By Jen Lassen
Writer
First-year women were given an early glimpse into sorority life with the first annual Haunted Hunt event held on Tuesday in the Hunt Hall formal room.
This event, sponsored by the Panhellenic Council, included craft and food-making stations sponsored by each sorority and was held in the Hunt Hall Formal, which was decorated for Halloween.
Kristi Conklin, VP-Internal of the Panhellenic Council, discussed the purpose of hosting an event such as Haunted Hunt.
“The purpose of this event is to begin communication now so that meaningful relationships can develop and all questions as well as concerns of first-year women can be addressed in a fun and engaging manner,” Conklin said.
First-year women had the chance to mingle with sorority members and ask them questions about topics ranging from the rush process, conversation advice and balancing sorority life with school and other activities.
“I am very proud of the effort that the women have put into this event and hope that this will allow first-year women to feel comfortable attending sorority events,” said Jackie Petrucci, assistant director of residential education for sorority affairs.
“First-year women can hopefully begin engaging in and maintaining friendships with sorority women,” Petrucci said.
A collaboration of two delegates from every sorority joined together to plan the event.
“[There was] a lot of teamwork to ensure this event would be a valuable experience for everyone involved,” Conklin said.
Last year, the Panhellenic Council hosted a program called Something of Value. During the program, members identified key issues they wanted to address to positively change the environment on campus. One of these areas included opening dialogue much earlier in the year between sorority members and first-year women.
Haunted Hunt is the first sorority recruitment-type event of the school year, but it was intended to be very informal. The vibe of the event was “not formal like sorority recruitment, but instead more comfortable and conversational,” Petrucci said.
When asked if she would have liked to attend this type of event as a first-year, Conklin was quick to answer.
“Yes. I remember when I was a first-year I was so nervous about joining a sorority and the recruitment process. I did not know any upper-class women and I had so many questions about what to expect and what to wear. An event like this would have settled my nerves and shown me how fun sorority life is no matter what sorority you join,” she said.
“Hopefully, first-year women will leave this event with a better understanding of what sorority life at Bucknell entails, what recruitment is like, and get answers to any other questions they have concerning the process. If nothing else, we hope they have fun getting to know sorority women,” Conklin said.
The idea behind the event and its smooth execution made the first ever Haunted Hunt something that will certainly be added to the Panhellenic Council’s list of traditional activities.