Spring ‘24 Bid Day

Every spring and fall since the 1870s, SUNY Geneseo Greek organizations complete the rush season with a day known as “Bid Day.” It is common to hear sorority members saying “Bid Day, best day” as it is a highly anticipated event combining weeks and months of planning.

Bid Day this year occurred on Saturday, Feb. 10 with Greek organizations giving out bids in the early morning. Air horns, megaphones, and screaming chants are commonly heard while bids are given out. Students living on campus experience a less-than-ideal wake-up every time these bids are given out, making Bid Day unpopular amongst those not involved with any Greek life organization. 

After a few hours of silence, the chaos on campus resumes once organizations return to “pick up” students who accepted their bid from the morning. It is common for the entire organization to be present during these pick-ups and for them to be singing songs to their new members. 

This semester, over 250 Geneseo students expressed their interest in various organizations by attending rush events over the past number of weeks. Students attend rush events for any organization that they are interested in, which is often referred to as “rushing around.” 

Rush events are planned by current members of organizations and often follow a theme. This is especially true with the sororities on campus. Each sorority picks a different theme and uses it to plan its events, make their banners, design their merchandise, and create different social media posts. 

Fraternities at Geneseo accept new members both in the spring and fall, but not all sororities follow this same pattern. “Local” sororities on campus accept in both the spring and fall semesters, but “national” sororities only accept new members during the spring. 

The difference between the two types of sororities is often not known by students who are not in Greek life but is fairly simple. Local sororities have been founded at Geneseo and only exist here at our college. National sororities are founded all over the country and those that are here at Geneseo are also at various colleges across the United States. 

Many fraternities at Geneseo are local, but national fraternities can also be found. Geneseo released statistics in the fall of 2023 showcasing just how many students fall into each of these respective fraternities. 

In the fall of 2023, 213 students were in a fraternal organization at Geneseo and 507 students were in a sorority. A separate third category showed that 110 students were involved in a service or professional organization. To see more about these statistics, you can visit the Geneseo website under the “Greek affairs” section. 

Greek organizations on campus differ drastically from each other even though they are often grouped in the same categories. Social, service, medicine, law, and business organizations are present here on campus and are always looking for qualifying new members. 

For those interested in Greek life here at Geneseo or, for those looking to learn more and understand Greek culture, Geneseo’s website contains a multitude of information. Lists of registered organizations at the college as well as overall information for each organization individually can be found.

Thumbnail Photo courtesy of SUNY Geneseo’s website