Find Out if Your Chapter’s Ready for Fall Rush 2024 In 3 Questions!

Sororities and fraternities all have various events every school year, but let’s be real—Rush season, or fraternity/sorority recruitment, is probably the biggest one.

It may not have been obvious to you back when you were rushing, but even exec teams and chapters get nervous about Fall Rush! After all, they all want to make a great impression on pledges, too. 

But, let’s be real—apparel chairs like you are probably one of the most stressed people for Fall Rush. Even fraternity and sorority apparel chairs get anxious because they need to make sure that even the merch draws in people. You aren’t alone in feeling the pressure!

“But we’re just getting to summer. Why should I prep for Fall Rush now?”

We know it’s still early for Fall Rush, but since it’s the event of the year for many Greek chapters, exec teams have a lot more on their plates. More than any other event you guys will prepare for, honestly.

There’s making sure everyone in the chapter knows what activities are up every day during Rush Week, preparing all supplies and resources you need so you aren’t fumbling around in front of the pledges, and, for the chapters who participate in RushTok, planning and filming your videos.

The entire chapter will be hectic, and you’ll be involved in double the work as a member and as the apparel chair. Clearing your schedule of stuff you can do way in advance goes a long way toward making sure that your fall semester won’t be unnecessarily stressful!

“I already know how to order merch. What else should I know?”

Since you already have experience with handling merch as an apparel chair, that’s already several parts of the whole task done! But, just to make sure you won’t miss anything, here are a few more things you check:

Are there any activities where you need your Fall Rush merch before the actual Rush Week?

Depending on your chapter’s plans for Fall Rush 2024, you might need to remind everyone that your group order link is closing early. Check your chapter’s Fall Rush calendar regularly weeks before summer break and coordinate with the recruitment chair (or the equivalent of one in your exec team).

For example, if you have videos to record weeks before Fall Rush for the pledges or RushTok, your shirts need to arrive before shoot dates. It’ll be glaringly obvious if someone is wearing a different thing!

Has everyone ordered their Fall Rush merch?

If you’re opening orders for merch before summer break, some members might put off getting theirs until the last minute. While they can certainly procrastinate as long as there’s plenty of time, you should always encourage everyone to order merch as early as possible. 

Check with your chapter members from time to time to see why they haven’t ordered. They might need a gentle reminder, and they’ll definitely love you for that!

Is your Bid Day merch also in progress?

One thing that makes any Rush week as hectic for apparel chairs like you is the fact that you’re essentially preparing for two events. 

Bid Day happens at the end of Fall Rush week, so that means your chapter members should have at least two pieces of merch before Rush even starts. Have a quick check-in on your Bid Day merch progress with these questions:

• Has your exec team seen the Bid Day merch designs? 
• If they’re fully approved, have you started the ordering process? If not, send your Campus Manager a quick email!
• If you already have a group order link up, has everyone in your chapter seen it or is aware of it? Nag them if you have to!! (You will probably have to) 
• Have you responded to all texts or chats from the chapter members in case they have questions about your Bid Day merch? Check your inboxes!

Fall Rush (and Bid Day!) will undoubtedly be a super hectic time for you. But with the right planning, making sure you accomplish easier tasks earlier, and the relentless ability to nag everyone to order on time, Fall Rush 2024 will be the most memorable one yet for your chapter! 

Stay tuned for Part 2 where we’ll provide Fall Rush themes and design inspo, just in case you haven’t started planning them yet.