Alumna (feminine):
A sorority member who is no longer a member of a collegiate chapter.
Alumnae (feminine):
The plural of alumna.
Alumni (masculine):
The plural of alumnus, the customary plural term when individuals are addressed.
Alumnus (masculine):
A male who is no longer a member of a collegiate fraternity chapter.
Badge:
An insignia of fraternity or sorority membership worn by initiated members. Each NPC member sorority has its own badge.
Bid:
An invitation to join a sorority or fraternity.
Bid Day:
The last day of recruitment when potential new members receive invitations (bids) to join chapters. The NPC Unanimous Agreements state there is to be no alcohol use or men associated with Bid Day.
Chapter:
A membership unit of an inter/national sorority.
Continuous open bidding (COB):
An opportunity for chapters that are not at total to bid to total. The COB process is not structured by the College Panhellenic, and only chapters with available spaces in quota/total are eligible to participate in COB.
Fraternity:
A Greek-letter sisterhood or brotherhood. NPC member organizations may be formally named as fraternities, but are referred to by NPC as sororities.
FSL:
Fraternity and Sorority Life.
IFC:
Interfraternity Council.
Initiation:
A ritual ceremony that brings new members into full membership of a sorority including its lifelong benefits. Once an individual is initiated into an NPC sorority or NIC fraternity, they are ineligible for membership in any other NPC sorority or NIC fraternity.
Letters:
The greek letters that stand for the abbreviation of each chapter’s full name. The term “Letters” may also refer to a piece of clothing that has these greek letters on them, which varies by chapter.
Membership recruitment acceptance binding agreement (MRABA):
The binding agreement signed by a potential new sorority member (PNM). The COB MRABA is used for continuous open bidding and new chapter establishment bids.
New Member:
An individual who accepted a bid from a sorority or fraternity but is not yet an active member of the chapter. As a new member, they receive education about the organization’s values and history to prepare them for initiation.
New Member Period/Program/Education:
A period of time in which new members are educated on information regarding the chapter they joined. The name, duration, and content of this period varies by chapter.
NIC:
North American Interfraternity Conference.
NPC:
National Panhellenic Conference.
PHC:
Panhellenic Council.
Pledge:
A promise made by a new member. It is a verb and should not be used as a noun to describe a new member.
PNM:
Potential New Member. Any individual who is eligible to participate in recruitment.
Sorority:
A Greek-letter sisterhood. NPC refers to all its member organizations, regardless of formal title, as sororities.
Total:
The allowable chapter size for a sorority on a campus, as determined by the College Panhellenic that includes both new and initiated members. Chapters that fall under total are allowed to participate in continuous open bidding (COB) until they reach total.
Values based recruitment:
Recruitment that focuses on conversations between chapter members and potential new members about organizational values and member organizations.