University of Kansas - Jayhawker Yearbook (Lawrence, KS)

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ABovE: Rushees are greeted by a song before the party. RIGHT: Screams of delight and or disbelief add to the con- fusion outside Oliver Hall, as rushees open their bids. BELOW: What ' s your major? What did you do last summer? Where are you from? Typical questions at a rush party.

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Men ' s Rush ABOVE. Relaxing moments between hand- shakes and bottles of pop often result in the best times for the fraternity and the rushee to get acquainted with each other. BELOW. Work Week, the week of prepara- tion the rushee never sees; Phi Kappa Sigma ' s answer to Abe Lincoln prepares to split a few rails before breakfast. Men participating in rush this year had the oppor- tunity to pledge a fraternity either in the summer or during formal rush week. Summer rush was usually conducted at a more relaxed and informal pace than fall rush. The Interfraternity Council (IFC) sponsored train dates which preluded rush week in this easy- going atmosphere. For the second consecutive year, formal rush week was expanded to four fast-paced days of fraternity dates beginning September 1. After an IFC-sponsored daily breakfast at the Kansas Union each of the 29 fraternities participating in rush worked to transport and entertain all prospective pledges. The week pro- vided rushees with a chance to obtain an overview of the Greek system and a perspective of the house that most interested them. Men ' s rush this year was the most successful in the history of the KU Greek organization, according to Pete Woodsmall, Shawnee Mission senior and IFC vice-president in charge of rush. In terms of those men interested in the fraternity system to the 91. per cent who pledged a house, we ' ve done the best that ' s ever been done, he said. An increase over last year ' s total, summer pledges numbered 354, combined with 300 rush week pledges, totaling 654 new pledges. We ' re looking forward to a year when houses will be operat- ing at near house capacity, Woodsmall said. —Dave Morgenstern

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LEFT: Panhellenic Representatives match rushees ' pref- erences with sorority lists as part of their behind-the-scenes work in Oliver Hall during rush week. ABOVE: A hug welcomes this happy pledge-to-be, as she arrives at her new house and meets her new sisters. Stemming from an idea for change of two years ago, analysis and the preferential bidding system, which is 1968 sorority rush was a transition from semester a confidential means of matching each rushee ' s pref- deferred rush of the past to the newly-adopted sopho- erence with sorority preference lists for pledging. more deferred rush system. The third part involved the rushees and their Pan- The Panhellenic Association believes that a worn- hellenic Representatives. Each sorority selected one an ' s decision about where and with whom she will live member to disassociate herself from her sorority and during her university years is very important. Our live in Oliver Hall with the rushees. These representa- goal is to create the best possible conditions for tives saw that rush mechanics ran smoothly and served making that decision, said Barbara Newsom, Wichita as accurate sources of information for rushees. The senior and Panhellenic Association president. Panhellenic office in Oliver Hall served as rush head- Of the 507 women who went through rush, 346 were quarters, a communications center for the three work- pledged. This figure was somewhat larger than that ing parts of the KU rush process. of years past, according to the Dean of Women ' s office. Miss Newsom pointed out several advantages of Requirements for participation in rush were a ' 1.2 sophomore deferred rush. Primarily, it provided an un- cumulative grade average and completion of 28 regular ha mpered freshman year without the pressure of rush. semester hours. It supported the idea that freshman year should be a Planned by the Panhellenic Rush Council, which time for encouraging a wide circle of friendships and represents each of KU ' s 13 sororities, the new system independent decision-making, allowing each freshman involved three parts. The first was the role of the woman to adjust to university life in her own way. sorority houses and their members. An atmosphere of By concentrating rush activity into one formal rush complete openness was emphasized in an attempt to period each year, more time was available to devote encourage members and rushees to know one another to other aspects of sorority living. better. The new system is an effort to keep up with The second major area was rush mechanics and the changing times, Miss Newsom said. It is a way of role of the Dean of Women ' s staff. Working the night meeting the increasing demands of the University. shift, the staff handled IBM card procedures, number —Carolyn Bowers