UA Sorority Recruitment Video - please discuss

If I had a daughter who wanted to join, I'd tell her she needs to pay for the sorority expenses. Does your daughter want to join a sorority?

That particular sorority or any sorority?  Just curious. 

I think that sorority looks like a BLAST! I did not see anything overly sexual about that video at all. They are all beautiful girls just being girls. It seems odd that they didn't highlight any of their charity work or studying...but I guess that isn't what recruitment is all about. Thinking back to my rush days, I guess I was drawn to the sorority that looked like fun with girls who really liked each other. I think the fuss is a whole lot of to do about nothing.

As to the diversity...my sorority was all white, too. Not for lack of trying or not trying. It was the nature of the beast. We had SELF segregated fraternities/sororities. I chalked that up to people want to see people like themselves in their social circles. That is not racist. It is just fact. It can be uncomfortable (real or imagined) to be the only white/black face in a crowd, no matter how enlightened you may be.

This is pretty much my thoughts on it. I was going to join a sorority once upon a time. There were plenty of good looking girls but also plenty of average looking, average sized girls. I remember the majority of them being education majors which is why I wanted to join that one. I had a bad experience with their "brother" fraternity so I ended up not completing the rush or paying any dues. My parents had told me that they will pay for my room and board and books but any social expenses were on me and that included sororities. If I had a daughter, I'd tell her the same thing. DH and I have told the boys that we will help with as much education expenses as possible but all social expenses are on them. 

I don't know anything about the controversy – although they do not look diverse in anyway – but I have a friend who is an alum and is very active in their recruiting. She post things on Facebook about them all the time! Her daughter is also a current member… i'll have to ask her about this.

This video is far from isolated. There are sorority recruitment videos that are quite similar from other sororities and schools.

I guess we did not have a lot of diversity in our sorority, but we did not have a lot of diversity on our campus in general. It was an engineering school in the northeast. I think our little sorority represented the same diversity on campus which was rather low. But, I also did not belong to a large "beautiful people" type chapter. We were at a tough school, with tough majors. Our chapter was much smaller than at these large schools as well.

I know I was when I was in school. In fact my school didn't even have Greek life of any kind. However, now that my dd is in a sorority (Tri Sigma) I see all the benefits it has brought her, contrary to my own stereotypes. And she's having fun.  

Nope I am with you.  Full Disclosure I was in a sorority in College, and I just went to youtube to see what my chapter had on line.  The only video I found was somewhat similar in nature.. but the theme was Keep it Classy.  Similar photos, some of girls in bikini's but it focused on the values of the sorority.

It's here youtu.be/E3Hr9WC7IxQ

I think there is a world of difference from it and the one from Alabama.  Maybe part of it is the quality of the video, the one from MSU looks like it was done by the sorority, the one from Alabama looks like it was much more professional.  

I would say my sorority has about as much diversity as it did in 1982... which is sad. I would have hoped we had evolved more in the last 30 years.

I think that the Alabama video was made to focus on making the girls look hot. Not what I would think the National Sorority is wanting to promote, most sororities are about developing leaders, and the Alabama video is not all about any thing but looking hot and having fun!  

University released a statement reminding students to be conscious of their online image.
m.myfoxal.com/myfoxal/db_368997/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=YmqcnRjc

Great reminder no matter what one thinks of the video!

Perhaps I am but 18 year old women aren't exactly known for having the emotional/life experience maturity to look at this from our viewpoints as older and wiser. That is my point. We might see some nefarious under current in this video when all they wanted to do was make a video showing how much fun they have. I am sure that there are plenty of 18 year olds who are interested in more and if they are, they are going to investigate the merits of sororities beyond just this video.

But you know, if some 18-year olds just want to be involved in a group that seems like have a lot of fun and get along with one another, there isn't anything wrong with that either. Like I said, the behaviors shown in this video are what I have experienced as normal in that particular age group. WE may see it as something else with our world experience glasses on but to that age group, it isn't unusual especially in sororities. Everyone has different priorities when it comes to groups like this. And there is no requirement that you HAVE to rush and you HAVE to rush a certain sorority unless it is what you want to do. And the previous PEAer is right, sororities are known to have their own personalities on campus and they are very well known. Some sororities are known for being more shallow and appearance centric than others. It is what it is.

But maybe "girls gone wild" is what that chapter of that particular sorority is like? I have no idea, so please no one be offended at that comment. But my dd says that every chapter is different... In fact her sorority has a "snobby" reputation at other schools, yet they're not at all like that at hers. Dd tells me that at other schools (she hears these things from her friends who are scattered all over Virginia at various state colleges, since we have so many good ones here) sororities don't mix with each other. At her school they do. -- Dd has a friend who transferred from a school in Kentucky to one in Maryland. She was in Tri Delta in Kentucky and loved it. At my dd's school Tri Delta is also made up of "nice girls" (dd's words). Dd's friend went on one visit to Tri Delta at the Maryland school and texted dd to say "NO WAY!" 

So that's just my long winded way of saying that the image in this video may be exactly what the sorority wants. To my eyes they look like the "beautiful people" -- the college version of the popular cheerleaders in high school. Personally that doesn't attract me at all (I was not one of those "beautiful people" and I definitely was not a cheerleader, lol) but I imagine that it is attractive to a certain type of girl. If that's what the sorority wants, then that's what they'll probably get by this video.

And for the record, my dd just said "yeah Mom, that's probably just what that chapter is like at that school." lol

When I first saw the headline and watched the video, I was surprised it wasn't more controversial. I'm not sure why it was pulled. But I definitely rolled my eyes while watching it. I agree with you - it is not a sorority I would want my daughter to join either (not like she would have an option, she's not blond, lol).

I'm not getting the girls gone wild vibe either. I opened this video expecting to be outraged snd I am not.

My 15 year old daughter and her two bffs have

-set a camera up and took photos of them walking away from the camera all three holding hands
-routinely take selfies of themselves blowing kisses at the camera or winking at the camera. Mostly with my phone, lol!
-frolick, wrestle, etc in the water and I'm always there to take pics at their behest.
-Take pics hugging all the time
- never pass up a game of football with the boys.

I'm a really conservative mom. My first reaction when she came home w a bikini a few weeks ago was to say oh heck no! We ended up letting her keep after a lot of discussion as a family.

None of these three girls are boy crazy and I don't get the impression they do any of the above to attract boys. Even the bikini is worn at home, in our fairly boy free pool. They do it because they are having fun, it makes them happy. None have or have had boyfriends or seem to be looking.

I would hate to think someone would see their photos and judge them as "girls gone wild" flaunting their sexuality to attract boys for the wrong reason.