For the sororities at The College of New Jersey, there’s one day that is more anticipated than the rest. Bid day. If a sorority was a full-time job, bid day would be the equivalent of pay day. Except it would be a pay day that only comes once a year.
For students unfamiliar with Greek life, “bid day” may sound like some sort of alien holiday. For those people, Bid Day is the day after Spring Formal Recruitment in which hundreds of potential new members or “PNMs” went through different rounds, meeting all 8 sororities on campus. Eventually, the PNM’s chose to accept or not accept a bid that was offered to them. In accepting, the PNM chooses to join one of the sororities.
Bid day is the perfect way to celebrate the signing of those bids – marking a new chapter for all of the sororities. It’s where months of careful planning and preparation pay off. For new members, it’s the first initiation into a lifelong network of strong and supportive women.
It’s where hundreds of girls jump off of the stage into their new sister’s arms. Initiated sisters can be seen cheering, waving balloons or decorated props with new member’s names on it. After a PNM jumps into the crowd, a sister typically accompanies them through the sea of other sisters and gives them a matching shirt.
The reveal of bid day attire is always exciting. Each sorority has their own bid day theme or outfit scheme – and they go all out. Sisters were seen clad in their organization’s matching outfits. All of which are carefully selected months prior.
The sororities gathered in TCNJ’s Brower Student center for the stage jump. This year, different organizations displayed themes such as carnival, birthday, rock n roll, and mardi gras.
After the very last girl jumped off the stage, the sororities broke off and continued the celebration with their new members.
Now, the countdown has reset to next year’s bid day.
All images courtesy of Julia Marnin.