Elizabeth Pulanco / Winonan

Starting a new group on campus involves many steps and cooperation from different people. This fall, Winona State University will be welcoming a new sorority, Alpha Sigma Tau, to campus.

Originally starting at Eastern Michigan University, Alpha Sigma Tau has been bringing young women together for 116 years by creating a sense of sisterhood and camaraderie.

Alpha Sigma Tau’s Growth and Extension Coordinator, Ashley Smith, has been involved with the organization for four years and has been helping with the recruiting process at Winona State.

“We’ve been tabling on campus everyday for a few weeks and we have some events that we do to give students more information about the organization,” Smith said.

As the growth and extension coordinator, Smith has travelled from the organizations headquarters in Indianapolis to recruit new students to the sorority.

When creating a new chapter at a university, Smith and her colleagues compare the values of the university and the organization.

“When we go to new campuses, we look at an institution’s mission statement and values, and Winona’s aligned nicely with ours,” Smith said.

Smith and other members of Alpha Sigma Tau have been working to start this new chapter since last semester.

“We’ll have another staff member live in Winona all semester and she will help teach all of our new members the ‘national new member program’ and help plan sisterhood events where everyone can get to know each other and really start building that sisterhood,” Smith said.

At Winona State, there are currently three sororities on campus and adding another one to the Greek community will bring in more options for new and returning students.

Gina Scott, a senior who has been a sister of local sorority Phi Theta Chi for the past four years, is happy to welcome Alpha Sigma Tau to campus.

“I am really excited about it because Winona State’s Greek community is really small compared to other schools,” Scott said. “There are not may choices for new people coming in, like when finding out which sorority fits best for them. Now there are more options for newer people.”

Unlike Alpha Sigma Tau, Phi Theta Chi is a local sorority. According to Phi Theta Chi Rush Chair Jen Rynes, there are a few differences between a national and a local sorority.

“As a local sorority, we govern ourselves and make our own rules, versus a national sorority who already have rules set,” Rynes said. “Every sorority decides when they will rush. All the national sororities rush during the same week while our rush week is the week before or after.”

Besides being excited about the new options of Greek life for incoming students, the Sisters of Phi Theta Chi are also excited about working together with the new sorority to host events.

“Usually with sororities will get together and do craft nights and outdoor games,” Scott said. “Also, one of their philanthropies is women’s wellness and one of Phi Theta Chi’s philanthropies is women’s health with a focus on breast cancer, so I was thinking it would be really cool to get together and have a huge event raising money for that.”

For Smith, recruiting in Winona was a great experience for building up the recognition of their sorority.

“Everybody is super friendly here and interested in learning more information about what we are doing,” Smith said.

For students in Winona who are already a part of different sororities, they are happy that new students will get more chances to experience the sense of sisterhood they have been able to find.

“Before being in a sorority I didn’t have a lot of good, close friends and now that I’m in a sorority, I have a lot of good friends and people that I can rely on for anything at any time of day,” Rynes said. “The sisterhood is the most important part for me. Just being with everyone is great and I love all my sisters.”

-By Elizabeth Pulanco