Active: A woman who has been initiated into lifelong sorority membership.

Alumna: A sorority member who has graduated from college.

Atius-Sachem Mom’s Day Sing (Atius): A variety show held during Mom’s weekend each year. Sororities and fraternities pair up, prepare a short musical, and try out for the show. The event is sponsored by Atius (a sophomore honorary) and Sachem (a junior honorary).

Bid: A formal invitation to a PNM to join a sorority.

Chapter: The local group of a national/international sorority.

Exchange: A themed party between a sorority and fraternity.

Football Block: A sorority and fraternity sit together to cheer on the Fighting Illini. A cookout usually precedes or follows the game.

Gamma Chi: A sorority member who leads a Recruitment group through the stages of Recruitment. She is unbiased and willing to honestly answer any questions about sororities and Recruitment.  Gamma Chi's contain members from all of the different Panhellenic chapters on campus. They are chosen to assist with recruitment, and, throughout the entire recruitment process, they are completely disassociated from their own chapters. There are Gamma Chi's assigned to each recruitment group, and they are able to assist with anything Potential New Members might need.

Initiation: A formal ceremony through which new members become active members of a sorority.

Legacy: A woman who’s mother, sister or grandmother is an active member or alumna of a sorority.

Limited Contact: Designated time periods before and during formal Recruitment during which there is limited contact between sorority members and PNMs. This limitation ensures fair recruiting.

New Member: A woman who has accepted a sorority’s bid for membership but has not been initiated.

Open-Air Dorms: Sleeping accommodations for sorority members who chose not to sleep in their rooms-usually a large room of bunk beds on the top floor of a chapter house.

Panhellenic Council: The inter-sorority programming and governing body.

Philanthropy: A charitable fund-raiser or service project sponsored by a sorority or fraternity.

Potential New Member (PNM): A woman who is participating in recruitment.

Quota: The maximum number of new members a sorority may accept through Recruitment.

Recommendation: A written letter sent by an alumna recommending a woman for membership in a sorority.

Sister: A term used by sorority members to refer to one another.