Glossary
- Active
- An undergraduate sorority member who has been initiated by her chapter.
- Alumna
- A sorority member who is no longer a member of a collegiate chapter. [plural is Alumnae]
- Bid
- An invitation to join a sorority or fraternity.
- Chapter
- A membership unit of a national or international sorority or fraternity.
- Continuous Open Bidding (COB)
- COB bids may be extended and accepted at any time during the school year other than formal recruitment. (COB is also called open bidding and informal membership recruitment.)
- Fraternity
- Greek letter sisterhood or brotherhood.
- Greeks
- Sorority and fraternity members.
- Greek Affairs
- Greek Affairs is a Division of the Center for Student Life at the University of Oklahoma. Greek Affairs is comprised of the following four umbrella organizations: Concilio Nacional de Hermandades Latinas (CNHL), Interfraternity Council (IFC), National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) and Panhellenic Association (Panhellenic).
- Initiation
- Ritualistic ceremony during which new members receive life long membership privileges.
- Interfraternity Council (IFC)
- IFC is the men's counterpart to the College Panhellenic Association. It is membership is comprised of fraternities belonging to the North-American Interfraternity Conference (NIC).
- Legacy
- A woman whose mother, sister or in some cases grandmother is an alumna or active member of a sorority.
- National Pan-Hellenic Council, Inc. (NPHC)
- The National Pan-Hellenic Council is the official coordinating agent of the nine constituent member Greek letter, historically African-American, fraternities and sororities.
- New Member
- A woman who has accepted a sorority bid but is not yet an initiated member.
- Panhellenic Association
- The College Panhellenic Association is a cooperative campus organization of collegiate members of NPC sororities.
- Potential Member
- Any woman interested in becoming a sorority member who is matriculated and eligible to join according to the Panhellenic Association's requirements.
- Philanthropy
- Community service or fundraising effort to promote human welfare.
- Preferential Bidding
- A system used at the conclusion of formal membership recruitment to match sorority and potential member preferences.
- Recommendation/Reference
- A letter or a form written by an alumna member recommending a potential member to a sorority.
- Recruitment Counselor (Rho Chi)
- A Panhellenic representative who has no contact with her own chapter during formal membership recruitment and is available to guide women through the recruitment process and answer questions.
- Recruitment
- An organized activity to meet potential members.
- Sister
- A term used within a women's fraternity when referring to other members.
- Sorority
- A Greek letter sisterhood.