Hello! My name is Shelby Verble. I am going to be a sophomore at Wichita State this fall and I am a Pre- Communication Sciences and Disorders major. I am so excited to experience the other side of recruitment for the first time this year!
Before attending freshman orientation the summer before I started at WSU, I compared being in a sorority to being on the cheer team in high school. By the end of my senior year, I lost my love for cheering because of the negative atmosphere that always surrounded the cheer team. So I had no desire to go through recruitment even though two of my very best friends had already signed up. Although they kept trying to convince me, I wouldn’t budge on my impression of Greek life. I didn’t change my mind until I heard an orientation leader talk about her experiences, her love for her chapter, and Greek life in general. She described Greek life at Wichita State as very unique and different than at most universities which was enough for me to immediately go home and sign up for recruitment.
Thanks to that orientation leader, I am proud to say I am now a Greek at WSU. Not only do I love my chapter, but I also loved the recruitment process. I had the chance to form new friendships with the other girls in my recruitment group. I was the only PNM from my group to end up in my chapter which only meant I automatically had friends in every other chapter. Also, I absolutely loved my rho gamma and lucky for me, she ended up being one of my sisters!
Through the recruitment process, I found my letters in Delta Gamma! After the initial excitement of meeting my seventy-five new sisters, I decided to get involved with DG’s philanthropy on an individual level. I started volunteering weekly as my love for all of the people I was working with grew week after week! I also decided to pursue my love for recruitment further by applying for an officer position so that I could be involved with the process. Volunteering and fulfilling my role as an officer are some of my most favorite aspects of being a Greek!
During this past spring semester, I lost my mom to a battle with a terrible disease. She had been struggling with the disease since my junior year in high school so spending cherished time with her and my family was a top priority. Immediately upon joining my chapter, I was given the love and support of all of my sisters. Also, I was able to continue to spend time with my mom and my family. After losing my mom in March, I received the support of not only all of my sisters, but also from other Greeks on campus. I was shown the true meaning of Greek unity during this difficult period. Greeks, including men and women I didn’t necessarily have a personal relationship with, reached out to me and my family when we most needed it. It was at this moment that I was extremely thankful that I listened to that orientation leader because going Greek had positively impacted me and my family in a way we would have never expected.
Shelby Verble
