• Fraternities and sororities are recruiting new members
• Recruitment week will give all those interested more information about Greek Life
• Fraternities and sororities are hosting various events throughout the week in order to extend an invitation for men and women to pledge
• Greek Life at Marquette involves service, leadership, friendship and philanthropy

Last spring, 669 of Marquette's undergraduates participated in Greek Life, committing themselves to approximately 16,000 hours of service and donating more than $60,000 to local and national charities, according to the Marquette University Greek Report. This week begins the recruitment process for joining Marquette Greek Life.

Fraternities and sororities across campus invite any interested students to consider becoming a part of their chapters and their endeavors.

The fraternities kick off the festivities with two poker nights, one tonight and the other on Thursday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the Alumni Memorial Union. The nights aim to give those men who plan on pledging the chance to meet members of the fraternities as well as other potential pledges, said Gabe Brackman, the Interfraternity Council President and senior in the College of Engineering.

"It's kind of like O-Fest, only it's for the fraternities," said Brackman.

After the poker nights, it is each fraternity's responsibility to organize an open house and its own events, he said.

The fraternity events are not as pre-planned as those of the sororities. Angie Barton, Vice President of Communications for Panhel, an inter-sorority governing council, and senior in the College of Arts & Sciences, said the sororities designate four days for the recruitment events, first holding an information night in the Weasler Auditorium tomorrow at 7 p.m. and then ending on Sunday with the sorority Bid Day.

"Bid Day is Greek Christmas," she said, explaining the final step in joining Greek Life. On Bid Day, members of a fraternity or a sorority find out who will pledge which chapter.

The night before Bid Day sororities hold Preference Night, she said. On this night women narrow their desired sororities down to two and spend time with both chapters, deciding where they belong.

"My only expectation for the week is that I will really have a lot of fun," said Kelsey Gilmore, a freshmen in the College of Arts & Sciences. "It's a time to test the water, per se, and it's fun to meet a bunch of different people."

Gilmore attended the Ice Cream Social put on by the Panhellenic Sorority Recruitment at Cobeen and McCormick last Thursday. The social gave women who had questions about Greek Life the chance to talk with sorority sisters, she said.

Barton said Greek Life has four staples: leadership, academics, sisterhood/brotherhood and philanthropy. Marquette fraternities and sororities participate in various service, philanthropic and social events on campus and within the Milwaukee area, according to Brackman.

Activities include Make a Difference Day, Greek bowling and Greek Week, a social get-together where fraternities and sororities compete against each other. Sororities also hold monthly sisterhood gatherings, such as snow tubing excursions and holiday gift exchanges, Barton said.

Brackman said he is not concerned with the number of men that show interest in joining or what fraternity they want to pledge.

"We want guys to visit as many chapters as possible," he said. "It's about where you fit best. It's never about the numbers; we want to find quality guys at Marquette. But that being said, the more the merrier."

Brackman said fraternity recruitment is spread out over two weeks. Those who are thinking about joining a fraternity can expect to meet upperclassmen and their peers while having fun in the process, he said.

"Greek life is about taking the very students at a campus and developing them into the leaders of tomorrow while serving the community," said Brackman. "Plus it's about friendship."