Northwest Missouri State University - Tower Yearbook (Maryville, MO)

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Thoughtful selections Sorority actives welcome incoming pledges with open arms. by Kan Rule Handfuls of eager women flooded into the Student Union wearing neon shirts sporting the words Be You, Be Greek. The mass of bright colors looked like a cult or women waiting in line for a boy band concert. It was the beginning of Greek recruitment. Big sis lir sis or mom dot was used to bridge the gap between old and new members. Each sorority had a special way of pairing the women together. Alpha Sigma Alpha takes the sorority family very seriously, public relations chair Erin Schaper said. It is more involved than just one evening of giving presents to the younger girls. It ' s a friendship. It is someone who will always be there at anytime to take you to functions or even just to talk. Alpha Sigma Alpha actives and pledges both wrote lists of whom they preferred to have in their family. The person in charge of new membership then matched the lists together. The daughters and mothers had a week of misleading clues and secret gift exchanges that kept suspense up until their family was revealed. At the end of the week, the two united and then went to dinner together. Sigma Kappa member Meghan Denney said rituals for revealing families was different for each sorority. Sigma Kappa pledges had to follow a maze, set up by their mom, that lead them to a clue. The clue matched up with their mom ' s clue when they met at the chapter room. Sigma Kappa also had a mom-dot week. This week was a week for giving presents such as shirts, blankets and trashcans with Sig Kap symbols on them. Unlike the sorority ' s, the fraternity ' s recruitment week was more informal including open houses, barbecues and nights of pizza and billiard parties. The fraternities also had similar traditions including gift exchanges and special bonding nights, but many of their rituals were more private and intimate. The ritual is very secretive because it is special to the fraternity and also we don ' t want other fraternities to copy our traditions and vice versa, Tau Kappa Epsilon Vice President Taft Burnes said. A sorority family did not only consist of mom and daughter, but it also went back generations to grandmothers and great-grandmothers. My family is very important in my life. They are my best friends who I can count on whenever I need them. I went to St. Louis to watch my grandma get married, which was very special for me. I know that my sisters will be there to support me. Denney said. Women ' s moms that graduated were put up for adoption and joined a new family. A lpha Emily Andrews was adopted by Schaper, but nonetheless, they were close and created a special bond. Andrews said her family celebrated birthdays together, presented random gifts to one another, attended chapter meetings and bonded through philanthropy activities. It helps the girls to adapt better to the sorority, Scapher said. They follow the older girls footsteps and learn. Schaper, a three-year member of ASA, said independents, or non-Greeks, often ridicule sorority members for buying their friends. It ' s the best investment I ' ve ever put my money towards, Schaper sarcastically said. Some of my best friends are Alphas. You can ' t put a price on friends. Wendy Shoemyer and Brooke Tecza decide to buy heart shaped containers for their sorority daughter. Pledges received the gifts once they went active, photo by Mike Dye sorority moms .2. DESIGNED BY I Brent BURKLUND -rm

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Sitting Tables line tne outside of the on campus grocery store located inside of the Station. Students are able to buy treats and snacks and have a place to sit and relax while taking a break from college life. photo by Mike Dye Portable education Working on a university laptop. Oakley Burson checks her mail in her suite room. The suites are a new addition to the campus, with accomodations for four students, photo by M de Dye Laptops help students better access technology. by Megan Ormsby When students entered the second floor of the library, their eyes met tables stacked high with a plethora of laptop computers, a pile of green and black computer bags and technicians working to get students tuned in to the newest University investment. Technology tookabig leap. Fall 2004. Tower Suites and Forest Village Apartment housing plans included an estimated 500 laptop computers. Vice President for Information Systems Jon Rickman said offering laptop computers to students interested pros- pective students. Rickman said because campus was techno- logically oriented, it helped graduates display the computing skills they gained while completing their education. Rickman thought laptops looked attractive to prospective students and helped maintain and possibly increase enrollment. Assistant Director of Residential Life Matt Baker said the laptops increased the number of students in the Residence Halls. The computers also benefited students by providing flexibility and freedom because students did not have to share with roommates. As for liabilities, laptops were covered under the vendor warranty. However, if damaged by the student, they paid up to $1,000, less than the cost of a replacement. If computers were stolen or lost and a police report was filed, the cost to the student was only $500. Sophomore Shawna Gibson said she benefited every day from having a laptop instead of a desktop computer. The laptops are more convenient. I don ' t have to worry about sharing, and I can take it to class or home when I need to, Gibson said. Plans for technology, such as wireless Internet, were being considered in places like the Station, the StudentUnion, and B.B. Owens Library. Sophomore Allison Yarnell said having Internet connection available was the only benefit to having the laptop. I used my laptop to do chemistry problems online, but if I needed to take it anywhere else, Internet connection had to be available. And if it wasn ' t, the laptop was no different to me than the desktop computer. phase II Student Life 11

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Alpha Sigma Alphas. Wendy Shoemyer and Brooke Tecza. shop at Wal-Mart as they search for gifts for their future daughters. Shoemyer and Tecza shopped at a couple of stores Including the Sorority Closet located in the back of the antique store located in town, photo tiy Mike Dye Dawn Magel and Erin Eddy show their excitement as they vote for their moms. Once the women became active, they found out who their sorority moms were and what family they were put in. photo by Adam Watson sorority moms ' TiJDtfJT LlP£ IJj