Glossary of Terms

Active: A fully initiated member of a fraternity/sorority.

Associate Member/ Aspirant: A person who has accepted a bid/ invitation for membership but is not yet initiated into a sorority or fraternity.

Badge: A “pin” worn by fully-initiated members of each fraternity or sorority that carries its official insignia.

Bid: An invitation to join a sorority or fraternity. For NPHC organizations, it is a formal invitation to be a potential/prospective new member.

Bid Day: The last day of recruitment in which potential new members receive formal invitations to join a sorority.

Big: Nickname for big sister or brother, which is a mentor assigned to a new member. Many organizations have special names for these pairings.

Brother: An active or alumni member of a fraternity.

Brotherhood: The common term for the bond between members of the same fraternity.

Campus Total (CPC): The maximum number of members a College Panhellenic Council sorority can have on a given campus.

Chant/Call: Used by members of NPHC used to acknowledge or gain the attention of others. Some organizations have more than one chant. Only members of that specific organization can use that call or chant.

Chapter: An established membership unit of a national or international sorority or fraternity.

Chapter House: A physical structure where chapter members live. Official chapter houses are owned by Widener University.

Class or “New Member Class”: A term used to name new members of a College Panhellenic Council, Council of Independent Organization or Interfraternity Council organization who all joined during the same semester.

College Panhellenic Council (CPC): CPC serves as the governing/coordinating student council for three (3) women’s sororities. All CPC member organizations are affiliated with the National Panhellenic Conference (NPC).

Council of Independent Organizations (CIO): CIO focuses on the promotion and enhancement of the professional fraternities/sororities experience. They provide a nurturing space for students with similar majors, interests, or career paths to connect and build meaningful relationships.

Crest: Insignia used by sorority and fraternity members. Most organizations reserve the crest for initiated members only. Each crest has hidden, secret meanings behind it. Also known as a coat or arms or shield.

Crossing (NPHC): Ceremony during which new members of NPHC organizations become active, life-long members of their organization.

Crossing Semester/Year: A term for initiating into a NPHC organization. Usually used to refer to when a member joined their organization – the term and year they joined.

Dues: The monetary costs of membership in a fraternity or sorority. These fees are used to cover the costs of operation, formal events, social activities, and other events, depending on the organization.

Founders’ Day: An event celebrated by fraternities and sororities to highlight the founding of their organization and celebrate its history.

Governing Council: Supports and acts as a voice for organizations within it, including being the official sponsored student organization liaison between the university and the members of the member organizations. The four governing councils are: College Panhellenic Council (CPC), Council of Independent Organizations (CIO), Interfraternity Council (IFC), & National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC).

Hand Signs: Signs that only a member of an organization can “throw up.” Most signs have a deep meaning to a organization or ritualistic symbol.

Initiation: A traditional, secret ritual which brings an individual into full membership.

Intake (NPHC): Term for the process by which National Pan-Hellenic Council members are selected to become new members of an organization. This is generally much more secretive than recruitment for IFC, CIO, and Panhellenic members, but generally includes an application and an interview process, followed by an educational program done at the regional level conducted by alumni, then an initiation.

Interest: A way to refer to someone who is interested in joining a FSL organization.

Interest Group: A group of students who have formally expressed interest in establishing a new FSL organization on campus. Interest groups represent the initial stage of the expansion process and work in partnership with the university and inter/national organization to meet the expectations required for official recognition and future chartering.

Interfraternity Council (IFC): The governing/coordinating student council for the current four (4) fraternities that fall under the North American Interfraternity Conference (NIC).

Legacy: A potential/new member whose immediate family is an initiated member or a fraternity/sorority, such as a mother/ father or sister/brother. Some organizations also recognize extended family members as legacies as well. Each organization has its own definition of a “legacy.”

Line: A term used by NPHC organizations to name a group of new members who all joined during the same term and semester. They are the potential new members of the organization. Lines are often given names.

Line name/number: The name given to a new member that represents them as a person during their membership intake process. NPHC organizations also assign a line number to their new members.

Little: Short for “Little brother/sister” – a new member who is being mentored by an older member of their organization

National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC): NPHC is the governing/coordinating student council for the seven (7) historically Black sororities and fraternities at Widener University. These organizations are also referred to as the Divine Nine.

Neo or Neophyte: A new member of a NPHC organization.

New Member Educator: The liaison between the new members and the chapter, they are responsible for implementing and monitoring the new member program and preparing the new members for initiation.

New Member Presentation (NPHC): A presentation that celebrates and welcome new members in the NPHC community. The presentation may consist of knowledge learned, skills gained, and values understood. This is a proud moment of historical significance for new members of these organizations. In most cases, this is the first time when newly initiated members of each fraternity/sorority are revealed to the rest of campus.

Open Bidding / Continuous Open Bidding (COB): A method by which IFC/ CPC individually determine when they will extend bids to potential members. chapters can extend a bid at any time during the year with Open Bidding/ COB.

Potential New Member (PNM): A person who has shown interest but not yet been offered or accepted a bid into a fraternity/sorority.

Primary Recruitment: The predetermined time span for IFC/ CPC recruitment in which the majority of rush occurs each year (Spring Semester).

Pro or Prophyte (NPHC): A term used to refer to an older brother/sister from a culturally based organization.

Recruitment: The process through which sororities and fraternities get new members. Potential New Members can attend open house events and are invited to different programs.

Recruitment Counselor: A Panhellenic representative chosen and trained to assist PNMs during Primary Recruitment.

Ritual: The traditional rites and ceremonies of a fraternity or sorority; these are almost always private and known only to initiated members of a fraternal organization.

Sister: An active member of a sorority.

Sisterhood: The common term for the bond between members of the same sorority.

Stroll (NPHC): A dance-like routine, normally done in a line, that displays pride and knowledge of their organization and its values. Organizations usually have national strolls and local strolls that incorporate a variety of different moves and hand signs that are unique that organization.

Stepping (NPHC): Stepping is a tradition where members synchronize their moves so that they are in a sense performing their own dance moves, without music. In stepping the members will clap, stomp with their feet, jump, chant, and create their own beat by doing so. Stepping is traditional done by NPHC organizations.