list.
3. Discuss Recruitment at Every Meeting
   • Take no more than 10 minutes to discuss one to two people on your wish list and to talk about your recruitment plans.
4. Post Goals
   • Create goals for the semester and year and review them at every meeting to keep your enthusiasm going.
5. Skills Training
   • Train your members to develop good communication skills and practice, practice, practice!
   • All members should know answers to common questions and be able to address simple concerns.
6. Include Recruitment in What You Already Do
   • Recruitment shouldn't be more work. Incorporate it into what you already do!
   • At least two chapter events per month should include recruitment.
7. Written Expectations for All Members
   • Recruitment is not just about the leaders. All members are expected to participate. 
   • Expectations could include each member contacting at least one Potential New Member (PNM) on the wish list each week.
8. Positive and Negative Incentives
   • If members go above and beyond basic expectations, recognize and reward their efforts!
   • If members are falling short of expectations, be clear of the consequences. This can include if sisters do not attend all recruitment events, they are not eligible to be a Big. 
9. Measurable Membership Eligibility Standards
   • What are you looking for in a member? Set standards that you are proud of and that reflect our Core Values. Then make them known on campus. 
   • High-quality PNMs are looking for an elite organization not a club anyone can join. 
10. Team Based Organization Structure
    • Recruitment should not be a lot of work. Use your resources!
    • Create a Recruitment Committee using 20% of your chapter. This committee will implement your chapter recruitment plan and serve as Team Captains to organize the rest of the chapter to carry out the plan. 

Please note that these tips may need to be adapted depending on your chapter size. More tips and tricks will be coming with the Recruitment and Orientation Manual to help you figure out what's best for your chapter. 

 

Adapted from David B. Stollman of CAMPUSPEAK, INC. "10 Steps for Recruitment Success and Best Practices"

 

Check out some of the neat things our chapters have been doing this fall!

Alpha Zeta's Fall 2016 Recruitment Campaign--Go for the Gold!

Alpha Theta hosted a bowling fundraiser for Project HOPE as a recruitment event!

Alpha Pi created these great LKS tanks for their recruitment fair!

Alpha Iota created this amazing poster with what LKS has to offer, including their recruitment events!

You have a group of PNMs whom you have invited to be a part of your chapter. What's next? Orientation begins! Below is a short synopsis of what orientation should include. 

Induction is an important ceremony that marks the start of orientation. Orientation activities should not start until all PNMs have gone through Induction. Go to your Ritual Manual to find out what you need to perform the Induction Ceremony. 

Our Member Manual is a guide to help your leaders teach LKS history, fraternity structure and other useful information. It also includes a quiz that can be used to test LKS knowledge. All chapters should be using this as a resource during their orientation process. Find our Member Manual here. 

The Big/Little relationship is key to a successful orientation. It's good practice to assign Bigs and Littles and have them meet either at the beginning of orientation or shortly after. Having that special connection makes orientation more special. 

Sunrise Ceremony is another important ritual during orientation. This marks the halfway point between Induction and Initiation. This is a very symbolic and meaningful ritual that is a favorite among sisters. Sunrise too early for you? Make it a Sunset Ceremony or pick another time of your choosing! 

Initiation is the final ceremony performed to mark a PNM's official crossover to becoming a member of LKS. This is the day your PNMs have been waiting for! To celebrate your new sisters, make it a fun party with cake and some LKS gifts!

More information about orientation will be available in the Recruitment and Orientation Manual.