Active: A college undergraduate who has been initiated into fraternity or sorority membership and is active at the collegiate level.
Alumni/Alumnae: Initiated fraternity or sorority members who have graduated from college.
Bid (card): A formal invitation to join a particular fraternity or sorority.
Bid Day: The day immediately following Panhellenic primary recruitment where chapters extend their invitation for membership to potential new members.
Brother: A term used by fraternity members to refer to one another.
Chapter: A local group of the larger inter/national organization.
Continuous Open Bidding (COB): A continuous process that Panhellenic Association chapters use to recruit new members outside the designated primary recruitment period to reach quota and/or Panhellenic total. Not all chapters are eligible to participate in the continuous open bidding process.
Crossing: A term used by MGC and NPHC groups to indicate that a new member has initiated and become a member of the group.
Frat: A man in a National Pan-Hellenic Council organization who refers to another member in their organization in the form of a greeting or recognition in a sociable manner. It is not acceptable to call a men's fraternity organization a "frat".
Fraternity: The name that applies to all Greek-letter organizations characterized by a ritual, pin, and strong ties to friendship and moral principles. Informally, women's fraternities are called sororities.
Hazing: Any activity by which a person intentionally or recklessly endangers the physical or mental health or safety of an individual for the purpose of initiation or admission into, affiliation with, or continued membership with any student organization. These acts are not tolerated on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus and are in direct violation of our anti-hazing policy as well as state and federal law.
House: The physical residence where the local chapter of a fraternity or sorority resides. Note: Not all fraternities and sororities have houses.
House Corporation Board: A legal entity holding title to, or leasing, any real property (land and buildings) for a chapter's living/meeting purposes. This alumni body has basic responsibilities relative to property ownership and maintenance.
Informational: A forum for individuals interested in seeking more information about a particular MGC or NPHC Chapter.
Initiation: The formal ceremony that marks the beginning of active membership.
Interfraternity Council (IFC): The governing body for men’s fraternities at UNL that are associated with the North-American Interfraternity Conference (NIC).
Intramurals: Athletic activities in which members from different chapters compete and participate in sporting events. Intramurals are organized through Campus Recreation.
Lavaliere: A pendant with an organization's Greek letters on it.
Legacy: The brother or sister, son or daughter, or grandson or granddaughter of a fraternity or sorority member. While being a legacy does not mean automatic membership into that chapter, it is looked upon favorably.
Line: Individuals participating in the MGC or NPHC new member education process.
Multicultural Greek Council (MGC): The governing and programming board for the multicultural Greek-lettered fraternities and sororities at UNL. National Affiliations include: National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations (NALFO), National Asian and Pacific Islanders Panhellenic Association (NAPA), and NIC.
National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC): The governing and programming board for the historically African-American Greek-lettered fraternities and sororities.
Neophyte (Neos): A newly initiated member into a National Pan-Hellenic Council organization.
New Member: A member of a fraternity or sorority who has not been initiated.
New Member Education: A period of learning about fraternity and sorority life prior to initiation. The length of this period varies for all chapters.
New Member Presentation: The “coming out” ceremony for those involved in the new member program with an MGC or NPHC organization.
Panhellenic Association (PHA): The governing and programming board for sororities at UNL that are associated with the National Panhellenic Conference (NPC).
Philanthropy: A charitable fundraiser or service project sponsored by a fraternity or sorority.
Potential New Member: A college woman who is seeking membership in a Panhellenic Association chapter.
Preferencing ("preffing"): During the last day of Panhellenic Association primary recruitment, a potential new member determines which particular sorority she wants to join. For sorority membership recruitment, the potential new member lists up to three sororities in her order of preference.
Priority Ranking: After the conclusion of each round of the Panhellenic Association primary recruitment, excluding preference round, a potential new member determines which chapters she would like to return to the next day.
Propyhte (Pros): A current or past member of a National Pan-Hellenic Council organization.
Quota: The specified number of potential new members to which each Panhellenic sorority may extend a bid during primary recruitment.
Recruitment: The process organizations use to recruit new members.
Recruitment Chair: The person from each chapter who is in charge of each chapter's recruitment functions.
Recruitment Guide (Rho Gamma): A Panhellenic sorority member who has disaffiliated herself from her chapter during Panhellenic membership recruitment. She is specially trained to help potential new members and answer any questions they may have about sorority membership.
Ritual: The traditional beliefs and oaths of a sorority or fraternity usually used in reference to the ceremonies of initiation as well as weekly chapter meetings. These traditions do not include any forms of hazing, because hazing weakens the bonds of brotherhood/sisterhood, and undermines the common experience of the fraternity or sorority.
Social: When two organizations, usually a sorority and fraternity, but can also be two sororities or two fraternities get together to do a planned activity.
Soror: A woman in a National Pan-Hellenic Council organization who refers to another member in their organization in the form of a greeting or recognition in a sociable manner.
Sorority: A Greek-lettered organization designated for women; also called a women’s fraternity.
Total: The allowable Panhellenic Association chapter size on campus, as determined by the council, including new and active members. Chapters that fall under total may be allowed to participate in continuous open bidding (COB) until they reach total.